So back when Mazda developed the rotary they tried close toleranced through studs instead of tension bolts to help locate the engine plates radially as is popular now- as in studding.

The issue they had was as the rotor housings got hot and expanded they contacted the studs and deflected them into the side housings eventually causing cracks with thermal cycling.

This is how we ended up with loose fitting tension bolts and two big dowels as the sole radial locators of the engine stack.

Olden time natutally aspirated racers used to coat the tension bolts with RTV when assembling to damp harmonics at high rpm and keep them from snapping.

So, putting goo in tension bolt holes is a known thing.

What if this goo was a non Newtonian fluid so it would not interphere with expansion and contraction during thermal expansion/contraction cycling, but when a sudden impact like a detonation event happened the goo would go rock hard transfering the force from the rotor housings to the tension bolts surrounded in goo, and thus back into the side housings through the rock hard goo.

Does anyone have any experience using industrial non Newtonian fluid.

 

240 views, but I havent inspired anyone to reply

How would this be implemented.

I think simply slathering non-Newtonian fluid onto the tension bolts prior to insertion is a bit crude and would result in an uneven and unpredictable distribution of fluid in the bores with the tension bolts.

Perhaps one could cross drill the front of the front rotor housing into the tension bolt bores and place grease fittings.

Engine would be assembled and non-Newtonian fluid injected at the grease fittings and relieved out the tension bolt seal-o-stats seal.

Some study of seal-o-stat bleed through pressure would have to be undertaken. I could see a scenario where tension bolts were torqued to x-ftlbs for the fill and then torqued to spec after fluid transfer.

Another less invasive method (but not feasible with stock tension bolts) would be a rifle drilled tension stud with a cross port at the front threads base for fluid transfrr and a flush style grease fitting on the rear end of the tension stud.

 

Non-Newtonian fluid wiki exerpt-

In physics and chemistry, a non-Newtonian fluid is a fluid that does not follow Newton's law of viscosity, that is, it has variable viscosity dependent on stress. In particular, the viscosity of non-Newtonian fluids can change when subjected to force.

 

Given you really just want most of the volume filled, why not just a port in the housings at front and rear and bleed through with engine turned vertical. After that any gap should be so small that it doesn't matter where it migrates to? You avoid wild fastener antics or convoluted tension sequences which may interfere with good bolt/stud tension via thread contamination.

 

the old old engines used to use O Rings on the tension bolts where they pass through the rotor housings

or maybe having a special O ring is enough?

 

Good ideas.

My grease fitting idea = bad idea.
LOL- just dawned on me a typical plunger grease gun is exactly what wont work with non-Newtonian fluid fill since viscocity will increase as pressure is applied.

 

The version I've heard is using rubber hose on them to mimic the Mazda competition bolts that had rubber in the center.

 

Is this not normal? Mine have the rubber on them.

 

Ive yet to disassemble an engine at any boost level, rpm etc that has had a snapped through bolt.

 

there are liquid rtv / urethane products that could be used with studs...
before the sealing washers and nuts fill the gaps using a low vicous product and maybe apply strong vibration to help it flow and the air escape, let it cure and then install the seals and nuts