Lecture 3b: Aircraft Engines

1903- 1940s: Propeller +

Piston Engines Era

From 1903 (Wright bros.)

until the Early 1940s, all

aircraft used the piston
engine combined with
propeller as their
propulsion system.
Piston engine is just
similar with car engine
except with several
different.
A propeller is
essentially a type of fan
which transmits power
by converting rotational
motion into thrust to
propel the aircraft (move
forward).

Piston engine uses

the energy produced
by burning a mixture
of air and fuel to
drive the propeller.

Piston engine
Main parts

Piston engine
Different configurations of piston
engines

Piston engine

Examples
Piper PA-28 Cherokee
Engine(s):
- Lycoming piston engine
- 4 cylinders
- 110 hp
Propeller(s):
- 2 blades fixed pitch
Performance:
- Max. speed 127kt
- Operational ceiling 11000 feet

Piston engine
Examples
Antonov AN-2
Engine(s):
-PZL piston engine, RADIAL
-9 cylinders
-1000 hp
Propeller(s):
-4 blades variable pitch
Performance:
-Max. speed 139kt
-Operational ceiling 13000 feet
(approx.)

The differences between piston

aircraft engines and car engines
Crankshaft The crankshaft in an piston aircraft

engine turns a propeller, crankshaft in car engine is

used to move the wheels of the car.
Weight the piston aircraft engine must be
lightweight compare to car engine.
Power demand to run the engines- the piston
aircraft engine demands high power for very long
times compare to car engines
Numbers of engine parts - an aircraft engine has at
least two sets for every parts, including ignition
system (spark plugs and magnetos) and fuel pumps
compare to car engine that only have one set.
Operating environment different- an aircraft
engine no need radiator for air-cooling compare to
the car.

Propeller + Piston
Engine Aircraft
Very efficient for low speed flight.
Lower load capacity compared to similar sized

jet powered aircraft.

Consumes less fuel, thus cheaper and much
more economic than jets.
Quiet, but fly at lower speeds.
The best option for people who need to transport
a few passengers and/or small amounts of cargo.
Best choice for pilots who wish to own their own
aircraft.
Propellers are not used on high speed aircraft.

Jet Engine History

1931: 1st turbojet engine designed

1930 by Sir Frank Whittle

1939: The 1st jet aircraft (Heinkel He
178) was developed in England and
Germany
1943: The first jet fighter aircraft,
Messerschmitt Me 262 went into service
in the German Luftwaffe.

History of Aircraft Propulsion

1944 (After World War 2)-Today :
Airplanes used

jet engines to generate

thrust.
Jet engines also referred to as Gas Turbine
Engines.
Various types (turbo-jet, turbo-prop, turboshaft, turbo-fan , ramjet, scramjet)
Messerschmitt Me-262 : 1st operational jetpowered aircraft
German V-1 bomb (pulse jet engine): 1st
application for military purposes.
Bell P-59: 1st American aircraft
MiG-15: 1st Soviet jet aircraft.

Jet Engines
Jet aircraft make use of turbines for the

creation of thrust.
Consumes more fuel but provide much more
thrust than a piston engine.
Fly faster than propeller driven aircraft.
Greater weight capacity
Example: Airbus A340 and Boeing 777, can
carry hundreds of passengers and several
tons of cargo, and are able to travel for
distances up to 13 thousand kilometers.
Noisy, this makes jet aircraft a source of noise
pollution.

Newton's 3rd law

The theory of jet propulsion is based on the

Newtons third Law, which state that For every

action there is an equal and opposite

reaction.

When the jet engine is operating, it draws a lot of

air from the front and after air-fuel burns the gas
ejects at high speed.

During this process, the engine applies force to

the gas and lets the gas accelerate in the

backward direction and in the meantime, the gas
also gives the engine a reactive force to push the
aircraft to move forward.

Turbo-jet Engine

Thrust

Newton's 3rd law: For every action there is an

equal and opposite reaction. This is called
thrust.

Inlet- inlet is the opening at the front of engine, it allows the outside air

to enter the engine.

Compressor compressor is made up of fans with many blades, it
compress the air and raises the pressure & temperature of the air, the
compressed air then is delivered to the burner.
Burner Burning process occur here. Fuel is sprayed to the compressed
air .The mixture of the fuel + air will be burned. The results is heated gas
with high energy, high pressure and high temperature.
Turbine- turbine used some of the heated gas energy to turn the
compressor . This energy is transferred through the shaft.
Nozzle- The balance of heated gas energy exits through the nozzle at
very high speed. This causes thrust.
As the jets of gas shoot backward, the engine and the aircraft are thrust
forward. (Newton 3rd Law)

Turbo-prop Engine

The propeller located at the front of engine

The propeller converts the power
developed by the engine into thrust as
efficiently as possible under all operating
conditions.
These aircraft are popular with regional
airlines, as they tend to be more economical
on shorter journeys.
Hercules-1 C130

Turbo-fan Engine
Similar to the turboprop, except a fan

replaces the turboprop propeller.

Larger fan at the front provides thrust in
the same way as a propeller.
The turbofan engine has a front fan, which
runs at the same speed as the compressor
and fan turbine located at the back to drive
the fan.
Most modern airliners use turbofan engines
because of they can produce high thrust,
lower fuel consumption and low engine-noise.

Rocket Engine
A rocket engine produces thrust by burning a

fuel at high pressure and exhausting the gas

through a nozzle.
The oxygen for combustion is carried with the
propulsion system.
High temperatures and pressures is built up,
the are used to accelerate the exhaust gases
through a rocket nozzle to produce thrust.
The heavier the rocket , the greater thrust
needed to get it off the ground.
Newton 3rd Law: To every action there is an
equal and opposite reaction."

17

Differences between Jet

engine and Rocket engine
Thrust direction

Jet engine is an engine using jet propulsion for

forward thrust .

Rocket engine is an engine using jet propulsion

for upward thrust.
Source of oxygen

Jet engines do not have their own source of

oxygen. Outside air is sucked into the engine to
act as an oxidizer

There is no air in space. Rockets have their own

oxygen source, either a liquid tank, or mixed in
with the solid fuel for combustion.

Rocket vs Missile
Purpose
Rocket mission is to send the

satellite to outer space.

Missile mission is as a weapon to
attack high value target.
Guidance
Rocket no guidance system.
Missile has a guidance system.