www.jdrr5.co.

cc
www.theo7.co.cc
General Requirement of Aircraft Engine
An aircraft engine must be:
reliable, as losing power in an airplane is a substantially
greater problem than an automobile engine seizing. Aircraft
engines operate at temperature, pressure, and speed
extremes, and therefore need to operate reliably and safely
under all these conditions.
Durable: It is the amount of engine life obtained while
maintaining the desired reliability
lightweight, as a heavy engine increases the empty weight
of the aircraft & reduces its payload.
powerful, to overcome the weight and drag of the aircraft.
small and easily streamlined; large engines with substantial
surface area, when installed, create too much drag, wasting
fuel and reducing power output.
repairable, to keep the cost of replacement down. Minor
repairs should be relatively inexpensive.
fuel efficient to give the aircraft the range the design
requires.
capable of operating at sufficient altitude for the aircraft
www.jdrr5.co.cc
www.jdrr5.co.cc
www.jdrr5.co.cc
Powerplant Selection
www.jdrr5.co.cc
Types of reciprocating Engine
Inline Engine
This type of engine has cylinders lined
up in one row. It typically has an even
number of cylinders.
The biggest advantage of an inline
engine is that it allows the aircraft to be
designed with a narrow frontal area for
low drag.
The disadvantages of an inline engine
include a poor power-to-weight ratio,
because the crankcase and crankshaft
are long and thus heavy.
An in-line engine may be either air
cooled or liquid cooled, but liquid-cooling
is more common because it is difficult to
get enough air-flow to cool the rear
cylinders directly
Example: Wright Flyer
Inverted inline engine
www.jdrr5.co.cc
Opposed or O-type Engine
An opposed-type engine has
two banks of cylinders on
opposite sides of a centrally
located crankcase. The
engine is either air cooled or
liquid cooled
Due to the cylinder layout,
reciprocating forces tend to
cancel, resulting in a smooth
running engine free from
vibration.
Low weight to power ratio
www.jdrr5.co.cc
V-Type engine
Cylinders in this engine are
arranged in two in-line
banks, tilted 30-60 degrees
apart from each other
The vast majority of V
engines are water-cooled.
The V design provides a
higher power-to-weight ratio
than an inline engine, while
still providing a small frontal
area.
www.jdrr5.co.cc
Rotary Engine
Rotary engines have all the
cylinders in a circle around the
crankcase like a radial engine
(see below), but the difference
is that the crankshaft is bolted
to the airframe, and the
propeller is bolted to the
engine case.
The entire engine rotates with
the propeller, providing plenty
of airflow for cooling
regardless of the aircraft's
forward speed.
Unfortunately, the severe
gyroscopic effects from the
heavy rotating engine made
the aircraft very difficult to fly.
Le Rhone 9C rotary aircraft engine
www.jdrr5.co.cc
Radial Engine
This type of engine has one or more rows
of cylinders arranged in a circle around a
centrally-located crankcase. Each row must
have an odd number of cylinders in order to
produce smooth operation
A radial engine has only one crank throw
per row and a relatively small crankcase,
resulting in a favorable power to weight
ratio.
The lower cylinders, which are under the
crankcase, may collect oil when the engine
has been stopped for an extended period
causing serious damage due to hydrostatic
lock
In military aircraft designs, the large frontal
area of the engine acted as an extra layer
of armor for the pilot. However, the large
frontal area also resulted in an aircraft with
a blunt and aerodynamically inefficient
profile.
The power output varies from 100 to 3800
hp
www.jdrr5.co.cc
Principles of Operation
www.jdrr5.co.cc
Reciprocating Engine Power and Efficiencies
Piston displacement: The
volume displace by the piston is
known as piston displacement
Compression Ratio: In a piston
engine it is the ratio between
the volume of the cylinder and
combustion chamber when the
piston is at the bottom of its
stroke, and the volume of the
combustion chamber when the
piston is at the top of its stroke.
The compression ratio is
defined as (Swept Volume +
Clearance Volume) / Clearance
Volume
www.jdrr5.co.cc
Indicator Horse Power:
Indicated mean effective pressure is an average
pressure value that theoretically must be present
in a cylinder of an engine during the power
stroke to generate the maximum horsepower
possible, given the pressures recorded within
the cylinder during a dynamometer test.
IHP = PLANK/33,000
P - indicated mean effective pressure
L - length of stroke
A - area of piston head in square inches
N - number of power strokes per minute
K - number of cylinders
www.jdrr5.co.cc
Brake Horsepower
The power developed to the propeller for useful
work is called brake horsepower
Prony brake dynamometer
3300
2 rpm length force
bhp

www.jdrr5.co.cc
Friction Horsepower
FRICTION HORSEPOWER is the difference
between indicated horsepower and brake horse-
power
Thrust Horsepower
Propeller efficiency refers to the percentage of
Brake Horsepower (BHP) which gets converted
into useful Thrust Horsepower (THP) by the
propeller. The propeller is never 100% efficient.
Therefore the propeller efficiency is always a
number less than one.
Neta is propeller efficiency.
www.jdrr5.co.cc
Propeller Efficiency
where J is Advance ratio, n is rpm and D is propeller diameter, V is TAS
The most efficient J depends
upon the propeller blade angle.
Course propellers (large blade
angles) will be more efficient at
larger advance ratios. Fine pitch
propellers will be more efficient at
small advance ratios.
When choosing a fixed pitch
propeller an aeronautical
engineer usually chooses
one, which is optimum for
cruise.
www.jdrr5.co.cc
Efficiencies
Thermal Efficiencies:
The ratio of useful work done by an engine to
the energy of the fuel it uses is called thermal
efficiencies
25 to 30% useful power
15 to 20% lost in cooling
5 to 10% lost in overcoming friction
40 to 45% lost through exhaust
Useful power can be increased by increasing the
compression ratio
Indicated thermal efficiencies =
i.h.p 33000
wt of fuel burned/min heat value 778
www.jdrr5.co.cc
Mechanical Efficiencies:
In an engine it is the ratio of brake horsepower to
indicated horsepower.
The factor greatest effect mechanical effect is the friction
within the engine. Mechanical efficiency is high when the
engine is running at the rpm at which max b.h.p is
developed.
Note: Friction remain practically constant for an engine
p h i
p h b
efficiency mechanical
. .
. .
..
www.jdrr5.co.cc
Volumetric Efficiency
It is a comparison of the volume of fuel/air
charge conducted into the cylinders to the
total piston displacement of the engine
Factors decrease volumetric efficiency
Part throttle operation
Long intake pipes of small diameter
Sharpe bend in intake pipe
Carburetor air temperature to high
Cylinder head temperature to high
Incomplete scavenging
Improper valve timing
www.jdrr5.co.cc
Propulsive efficiency
It is the ratio of thrust horsepower to brake
horsepower. Ranges to 80-85%
Loss is due to friction and slippage
Controlling the blade angle is the best
method to maximize propulsive efficiency
During take off less blade angle
During high speed or diving more blade angle
www.jdrr5.co.cc
END
www.jdrr5.co.cc