[Tom Vaught]

When we ran the Hydrogen Bus Program for the US Government and the Canadian Government we were required to prove 300 Hour Testing durability on the 6.8L V-10 Engine and the related components on the engine.
The Lysholm "Screw" Supercharger being one of the critical components.

So this was how the test goes on the Engine Dynometer:

IDLE 50 MIN

PEAK TORQUE --- FULL LOAD (WOT) 330 MIN (5.5 HOURS)

PEAK POWER + 5% --- (NO LOAD) 30 MIN (0.5 HOURS)

PEAK POWER + 10% --- (NO LOAD) 10 MIN

PEAK POWER --- FULL LOAD (WOT) 240 MIN (4 HOURS)

PEAK POWER + 5% --- FULL LOAD (WOT) 120 MIN (2 HOURS)

So you add up the minutes and you get approximately 780 MINUTES or 13 HOURS
for ONE CYCLE of the test. Total test was 23 CYCLES.

So now you take the total hours required 300 HOURS and divide that number by
13 hours and you get 23 days (of 13 hour testing on the dyno) to run the test.

At the end of that testing the Lysholm Screw Supercharger passed that test.

There is one US company running that Supercharger design on their Supercharged customers vehicles. WHIPPLE SUPERCHARGERS.

So getting 300 quarter mile passes on a Roots Supercharger might be a very good number on that unit before a rebuild. 300 times 8 seconds = 40 minutes of running time and if you triple that run time with PIT RUNNING you get 120 minutes of run time total.
2 hours of run time vs 300 hours of run time.

See why I am not that impressed with "the other stuff" out there.
ART WHIPPLE WAS ON TOP OF HIS GAME IN THE RACING WORLD FOR MANY YEARS.
HIS STUFF (MADE USING THE LUSHOLM SCREW TECHNOLOGY) IS VERY GOOD.

By the way the typicaslly screw Lysholm supercharger has a RPM rating of 18,000 rpm for the supercharger. Basically twice the rpm capability of most other superchargers.

Not an advertisement. Just some facts based on real world experiences.

Tom V.

[Lee]

Tom, quite interesting! Thank you for sharing your stories, I enjoy them.

[Tom Vaught]

The assumed long term engine durability Test never happens in actual use (as in the United States we have speed limits and few wide open spaces). The Autobahn has some places where you can run at near WOT for a period of time. I believe the desert race in Arizona was like 80 miles. Big Red (to my understanding) is the fastest vehicle of that type ever run on the road. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lvWJDqHZQI0
(Hope to see one of those races at some point. Ideally from a Helicopter.)

Baja Racing never gets to those speeds but they do run long stretches in the desert.
Been There done that.

So then you have Off-Shore Racing and offshore Drug Running.

A Ford Racer named Elias Delatorre raced Ford Mustangs for several years.
He was one of the first to run Turbos when everyone else was running Procharger or Vortech centrifugal superchargers.
He got married and told his new wife he was quitting Drag Racing as she thought it was too dangerous. So he went back to offshore boats. His family owns a marine in Key West I believe.

The Internet Video claims this boat is supposed to be the fastest Baja Boat in the world, (not really) (Twin Supercharged Engines 3200 HP)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=umycyesITRs

And a Different Boat.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IcMJ9kVM3XQ (Again not close)

This boat has THREE Engines and 3450 HP Naturally Aspirated.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fA9it1KP5Y0

So what would Elias D's 4 engine off shore boat make?? 4500 HP?

So again, no place to really let the engine run flat out for Hours at a time.
(Even if you could run for a few hours on the ocean, (and the boat carried over 100 gallons of fuel), you would really never come close to running for 6 hours at max RPM and HP. (Ford Research Cheats, we had a Fuel Farm with Gas Station type tanks in the ground available to keep the engine running for those hours at a time.
Fuel Truck comes in the next morning and refills the gas station type tanks.

So the engines on the road and race track will never see that kind of abuse as even the Le Mans race cars are never at WOT for 6 hours at a time (Fuel tank is not large enough).

Tom V.

[61-63]

6.8l v10 at WOT. What diameter were the fuel lines?

[JC455]

I have nothing useful to add, other than... Art Whipple- Fresno, Ca, baby!! LOL
My buddy had a shop on the other side of a connecting alley; it was always a blast to watch/see/hear them 'testing' street trucks

[Tom Vaught]

Originally Posted by 61-63

6.8l v10 at WOT. What diameter were the fuel lines?

The V-10 engine was run on the dyno using HYDROGEN GASEOUS FUEL.
The Fuel Rails, which I had installed on the engine were 1" inside diameter.
The rest of the system used matching fuel supply parts.
The Bus had a Fuel Bottle Rack in the rear of the Bus that fed the hydrogen fuel to the engine. 5 large "Torch Style" bottles in the rack.
The Airport Shuttle Buses were filled a couple of times a day as they shuttled people from the parking Lots to the Airport Terminals.

On the dyno cells, we had dedicated fuel systems for the two cells testing with Hydrogen Fuel. Those two dyno cells were fed hydrogen gas by A "FUEL FARM" HYDROGEN TANK THAT WAS FILLED DAILY. Very difficult to keep hydrogen in any normal "torch" type gas bottle. The Hydrogen gas will leak thru the bottle walls in a week.

Hydrogen Fuel is extremely clean burning, you can actually breathe the exhaust fumes without being poisoned by the gas. The Ocean has millions of years of fuel capability.
The problem is STORAGE. Air/Fuel ratio on a Hydrogen Engine is about 34 parts of air to 1 part of fuel. That is why you need a big Art Whipple style screw supercharger on a 410 cubic inch 6.8L engine.

So your question about fuel line diameter is relevant but not the same as a typical Pump Fuel type engine would use.

Tom V.

[GTOGEORGE]

The B & M Roots Superchargers were meant to go over 100,000 miles on the street/strip! Ive raced my BDS Roots Blower years and years and years and NEVER had a problem.


GTO George

[Tom Vaught]

Any quality Supercharger (Roots or Centrifugal) should have that 100,000 mile capability.

Turbos should go even longer.

Look at how many miles an "Over The Road Turbo Diesel Engine" set-up goes without durability issues.
Mark Schottler has well over 100,000K on his 7.3L Turbo Diesel Truck.
It just pays to buy quality parts the first time you do the project.

Tom V.

[GTOGEORGE]

Originally Posted by Tom Vaught

Any quality Supercharger (Roots or Centrifugal) should have that 100,000 mile capability.

Turbos should go even longer.

Look at how many miles an "Over The Road Turbo Diesel Engine" set-up goes without durability issues.
Mark Schottler has well over 100,000K on his 7.3L Turbo Diesel Truck.
It just pays to buy quality parts the first time you do the project.

Tom V.

In a perfect world. LOL!


GTO George

[61-63]

Thank you for the response.

[GTOGEORGE]

All the years I’ve been racing with a roots blower (since 1985), probably more then anyone else on this Pontiac web site I’ve only had a problem with one of them and that one I bought used off a shady guy (my fault, I trusted him).


GTO George