What happens if you throw sand into a jet engine?

This video gives a playful yet deep dive into what makes jet engines tick—from the basics of airflow and massive turbine blades to the fancy nickel-based superalloys and single-crystal casting tricks that keep everything from melting at hundreds of degrees. You’ll get a backstage pass to Rolls-Royce’s precision casting facility, learn about gamma-prime strengthening and crystal structures, and even trace jet-engine history back to the very first models.

When it comes to sand ingestion, our experiments show that stray grains can turn into molten glass, sand‐blast blade edges, disrupt cooling passages and ultimately lead to catastrophic blade failure. In short, even tiny bits of grit can spell doom for a roaring jet turbine.

Watch on YouTube