Today in class, I was the heat lab with Taryn and Lucy. We had to make a heat shield to protect our 'rocket' from the flame of a porpane torch. The 'rocket' was a screw attached to a stick with some glue. The stick was then attached to the worktable with some sort of device. I don't know what it is called. The point of the project was to keep the glue from getting hard for a long time. When the glue heated up enough, the 'rocket' would fall on the table, and then we would write down how long the 'rocket' stayed on the stick.
So our first trial had foil, a nut, some mesh, and then the rocket. It last 11.94 seconds. We hadn't thought of a camera yet, so we didn't take any pictures. Our second trial had a nut, foil, folded mesh, washer, then the rocket. It lasted 33.13 seconds, and we took two pictures. On the third trail, we had crinkled foil, washer, mesh, a nut, then the rocket It lasted 52.09 seconds, and we took three pictures. The fourth trial had wrapped foil, flat foil, mesh, a washer, then the rocket. It lasted 19.6 seconds, and we took three pictures. The fifth trail had foil wrapped around mesh like a flower bud, washer, then glue. It lasted 25 seconds, and we got one picture. The sixth trial had a nut w/ foil wrapped around it, mesh, and then glue. It lasted 38.9 seconds, and we got one picture. Our seventh and last trial had foil and mesh wrapped like a package, then a nut, then the rocket. It lasted 21.28 seconds, and we got two pictures.
We tried an eighth trail after we closed the computer camera and the word document that we were taking notes on. It didn't stay up as long as the strongest heat shield did (52.09 seconds) but it did stay up for at least 20 seconds.
I am going to put up pictures of the three longest lasting heat shields Friday.