Gary's Jet Journal

Afterburner test

During the initial testing of the afterburner, I could not get the unit to light. All I could ever get was a big cloud of diesel fog from the jet pipe. Back to the drawing board.

Afterburner test 2

On try number two I had more of the same results. It seems that I had built a huge insect fogger with extreme efficiency, but I wanted an afterburner! I needed to do more research on afterburners so that I could get my design working.

Afterburner fuel nozzle

I thought that I was not getting enough of a vaporization of the fuel so I made a different nozzle. The idea is that as the fuel came out of the pipe it would shear off of the paddle and vaporize. With better atomization of the fuel, I was sure I could get it to light.

Flame holder

I created a flame holder inside the afterburner pipe. The fuel rushing around the flame holder would slow down on the back side and create a low pressure area to help the atomization even further.

Down the afterburner

Looking from the other end of the pipe at the flame holder.

Nozzle and flame holder

Air entering the afterburner would first come to the fuel injector, and then immediately go to the flame holder. You can make out the fuel injector nozzle here, sitting right in front of the flame holder. The atomization paddle on the injector is directly centered with the flame holder.

Testing the afterburner

The afterburner tried to light during this test. Still no success, but I was getting closer!

Just smoke

Again, I was presented with a lot of smoke, but no fire.

More smoke

What was going on? I had lots of smoke, but no fire! IT did help to keep insects away however.

FIRE!

Finally, I got the afterburner to light. It wasn't very stable, but I did have fire.

Settling down

With a little tinkering, the flame seemed to get better and better. Just when I was getting excited, things took a turn for the worse.

Engine quit running

The engine quit running. Without the airflow from the engine, the afterburner fuel will continue to burn, but not in a tight controlled pattern.

Big fire

With the afterburner fuel still on, a nice big fire got started. After roasting a goat on the neighbors farm, I managed to shut off the fuel. The goat was tasty.

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Warning! The projects depicted in this website can be dangerous. While this website is not intended to be an instructional course on how to build these projects, we do realize that individuals may attempt to build their own versions. We highly suggest that you take all appropriate safety precautions when dealing with machinery, and use extreme care while operating jet engines. Serious injury or death can occur while operating a jet turbine engine in close proximity, due to explosive fuels and moving parts. Extreme amounts of potential and kinetic energy are stored in operating engines. Always use caution and good judgment while operating engines and machinery, and wear appropriate eye and hearing protection.