Chapter 623: Chapter 528: Great Strength and Flying Bricks, Dennis’s Explosive Propulsor_2
And this time, he wanted to take advantage of the shockwave generated by an explosion!
This was not an impossibility; in fact, they had already been widely utilizing this force in weaponry, such as bullets and cannons that relied on the explosive power of gunpowder for high-speed attacks against the enemy, and even internal combustion engines which relied on internal combustion reactions to provide power.
This fully demonstrates that explosions are the primary propulsive force!
“You’re absolutely crazy, Dennis,” Tim rolled his eyes, “creating a fighter jet is practically building a flying bomb! It might be more fitting to call it a suicidal flying machine.”
“As long as there’s sufficiently strong material that can withstand high temperatures and shock force, plus a reasonable structure that can maximize the use of this shock force, there would be no problems at all!” Dennis said assertively.
His experiment had undoubtedly proven this point; compared to the violent shock force of an explosion, the pushing force provided by a propeller was extremely weak!
Dennis pointed at each part of the thruster and introduced them one by one.
The interior of the explosive thruster contained three chambers.
The first chamber had an Alchemy Array inscribed in it to continually produce pure oxygen, while the second chamber was responsible for conveying pure hydrogen. They would be delivered into the third chamber at a steady rate through a pipeline, mixed and then ignited, and finally, the high-temperature, high-speed explosive airflow would blast out from the rear end of the thruster, producing a terrifying thrust…
“I’ve already tested that pure oxygen and hydrogen alone won’t cause a combustion reaction, so the first and the second chamber are safe,” Dennis continued, “and the pipelines filled with gas block the return path of the explosive airflow, forcing it to only blast out from the rear nozzle…”
Dennis elaborated swiftly and in detail about his design philosophy, then turned his head towards Lynn, boasting proudly.
“What do you think? Speaker Lynn, how is this explosive thruster I’ve developed?”
“Well, I can only say… it’s simple, straightforward, and clear!” After hearing Dennis’s explanation, Lynn painfully squeezed out these words.
The design principle of Dennis’s invention was actually just four words in Chinese—force so strong, bricks fly!
It was so simple that it was almost ridiculous!
When initially designing aircraft, the reason he considered propeller-driven planes rather than jet planes was due to the high difficulty in making jet engines.
Before arriving at the Alchemy Institute, he had been puzzled over how Dennis had managed to solve so many problems a year before. The outcome was obvious; Dennis didn’t plan to solve those issues at all. What he made was something between a jet engine and a rocket thruster.
This thing wasn’t entirely unusable, but as Dennis himself said, how to make materials that can withstand high temperatures and shock force posed a huge problem.
The power of the hydrogen-oxygen mixture explosion was terrifying, and its danger could be somewhat gauged by how much damage had been done to this alchemy workshop.
Lynn’s praise clearly made Dennis extremely happy. It was the joy of having one’s achievements recognized, even more so by this so-called star of magic.
A group of Alchemists, along with Lydia, Darren, and dozens of halflings, were nervously making final adjustments and conducting checks, reporting from time to time.
“The Hydrogen and Oxygen Mixed Transmission Array is functioning normally!” “The first chamber is also problem-free.” “Some damage has appeared inside the second chamber, likely due to metal fragments from the explosion entering the chamber…”
“This side’s metal inner wall is severely damaged. We’ve already used the toughest metal and reinforced it with a fireproof Array, but it still couldn’t withstand the high temperatures and pressure from the explosion…” Lydia lifted her hand high, her originally fair cheeks covered in grease and dust, looking black as pitch.
“It seems the problem with the last failure lies here!” Listening to the reports from the Alchemists, Dennis kept nodding, then continued, “Then, this time, let’s reduce the fuel delivery speed by thirty percent, adjust the hydrogen-oxygen combustion ratio, and try again. We’re already very close to success!”
Lydia nodded excitedly. Although Dennis had said similar things hundreds of times lately, the experiment just now was different from the previous failures because the explosive thruster indeed started to operate.
Even though it had exploded again after only a minute, at least there was a glimpse of the dawn of completion!
Dennis took a deep breath and silently prayed that this time it would be a success. This was crucial for the future funding of research and the ongoing development of the explosive thruster…
With the joint efforts of all the half-humans, the cylindrical metal thruster over two meters long was quickly reassembled. Ten alchemists used magic to join the pieces at the seams, placed counterweights, attached wings, and the most rudimentary imitation flying device was completed.
“Experiment number three hundred sixty-seven, ready to begin!” Dennis said with immense anticipation.
Upon hearing this, all the half-humans who were gathered near the thruster quickly retreated to the protective wall fifty meters away. Even Wizard Lydia and the other alchemists stepped back ten meters and cast several protective spells on themselves.
Dennis was very confident in this trial and, because he had means to protect himself, he did not budge at all.
Lynn also did not retreat, as even if an accident happened, it could not possibly harm him.
Tim, who was standing nearby, originally wanted to hide, but seeing that both Lynn and Dennis hadn’t moved, he had to brace himself and stand his ground. He comforted himself with the thought that, after all, he was a great wizard, and he shouldn’t be blown to pieces…
After everyone had taken cover, Dennis pressed the activation button. As soon as the Alchemy Array inside the thruster was activated, a large amount of magic power was transformed into a specific ratio of hydrogen and oxygen and was pumped into the third cylinder, causing an instant explosion.
A deafening roar that could burst eardrums rang out in the workshop. The entire thruster shook violently, and then a scorching jet of flame erupted from the tail of the thruster.
Under the powerful impact of the explosion, even the devices used to anchor it below creaked. Tim’s heart leaped to his throat, fearing the thing might just blow up.
Lynn had his domain deployed, ready to deal with the worst-case scenario, while Lydia and others stared unblinkingly at the trembling thruster.
One second, ten seconds, thirty seconds, sixty seconds…
The minute passed quickly, and although the metal on the outer side of the thruster had turned red-hot from the high temperature, the anticipated explosion did not occur!
“We did it, we really did it!” an alchemist shouted immediately, his face flush with ecstatic joy.
The other wizards also could hardly contain their excitement, and Lydia was especially overjoyed, cheering and jumping for joy.
Dennis was undoubtedly the most thrilled one. The concept of using blast waves for propulsion had been in his mind for a long time, and now, after a year and a half of hard work, he had finally turned that initial concept into a tangible result!
“What’s the speed? What’s the speed?” Dennis eagerly grabbed the alchemist in charge of monitoring and asked.
A thrust detection device had been installed beneath the thruster, which could easily determine the strength of thrust provided by the device.
“About seven hundred kilometers per hour!” The alchemist’s face was full of amazement.
“It’s doubled…It has indeed doubled!” Dennis pounded his left fist into his palm, excitedly muttering to himself.
Tim’s eyes bulged with disbelief, and Lynn also clicked his tongue in amazement. He had originally thought it was too early to be working on jet propulsion, but now Dennis had taught him a lesson with his actions, showing him what it means to solve problems with magic and alchemy!