Blue Flame (automobile)

The Blue Flame is a rocket-powered vehicle that was driven by Gary Gabelich and achieved the world land speed record on Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah on October 23, 1970. The vehicle set the FIA world record for the flying mile at 622.407 mph (1,001.667 km/h) and the flying kilometer at 630.388 mph (1,014.511 km/h).

The Blue Flame was constructed in Milwaukee, Wisconsin by Reaction Dynamics, a company formed by Pete Farnsworth, Ray Dausman and Dick Keller who had developed the first hydrogen peroxide rocket dragster, called the X-1 and driven by Chuck Suba. The Blue Flame used a combination of high-test peroxide and liquified natural gas (LNG), pressurized by helium gas. The effort was sponsored by the American Gas Association, with technical assistance from the Institute of Gas Technology of Des Plaines, IL.

Reaction Dynamics was formed in 1965 and started out as "DFK Enterprises", for Dausman, Farnsworth and Keller. At that time Keller worked part-time as a research assistant into gas technology at the Illinois Institute of Technology, which was the research arm of the American Gas Association. Farnsworth was a top alcohol dragster racer.

The engine of the Blue Flame was designed by Reaction Dynamics, and some of the components were manufactured by Galaxy Manufacturing of Tonawanda, New York. Galaxy Mfg. was formed in 1966 by Donald J Magro and Gerald Muhs and was principally engaged in flow control systems, cavitating venturi, and precision machining fields.

The Blue Flame's engine is a regeneratively cooled, liquid-propellent engine of the variable thrust type. It can operate on either a single- or dual-propellant basis. In operation, the engine permits natural gas use as a liquid or gas or both with a two-stage combustion start. The oxidizer flow is established first, then LNG enters a heat exchanger where it vaporizes and is brought to combustion temperature. The gas is then injected into the combustion chamber with the oxygen provided by the hydrogen peroxide. A stable flame front is established and the remaining LNG is injected to bring the engine to full power.

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