The British Steam Car Challenge

Van Cutter Romney sends us word of a British steam-powered car that will attempt to set a world record speed of 200 mph. The car, constructed on a tubular chassis, holds four boilers that deliver four megawatts of power, producing 300 bhp. The current record of 127.659 mph was established in 1906. More photos and specs at the Steam Car Club of Great Britain's site.

Comments

4MW?

[mastershake_phd]

4 mega watts? You could power a small town with that.

Re:4MW?

[jimbug]

orrrrrrrr you could drive really fast! Which is a better use of power?

Re:Damned inefficient

[frdmfghtr]

Should be well over 4000 bhp, since one bhp is 746 watts. Looks like an amazing amount of conversion loss there.

I think it's more a case where not all the energy contained in the steam is used for forward motion. The last thing you want to do is extract all that energy from the steam in the turbine, since in doing so would change the steam back into water. Water and high-speed steam turbines are not a good mix, unless you want to have shards of turbine flying about.

Instead, you extract as much energy as you can, while keeping the steam hot enough at the final turbine outlet pressure to prevent the phase change. In fact, most of the energy put into the steam (in some cases 75%) is removed AFTER the steam goes through the turbine, by way of the condensers.

Re:Damned inefficient

[xero314]

The IC engine is far more efficient in comparison. If Internal Combustion is so much more efficient why is the vast majority of energy produced on earth is converted to electricity through turbines rather than internal combustion driven generators? Gas turbine engines have been produced with a energy conversion efficiency of 46%, as compared to ICs which have reached 42% (both maximums taken from working models not theoretical). It is also easier to addapt heat recovery systems to turbine engines than it is to internal combustion. Now multi stage steam turbines actually surpass Both the IC and the Gass turbine and are capable of reaching 95% isentropic efficiency. I just think you are missing some factors in your efficiency equation.

1906 speed more impressive.

[stimpleton]

"The current record of 127.659 mph was established in 1906"

Actually, from TFA, the accepted speed was 121.57mph over one kilometer.

Regardless, I am very, very impressed by the above.

With the advent of better machining, lighter materials, and vastly better bearing and bushing technology etc of today, this makes the 1906 record all the more incredible.

I am going to make a fairly spectacular statement. This small team, in 1906, was as clever as the 14 person combined team that is doing the current days project.