THEORY: Reciprocating Engine Vibration

By Lloyd Johnson

Piston Engine Vibration

An internal combustion engine produces power using the extremely rapid

pressure pulse of burning air fuel mixture above the piston. These powerful
pulses of energy cause the engine to vibrate in response. Engine designers do
their best to make these forces cancel out to minimize vibrations. But, no matter
how well the designer does his job, he cannot eliminate all inherent vibrations in
an engine. Therefore we need to remember that it is perfectly normal for an IC
(Internal combustion) engine to produce a characteristic vibration spectrum
signature. Vibration analysis of IC engines then must focus on "variations" from
the "normal" vibration signature.

Normal Vibration Signature

Each combustion pulse acts much like a hammer blow, hitting the engine block
with a pulse of energy. The vibration spectrum of such a pulse is a series of
vibration spectral lines. These spectral lines will be at integer multiples of the
firing rate of each piston. In a four stroke engine the piston fires every other
revolution, therefore the fundamental spectral line will be at 1/2 the engine RPM,
often called the 1/2 order vibration. The result will be a vibration signature that
has spectral lines at the 1/2 order, 1P, 1-1/2P, 2P, 2-1/2P, 3P ... etc. In our
experience, we have found that most 4 and 6 cylinder horizontally opposed IC
engine produce these spectral lines in varying patterns but the levels are usually
in the range of .2-.5 IN/S. For unknown reasons we have found it is not
uncommon for an engine to produce a 2P or 2-1/2P vibration in the range of .5-
1.0 IN/S. These readings are taken on the ground at typically 2500 RPM.

1/2 Order Vibrations

It turns out that if all of the pistons produce nearly identical combustion pulses,
the 1/2 order vibration will be very small, .1-.3 IN/S. When any one cylinder
produces less power than the rest, the 1/2 order vibration will increase from .3
IN/S on up to over 1 IN/S for a misfire. Mechanics know very well what can cause
one cylinder to be weak. Plug misfire, bad plug, plugged injector, broken ring,
leaky valve, low compression, bad magneto, worn cam, collapsed lifter, etc. Any
of these things can cause a higher than normal 1/2 order vibration.

1/2 order vibration are especially troublesome as they can be felt in the cabin by
the pilot. Low frequency vibrations are not well isolated by most engine mounts,
and the vibration will shake the entire aircraft. If not taken care of, a 1/2 order
vibration can loosen rivets, hinges, and pivots all over the airframe, as well as
causing premature pilot fatigue. This is a serious safety issue.

1P Vibrations

1P vibrations are usually dominated by propeller imbalance. Happily we can

correct this with propeller dynamic balance. 1P vibrations can also be caused by
unequal piston mass. Pistons and cylinders are often replaced 1 jug at a time,
and once in a great while the wrong weight piston is used due to error. In
horizontally opposed engines, this will produce a 1P vibration in the horizontal
plane, but little vibration in the vertical plane. An out of balance prop will produce
nearly equal vertical and horizontal vibrations. If the rear of the engine has a high
1P vibration that is not corrected by balancing the prop, piston mass imbalance is
the most likely cause.

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