Saturday January 31st,
I had spent that afternoon banging my head against my computer trying to configure Open FOAM on my virtual Linux Mint OS before going to a Viking themed shindig.  A lot of weird and providential forces have been at work to get me to that point.  To get stuck with installation config problems (sort of a fun puzzle to be solved in my case) seemed laughable and mildly devastating.  You look lost, let me catch you up.

OpenFOAM® or Open Field Operation and Manipulation is a CFD (Computational Fluid Dynamics) toolbox learn more at http://www.openfoam.org.  What that means for me is that I can test the air dynamics and combustion properties of prototypes before actually building anything.  Then you would probably say: Prototypes of what? Then I would say: Oh, yeah… Hang on a sec.

Post Mortem Gifts From Nikolai Tesla  or How Tesla Helped Save Pulse Jet Engine Technology.

I browse the web a lot for technology.  For a long stretch I was intrigued with Pulse Jets. For more than you ever wanted to know about pulse jets check out http://www.pulse-jets.com/pulse3.htm.  Basically it’s a jet engine without the turbofan or compressor, it is really quite amazing… and loud.  So obviously I wanted to spec one out for myself to be built.  After reading some I thought to myself, Nikola Tesla’s Valve conduit would really help here.  Lo and behold that specific device was mentioned in a piece of the history of Pulse Jets.

In 1915 (I think) NT patented a valve that had a preferred flow through it.  He might have had different plans for it, he was going on about his Tesla Turbine at the time so maybe it was related to that *shrugs*. Whatever though.  He got distracted with electricity for a while after that, or maybe he wanted it to be found and figured out later…?

Yes there are PJEs that operate off of moving valves, those might even be a better fit for what I want, but a valveless PJE is so much more elegant in my opinion.

So that’s my current aim.  Design and test the Valve Conduit for use in a Pulse Jet Engine.  I have CAD’d a 3D model of the V.C. rotated so as to fit in a housing.  Now I just need to test and tweak it in Open FOAM.

I have a friend that has a 3D printer so once I get the values I want the rapid prototyping will be a cinch.

Whatever I learn from this venture will help me better understand the limitations of making a Pulse Detonation Engine, more on that later.