Some talk on HomeBuiltAirplanes.com forums brought up the question, has someone ever used nitrous oxide on a rotary aircraft install?  I'm pretty sure a supercub-type plane did that awhile back (on a Lyco) for a super short takeoff roll using a fixed pitch cruise prop (with a crapton of HP at takeoff).  That's close to my application in the end, probably with a N/A 20B, hence the interest.

Tracy, how would your EC3 handle short bursts of nitro?  Would that totally throw the mixture curve, would I need to manual adjust while doing it, or would it auto compensate somehow?

Thanks!

Dustin
Rockford, IL

That answer is just this morning on Paul Lamar's news group.   http://www.rotaryeng.net/index.html

 

With a dyno sheet from a turbo and Nitrous drag racer

 

501 HP and 414 foot pounds at about 5,500 RPM. 

 

Nitrous contains oxygen, and a heavy dose of fuel is injected (from a 3rd injector?) along with the Nitrous to account for the HP gain and to help cool the pieces. The mixture is then way over rich.

 

Ken Welter has this figured out, and does this to get his sea plane up on the step. He also shuts off the trailing ignition during Nitrous to prevent detonation. This is a good application for the expensive ceramic apex seals.

 

When you double the HP, parts that had been deemed reliable often turn up in the oil pan. This is not a project for the timid. Practice engine out landings before hitting that Nitrous button the first time.

 

I do not know the ignition timing used during a Nitrous shot, but suspect it is close to zero.

 

Lynn E. Hanover