Exploring the Extreme Educator Guide pdf - ER - NASA

Objective• To build a model to demonstrate howthrust is created in a jet engine.Science StandardsScience as InquiryPhysical SciencePosition and Motion of ObjectsUnifying Concepts and ProcessesEvidence, Models, and ExplanationScience Process SkillsObservingCommunicatingCollecting DataMaking ModelsControlling VariablesLesson 1: Jet PropulsionGrades 5 - 8Background InformationA turbine engine works in four basic stages.Outside, or ambient, air enters the enginethrough the air inlet. The air then moves intothe compression section of the engine. In thissection the compressor increases the airpressure, which also increases its temperature.From there the air is forced into the burnersection, where the temperature is furtherincreased by fuel combustion. The hot,expanding air then moves into the turbine,which drives the compressor. The air expandsthrough a tailpipe designed to discharge theexhaust gas at high velocity, producing thrust.CompressorCombustion ChamberTurbinesMathematics StandardsCommunicatingReasoningConnectionsManagementThis activity works best if the students workin pairs. Allow approximately 40-45 minutesto complete. This is activity is divided intotwo parts. In part 1 the students move throughthe three stations discovering what happens asdifferent forces act on air. Then studentsprocess what they observed and compile itinto the correct arrangement to describe how aturbojet engine produces thrust. Thisexperiment stresses prediction, observation,data collection, and analysis of results. In part2 the students construct a model of a jetengine, label each part, and describe whateach part does. An optional teacherdemonstration may be used to bring the threestages together into a single event.EngineAir IntakeEngine CaseEngine Tailpipeand Jet NozzleDescriptionUsing a series of stations, students discoverhow an engine takes in air, compresses it,burns fuel to make air expand, and how the airis then forced out the tailpipe, creating thrust.There is also an optional teacherdemonstration combining all thesecomponents into a single tennis ball–containerengine.Part 2 involves building a static, or nonmoving,model of a jet engine. At the end ofthe lesson, students will use technical writingskills to explain how a jet engine works.32High Performance Learning Activities in Mathematics, Science and TechnologyEG-2003-01-001-DFRC