Rotary Engine :
Early in World War I, when aircraft were first being used for military purposes, it became apparent that exiting inline engines were too heavy for the amount of power needed. Aircraft designers needed an engine that was lightweight, powerful, cheep, and easy to manufacture in large quantities. The ratary engine met these goals.
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 proeller is bolted to the engine case. The entire engine rotates with the propeller, providing plenty of airflow cooling regardless of the aircraft's forward speed . Some of these engines were a two-stroke design , giving them a high speciffic power and power to weight ratio.
Unfortunately, the severe gyroscopic from the heavy rotating engine made the aircraft very difficult to fly. The engines also consumed of castor oil , spreaking it all the airframe and creating fumes which were nauseating to the pilots. Engine designers had always been aware of the many limitations ot the rotary engine . When the static style engines became more reliabe, gave better specific weight and fuel consumption, the days of the rotary engine were numbered.
No comments:
Post a Comment