Gas generator

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A gas generator , from the English: gas generator , is a technical system for gasifying fuels.

A closed shaft furnace is used industrially to gasify solid fuels such as hard coal , lignite and coke . By introducing air or oxygen, possibly mixed with water vapor, the fuel is mainly converted into generator gas with a high carbon monoxide content or water gas with a high hydrogen content.

Carbide

The chunky solid calcium carbide , so-called carbide, is reacted with water in small pressure vessels and then supplies acetylene . By the late 1950s, this technique was widely used for mobile purposes, e.g. B. for carbide lamps , for welding and brazing until it was replaced by delivered gas bottles for the latter purposes .

Rocket engines

In liquid rocket engines of the type used to produce the fuel from a large volume of drive gas that the turbo pump drives the motors. If the catalytic decomposition of a substance (e.g. hydrogen peroxide) is used, one speaks of cold or cool propulsion, even though the water vapor-oxygen mixture produced by hydrogen peroxide reaches a temperature of 500 ° C. The oxygen contained can also be used by injecting and igniting fuel. One then speaks of a hot drive. A hot drive is also used when, instead of decomposing an auxiliary substance, part of the fuel is burned directly to drive the turbo pumps. This functional principle partly corresponds to that of classic jet engines , whereby the term gas generator is sometimes also used for combustion chambers and compressors in jet engines (see gas turbine ).

Torpedoes

The propellers of torpedoes are also powered by gas generators. Hydrogen peroxide is also used here.

Airbags

In the airbag inflator, a tablet of pyrotechnic propellant such as. B. sodium azide or guanidine nitrate decomposes.

See also