The odd questions thread

[Clave]

I shall be asking some questions here which don't make sense, but will be grateful to get answers that do make sense:

1st: Could you run a modern jet on the fuel they were using in 1940?

If not, could modern fuel be refined from existing stocks at that time?

 

[Matt308]

I'm not a chemist, but yes you could. However, the lifecycle of the modern turbojet/turbofan engine would be greatly jeopardized since the 1940s fuel did not contain the detergents that modern fuel contains. However, the kinetic energy per fuel mass implies that it certainly could be used.

 

[ccheese]

Wouldn't that depend on which country's fuel you'd be using ? If you recall,
Italy's avgas was so bad it killed the P-38's engines.

Charles

 

[Clave]

Oh, it would be Britain... I guess fuel was imported from the US in those days?

 

[mkloby]

Turbine engines can combust a wide array of fuel, so it is possible. As Matt alluded to, the continued reliable operation of the engine on avgas would be suspect.

 

[Clave]

OK

2nd: How does the ammunition compare between now and 1940?

I'm talking about cannon shells and the specific explosive power in the cartridge.

Also, does a longer barrel give you more range, or just more accuracy?

 

[mkloby]

OK

2nd: How does the ammunition compare between now and 1940?

I'm talking about cannon shells and the specific explosive power in the cartridge.

Also, does a longer barrel give you more range, or just more accuracy?

I'm not an arty guy, so I can't help too much with ballistics. However, longer barrels I believe generally give higher muzzle velocities, which both give more effective range and accuracy up to a given point where they then tend to decrease accuracy and range (due to rigidity and recoil control). Someone that has a better grasp on ballistics should be able to better answer though.

 

[SoD Stitch]

Wouldn't that depend on which country's fuel you'd be using ? If you recall,
Italy's avgas was so bad it killed the P-38's engines.

Charles

I believe he's talking about jet fuel, not avgas; avgas WAS quite a bit different from country to country. IIRC, the US had the "best" (read: most refined) avgas during WWII. And, yes, the Allison V-1710's on the P-38 were quite tempermental in this respect (though I suspect it had more to do with the turbosupercharging on the P-38 than the engines themselves).

In any case, jet fuel is, basically, jet fuel; I know the Avco-Lycoming gas turbine engine in the M-1 Abrams will run on just about anything, including cooking grease, diesel, refined kerosene, and gasoline (which is why it's called a "multi-fuel" engine). Just about anything that can be injected into the combustion chamber of a modern gas turbine will probably work, but you might not develop a whole lot of power with it.