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The radial engine is a reciprocating type internal combustion engine configuration in which the cylinders point outward from a central crankshaft like the spokes on a wheel. This configuration was very commonly used in aircraft engines before being superseded by turboshaft and turbojet engines.
In a radial engine the pistons are connected to the crankshaft with a master-and-articulating-rod assembly. One piston has a master rod with a direct attachment to the crankshaft. The remaining pistons pin their connecting rods attachments to rings around the edge of the master rod (see animation). Four-stroke radials almost always have an odd number of cylinders, so that a consistent every-other-piston firing order can be maintained, providing smooth running.The valve of the classic radials are overhead and move by a central cams plate ,pushrods and rocker arms, (like modern Harley motorcycle engines), but exists valveless (sleevevalve) radial engines built by Bristol before and during WW2 (from "Perseus" to "Centaurus" engines),later built under license by SNECMA after 1950, the "Hercules" engine for the Nord 2501 "Noratlas" (fly in the french air force up to 1989) .The Bristol radial sleeve valve engines are very reliable and prove high efficiency (low fuel consumption), but the oil consumption is high.
The Pratt & Whitney R-1830 Twin Wasp was an engine widely used in American aircraft in the 1930s and 1940s. Produced by Pratt & Whitney, it was a two-row, 14 cylinder, air-cooled radial design. It displaced 1,830 cubic inches (30 L) and its bore and stroke measured 5.5 and 5.5 in (140 and 140 mm), respectively. A total of 173,618 R-1830 engines were built, a notable figure which makes it the most produced aircraft engine.Pratt & Whitney - R-1830 page Retrieved: 25 October 2008 An enlarged version with a slightly higher power rating was produced as the R-2000.
[Abstract not available for the category]
The Wright R-2600 Cyclone 14 (also called Twin Cyclone) was an American radial engine developed by Curtiss-Wright and widely used in aircraft in the 1930s and 1940s.
The Bristol Hercules was a 14-cylinder two-row radial aircraft engine designed by Sir Roy Fedden and produced by the Bristol Engine Company starting in 1939. It was the first of their single sleeve valve (Burt-McCollum, or Argyll, type) designs to see widespread use, powering many aircraft in the mid-World War II time frame.
The Shvetsov ASh-82 (M-82) is a 14 cylinder, two-row, air-cooled radial aircraft engine developed from the Shvetsov M-62, itself a development from M-25 a licensed version of the Wright R-1820 Cyclone.
Nakajima's Sakae (栄, "Prosperity") was a two-row, 14-cylinder air-cooled radial engine used in Japanese aircraft during World War II. It was designed by Nakajima after acquiring a license for the French Gnome-Rhone 14K. "Sakae" was the navy designation; the army called the first of the series the Ha-25 (ハ25) and later versions were designated Ha105, Ha115. Navy designations were NK1 Sakae 10, 20 and 30 series.
A total of 21,166 were made by Nakajima; 9,067 were manufactured by other firms.
The Pratt & Whitney Wasp was the civilian name of a family of air-cooled radial piston engines developed in the 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s.Gunston 1989, p.114.
The Pratt & Whitney Aircraft Company (P&W) was founded in 1925 by Frederick B. Rentschler, who had previously been the President of Wright Aeronautical. He brought with him some of Wright’s best designers and the new team quickly came up with their first design, the R-1340 Wasp.
The BMW 801 was a powerful German air-cooled radial aircraft engine built by BMW and used in a number of German military aircraft of World War II. The engine's cylinders were in two rows of seven cylinders each, the bore and stroke were both 156 mm (6.142in), giving a total capacity of 41.8 litres (2,547.40 in³). The engine generated between 1,560 and 2,000 PS (1,540-1,970 hp, or 1,150 and 1,470 kW). The unit (including mounts) weighed around 1,250 kg and was about 1.27 m (50in) across, depending on the model.
The Fiat A.74 was a two-row, fourteen-cylinder, air-cooled radial engine produced in Italy in the 1930s as a powerplant for aircraft. It was used in some of Italy's most important aircraft of World War II.
The A.74 was important in that it marked a transition for Fiat from liquid cooled inline engines, to large air cooled radial engines. Fiat had made a number of smaller radial air engines over the years but the A.74 marked a major increase in power and size. The A.74 family was widely produced and spawned a number of related engines such as the A.76, A.80 and A.82. Each successive generation being larger and more powerful than the previous. The entire series grew from 14 cylinders to 18 cylinders with a power output of 840hp to 1,400hp.
__NOTOC__ The Mitsubishi Kinsei (Japanese: 金星 "Venus") was a 14-cylinder, air-cooled, twin-row radial aircraft engine developed in Japan for Imperial Japanese Navy, and was later adopted by the Japanese Army as the Ha-112 use during World War II.
The 14N was a 14-cylinder two-row air-cooled radial engine designed and manufactured by Gnome-Rhône. A development of the pre-war Gnome-Rhône 14K, the 14N was used on several French and German aircraft of World War II.
The Pratt & Whitney R-4360 Wasp Major was a large radial piston aircraft engine designed and built during World War II. It was the last of the Pratt & Whitney Wasp family and the culmination of its maker's piston engine technology, but the war was over before it could power airplanes into combat. It did, however, power the last generation of large piston-engined aircraft before the turbojet and turboprop took over.
The Rolls-Royce Merlin was a liquid cooled 27 litre (1649 in<sup>3</sup>) 60° V12 piston aircraft engine which became famous in World War II. Several versions of the Merlin were built by Rolls-Royce (in Derby, Crewe and Glasgow), by Ford of Britain (in Trafford Park, Manchester)Merlin Engines in Manchester and in the United States as the Packard V-1650.<ref name ="Encyclopaedia of Aero Engines">Gunston. Page 144.</ref> They are widely considered to be among the most successful aircraft engines produced during World War II.
The name "Merlin" comes from a type of small falcon, in line with the convention Rolls-Royce used in naming its other piston aero-engines, and has no connection to King Arthur's legendary magician.
The Pratt & Whitney R-1340 Wasp was a reciprocating engine widely used in American aircraft from the 1920s onward. It was the company's first engine, and the first of the famed Wasp family.Gunston 1989, p.114. It was a single-row, 9-cylinder air-cooled radial design, and displaced 1,344 cubic inches (22 liters); bore and stroke were both 5.75 inches. A total of 34,966 engines were produced.Pratt&Whitney R-1340 page Retrieved: 25 October 2008
The Pratt & Whitney R-1535 Twin Wasp Junior was an engine used in American aircraft in the 1930s. The engine was first introduced in 1932 as a 14 cylinder version of the 9 cylinder R-985.Gunston 1989, p.115. It was a two-row, air-cooled radial design. Displacement was 1,535 cubic inches (25.2 liters); bore and stroke were 5-3/16" and 5-3/16" (131.8 mm and 131.8 mm).
Turbofan engines with a bypass ratio of less than 2 (usually less than 1).
The Pratt & Whitney R-2800 Double Wasp is a two-row, 18-cylinder, air-cooled radial aircraft engine with a displacement of 2,804 cubic inches (46 L), and is part of the long-lived Wasp family. The R-2800 is considered one of the premier radial piston engines ever designed, and is notable for its use in several important American fighter aircraft during World War II, powering more different types of aircraft than any other.R-2800 at enginehistory.org Aircraft Engine Historical Society. Retrieved: 22 February 2009. During the war years, Pratt & Whitney continued to develop new ideas to upgrade this already powerful workhorse, most notably water injection to give emergency power in combat.
Wright Cyclone was the name given to a family of air-cooled radial piston engines designed by Curtiss-Wright and used in numerous American aircraft in the 1930s and 1940s.
The Warner Scarab was an American seven cylinder radial aircraft engine, manufactured by the Warner Aircraft Corporation of Detroit, Michigan in 1928 through the early 1930s. In military service the engine was designated R-420.
The Pratt & Whitney R-985 Wasp Junior was a radial engine widely used in American aircraft starting in the 1930s.Gunston 1989. p.115. It was a scaled-down version of the original R-1340, and the second in the Wasp family. It was a single-row, 9-cylinder air-cooled radial design. Displacement was 987 cubic inches (16.2 liters); bore and stroke were each 5<sup>3</sup>⁄<sub>16</sub> in (132 mm).
It was used on numerous light aircraft and has a good reputation for being dependable. Most versions produced 450 hp. A total of 39,037 engines were built.Pratt & Whitney - R-595 page Retrieved: 25 October 2008
Technopower of Santa Ana, California is a manufacturer of model aircraft engines. Technopower's product line includes a range of miniature 5, 7, and 9 cylinder radial engines, held in very high regard by model aircraft hobbyists.
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The Wright R-3350 Duplex-Cyclone was one of the most powerful radial aircraft engines produced in the United States. It was a twin row, supercharged, air-cooled, radial engine with 18 cylinders. Power ranged from 2,200 to over 3,700 hp (1,640 to 2,760 kW), depending on the model. First developed prior to World War II, the R-3350's design required a long time to mature before finally being used to power the B-29 Superfortress. After the war, the engine had matured sufficiently to become a major civilian airliner design, notably in its Turbo-Compound forms.
The Wright R-1820 Cyclone 9 was an American radial engine developed by Curtiss-Wright and widely used on 1930s through 1950s aircraft.
The Napier Sabre was a 24-cylinder four-stroke sleeve valve piston aircraft engine designed by Major Frank Halford and built by Napier & Son during WWII. It was one of the most powerful piston aircraft engines in the world, especially for inline designs, developing over 3,500 horsepower (2,200 kW) in its later versions and in late-model prototypes. However, the rapid conversion to jet engines after the war led to the quick demise of the Sabre, as Napier also turned to jets.
The Allison V-1710 aircraft engine was the only indigenous US-developed V-12 liquid-cooled engine to see service during WWII. A sturdy and trustworthy design, it unfortunately lacked an advanced and efficient mechanical centrifugal supercharger. Versions with a turbosupercharger gave excellent performance at high altitude in the twin-engined Lockheed P-38 Lightning, and turbosuperchargers were fitted to experimental single-engined fighters with the same excellent results. The preference for turbosuperchargers, arguably to the neglect of mechanical supercharger development, reflected US Army philosophy, and not the inherent qualities of the Allison engine.
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The Bristol Jupiter was a British nine-cylinder single-row piston radial engine built by the Bristol Aeroplane Company. Originally designed late in World War I, a lengthy series of upgrades and developments turned it into one of the finest engines of its era. It was widely used on many aircraft designs though the 1920s and 30s. It was also built under license in France (as the Gnome-Rhône Jupiter), Poland (as the PZL Bristol Jupiter), Italy (as the Alfa Romeo 126-RC35)<ref name="aroca-qld.com"></ref> and in the Soviet Union (as the M-22). Thousands of Jupiters of all versions were produced. A turbo-supercharged version of the Jupiter known as the Orion suffered development problems and was not produced in large numbers.
The Daimler-Benz DB 601 was a German aircraft engine built during World War II. It was a liquid-cooled inverted V12, and powered the Messerschmitt Bf 109, among others. The DB 601 was basically an improved DB 600 with direct fuel injection.
The DB 601Aa was licence-built in Japan by Aichi as the Atsuta and Kawasaki as the Ha-40 to be used in the Kawasaki Ki-61 and in Italy by Alfa Romeo as the R.A.1000 R.C.41-I Monsone for use in the Macchi C.202.
The Wright R-1300 Cyclone 7 was an American aircooled seven-cylinder supercharged radial aircraft engine produced by Curtiss-Wright.
The Rolls-Royce Griffon was a 2,240 in³ (36.7 L), 6.0" bore x 6.6" stroke 60-degree V-12 aero-engine. The usual assumption still prevails that the Griffon was derived from the Rolls-Royce R racing engine used in the Schneider Trophy races. However, apart from some commonality in bore and stroke, the only component of the Griffon which had any direct links was the crankshaft.Rolls-Royce Griffon 65 pdf file Retrieved: 5 February 2008
:For the vectored thrust engine, see Rolls-Royce Pegasus
The Bristol Pegasus was a British nine-cylinder single-row air-cooled radial engine used in the 1930s and 1940s. Confusingly, Bristol chose to reuse the name many years later for the engine used in the Hawker Siddeley Harrier; that engine later became known as the Rolls-Royce Pegasus.
The Centaurus was the final development of Bristol Engine Company's series of sleeve valve radial aircraft engines, an 18-cylinder two-row design that eventually delivered over 3,000 hp (2.2 MW).Gunston 1989, p.33.
The Rolls-Royce Meteor (also sometimes known as the Rover Meteor) was a British tank engine developed from the Rolls-Royce Merlin aero-engine, by W. A. Robotham and his chassis design and development division at Belper (as they were not involved in aero-engine work). He originally considered adapting the Kestrel, but while having more power than the existing "Liberty" it did not provide the desirable 20 bhp per ton ratio. Robotham was made Chief Engineer of Tank Development, and the Tank Division at Belper was involved with the overall design of four versions of the Cromwell tank, using a standard set of components.
For tank use the Merlin had its supercharger removed and was de-rated to approx 600 bhp (447 kW), running on lower octane pool petrol instead of high octane fuel (avgas). In addition, because weight-saving was not so important for a tank engine some of the Merlin's more expensive light-alloy components were replaced with cheaper components manufactured from steel in the Meteor X version. It was also envisaged that the Meteor would use some components rejected on quality grounds for the Merlin, ie Merlin scrap (Sidgreaves). In 1943 an acute shortage of blocks was met by dismantling surplus older marks of Merlins.
Unlike previous British tank engines, e.g. the American Liberty L-12 of license-built by Nuffield which was used in the Crusader, the engine was very lightly-stressed and reliable, while doubling the power available. Previously British tanks had been regarded as underpowered and unreliable, and the Meteor is considered to be the engine that for the first time gave British tanks ample, reliable, power. Initially it was used in the Cromwell tank, which was developed from the Crusader tank.
But in 1941 Leyland who had an order for 1,200 Meteor engines were still advocating their own (diesel) tank engine, although it would deliver only , barely more than the Liberty. Meadows produced some Meteors, but the small factory of 2,000 men was producing 40 different types of engine. So Meteor production was to be by Rover (Tyseley) and Morris (Coventry).
The Meteor was used in the following vehicles: *Cromwell *Comet *Centurion *Tortoise experimental assault tank. *Conqueror post war heavy tank *A Mk II version of the Valiant tank, to use a half size version of the engine called the "Meteorite" was suggested, but not proceeded with.
When Ernest Hives told Beaverbrook that he already had his hands full making Merlin aero engines and Rolls-Royce would want £1 million to their credit and 'no interference' to make tank engines, Beaverbrook telegrammed back: :Hives, Rolls-Royce, Derby. The British Government has given you an open credit of one million pounds. This is a certificate of character and reputation without precedent or equal. Beaverbrook.
The Meteor was initially produced by Rolls-Royce, but when Hives became interested in the then new jet engine Hives struck a deal in Dec 1942 with Spencer Wilks of Rover to take over Rover's then ailing gas turbine factory at Barnoldswick, in return for Rover taking over the Rolls-Royce tank engine factory in Nottingham and production of the Meteor, to become officially effective on 1 April 1943. Rover took over the parentage of the Meteor in Jan 1944 and in 1946 the British Government made Rover responsible for research and development of large military engines. In this role Rover continued the development and production of the Meteor MkIVb and various derivatives, including the Meteorite V8 and the M120 V12. Rover ceased this activity in 1964 having produced approximately 9,000 engines, and Rolls-Royce again became responsible for the manufacture of spare parts to support fielded engines. Future engines for British tanks were manufactured by Rolls-Royce engine divisions, which were acquired by Perkins UK and then Caterpillar US.
The Hispano-Suiza 12Y was a French aircraft engine in the pre-WWII era. Developed from the earlier, and somewhat smaller, 12X, the 12Y became the primary 1,000 hp (750 kW) class engine and was used in a number of famous aircraft, including the Morane-Saulnier M.S.406, Dewoitine D.520. The design was also widely used in other countries, and formed the basis for licensed production of a number of designs, most notably the Soviet Klimov VK-105 series. The 12Y design was further modified to create the more modern 12Z, but development was never fully completed due to the German occupation of France.
The Phoenix was an experimental version of the Bristol Aeroplane Company's Pegasus engine, adapted to run on the Diesel cycle. Only a few were built between 1928 and 1932, although samples fitted to a Westland Wapiti held the altitude record for diesel-powered aircraft at 27,453 ft (8,368 m) from 11 May 1934 until World War II.Gunston 1989, p.32. The primary advantage of the Phoenix was better fuel efficiency at cruise, by up to 35%.
:For the 1917 14-cylinder radial engine see Cosmos Mercury
The Bristol Mercury was a nine-cylinder single-row piston radial engine used on British aircraft in the 1930s and 1940s.
The de Havilland Gipsy Six was a British 6-cylinder, air-cooled, inverted inline piston engine developed for aircraft use in the 1930s. It was based on the cylinders of the 4-cylinder Gipsy Major and went on to spawn a whole series of similar aero engines that were still in common use until the 1980s. The engines were of particular note for their exceptionally low cross-sectional area, a drag-reducing feature which made them ideal for the many racing aircraft of that period. In 1934, the basic bronze-headed Gipsy Six, rated at 185 hp at 2,100 rpm was modified for use in the DH.88 Comet air racer as the Gipsy Six "R" which produced 223 hp at 2,400 rpm for takeoff.
The Pratt & Whitney R-2000 Twin Wasp was a radial engine developed in the United States in 1942 to power military aircraft.
The Wright R-975 Whirlwind was a radial engines developed in the United States by Wright Aeronautical (originally an independent company, later a division of Curtiss-Wright).
The Taurus was a 14-cylinder two-row radial aircraft engine, produced by the Bristol Engine Company starting in 1936.Gunston 1989, p.33. The Taurus was developed by adding cylinders to the existing Aquila design, creating a design that produced just over 1,000 horsepower (750 kW) with very low weight.
Bristol had originally intended to use the Aquila and Perseus as two of its major designs in the 1930s, but the rapid increase in size and speed of aircraft in the 1930s demanded much larger engines than either of these. The mechanicals from both of these designs were then put into two-row configurations to develop much larger engines, the Aquila becoming the Taurus, and the Perseus becoming the Hercules.
The de Havilland Gipsy Major or Gipsy IIIA is a four-cylinder, air-cooled, inline engine used in a variety of light aircraft produced in the 1930s including the famous Tiger Moth biplane.
The de Havilland Gipsy was a British air-cooled 4-cylinder in-line aircraft engine designed by Frank Halford in 1927 to replace the ADC Cirrus in the de Havilland D.H.60 Moth light biplane. It went on to become one of the most famous sport aircraft engines of the interwar period and was the engine of choice for various other light aircraft, trainers, liaison aircraft and air taxis, British as well as foreign, until long past WWII. Apart from helping to establish the de Havilland Aircraft Company as a manufacturer of light aircraft, it also established the company as an engine manufacturer in its own right.
The General Electric F404, F412, and RM12 are a family of afterburning turbofan engines in the 10,500-19,000 lb<sub>f</sub> (85 kN) class (static thrust). The series are produced by GE Aviation. Partners include Volvo Aero, which builds the RM12 variant. The F404 was developed into the larger F414 turbofan, as well as the experimental GE36 civil propfan.
The Jumo 213 was a World War II-era V-12 liquid cooled aircraft engine, a development of Junkers Motoren's earlier design, the Jumo 211.Jane's 1989, p.295. The design added two features, a pressurized cooling system that required considerably less cooling fluid that allowed the engine to be built smaller and lighter, and a number of improvements that allowed it to run at higher RPM. Although these changes may sound fairly minor, they boosted power by over 500 hp and made the 213 one of the most sought-after engine designs in the late-war era.
The General Electric F414 is an afterburning turbofan engine in the 22,000 lb<sub>f</sub> (98 kN) thrust class and is produced by GE Aviation. The F414 was developed from GE's highly successful F404 turbofan.
:For the 1940s engine, see Rolls-Royce Eagle (1944)
The Rolls-Royce Eagle was the first aero engine to be developed by Rolls-Royce Limited. Introduced in 1915 to meet British military requirements during World War I, it was used to power the Handley Page Type O bombers and a number of other military aircraft.
The de Havilland Gipsy Queen was an aero-engine developed by de Havilland. It was developed from the de Havilland Gipsy Six.Janes 1989, p.275.
The Klimov VK-107 is a V-12 liquid-cooled piston aircraft engine used by Soviet aircraft during World War II.Gunston 1989, p.90.
The de Havilland Goblin, originally the Halford H-1, was an early turbojet engine designed by Frank Halford and built by de Havilland. It was the second British engine to fly, and the first to pass tests and receive a "Gas Turbine" class type rating. It was the primary engine of the de Havilland Vampire, and was to have been the engine for the F-80 Shooting Star (as the Allis-Chalmers J36) before that design switched engines due to production delays. The Goblin also powered the Saab 21R, Fiat G.80 and de Havilland Swallow. The Goblin was later expanded into the larger de Havilland Ghost, with the model numbers continuing from the last marks of the Goblin.
The Shvetsov ASh-62 (designated M-62 before 1941) is a nine-cylinder, air-cooled, radial aircraft engine produced in the Soviet Union.
The Derwent is a 1940s British centrifugal compressor turbojet engine, the second Rolls-Royce jet engine to enter production. Essentially an improved version of the Rolls-Royce Welland, itself a renamed version of Frank Whittle's Power Jets W.2B, Rolls inherited the design from Rover when they took over their jet engine development in 1943. The performance over the original design was somewhat improved, reliability dramatically, making the Derwent the chosen engine for the Gloster Meteor and many other post-World War II British jet designs.
The Rolls-Royce Eagle was a 24-cylinder, sleeve valve, H-block aero engine of 46 litre (2,807 cubic inches) displacement. It was designed and built in the late 1940s by Rolls-Royce Limited and first ran in 1944. It was liquid cooled, of flat H configuration with two crankshafts and was capable of 3,200 hp (2,387 kW) at 18 psi boost.
The Eagle was never fitted to a production front-line fighter, as it was overshadowed by a new wave of turbojet engines, such as the Rolls-Royce Derwent and turboprops such as the Dart and Armstrong Siddeley Python. 15 Eagles were produced. It was used in the prototypes of the Westland Wyvern fighter / torpedo bomber.
The Avon was Rolls-Royce's first axial flow jet engine. Introduced in 1950, it went on to become one of their most successful post-World War II engine designs. It was used in a wide variety of aircraft, both military and civilian, ending production after 24 years in 1974.
The hyper engine was a 1930s study project of the United States Army Air Corps, an effort to develop an aircraft engine capable of delivering 1 horsepower per cubic inch (46 kW/L) of engine displacement. The USAAC funded development of an engine of about 1200 cubic inches (20 L), hoping the engine's smaller size would lead to better streamlining and improved range. The engine did not enter volume production because it had been matched by existing designs by the time it was perfected.
The Rolls-Royce Crecy was an unusual experimental two-stroke 90-degree V12 liquid-cooled aero-engine of 1,536 cu.in (26 L) capacity, featuring sleeve valves and direct petrol injection. It was the most advanced two-stroke aero-engine ever to be built.Gunston 1986, p.143. <br>The engine was named after the Battle of Crécy, battles being the intended names for future Rolls-Royce two-stroke engines, however no further engines of this type were built.
The Crecy was intended to power the Supermarine Spitfire after flight testing in a converted Hawker Henley, but neither aircraft type flew with this engine fitted. The project was cancelled in December 1945 as the progress of jet engine development overtook that of the Crecy and replaced the need for this engine.
The Aquila was a nine-cylinder single-row radial aircraft engine produced by the Bristol Engine Company starting in 1934. It was the world's first production sleeve valve aircraft engine and its basic design was used in the sleeve valve Bristol Perseus, Bristol Hercules, Bristol Taurus, and Bristol Centaurus. This engine did not go into production.Gunston 1989, p.33.
:This article is about the jet aero-engine, for the vehicle see Armstrong Siddeley Sapphire (motor car)
The Armstrong Siddeley Sapphire was a turbojet engine produced by Armstrong Siddeley in the 1950s. It was the ultimate development of work that had started as the Metrovick F.2 in 1940, evolving into an advanced axial flow design with an annular combustion chamber that developed over 11,000 lbf (71 kN). It powered early versions of the Gloster Javelin, Hawker Hunter and Handley Page Victor. Production was also started under license in the United States by Curtiss-Wright as the J65, powering a number of US designs.
The Rolls Royce Merlin, although designed as an aero engine, was used in other applications both on land and at sea.
The Shvetsov M-25 was an aircraft radial engine produced in the Soviet Union in the 1930s and 40s, a licensed production variant of the Wright R-1820-F3.
The Rolls-Royce Condor aircraft piston engine was a larger version of the Rolls-Royce Eagle developing up to 675 hp (500 kW). A total of 327 engines were recorded as being built.Lumsden 2003, p.188.
The Rolls-Royce Hawk was a British aero engine designed by Rolls-Royce in 1915. Derived from one bank of six cylinders of the Rolls-Royce Eagle, it produced 75 hp at 1,370 rpm. Power was progressively increased to 91 hp by February 1916, and 105 hp by October 1918.Pugh 2001, p.78.
After Rolls-Royce made the prototypes, the Hawk was manufactured under licence by Brazil Straker in Bristol between 1915 and 1918. During this period 204 were built, and the Hawk earned a reputation for high reliability.
Many engines of this type were used to power the SSZ class coastal patrol airships of which 76 were built.
[Abstract not available for the category]
Cirrus Engine (Cirrus Aero Engines Limited) was a British aircraft engine manufacturer, known for their line of 4-cylinder air-cooled vertical inline engines for general aviation use. Cirrus engines were originally built by ADC Aircraft until Cirrus Aero Engines Limited was formed in 1927. The company became Cirrus Hermes in 1931 when it was bought by the Hermes Engine Company and later became the Cirrus Engine Section of Blackburn & General Aircraft Limited in 1934, and operated as a separate division until production ended in the post-World War II era.Lumsden 2003, p.130.
Cirrus's first product was the 90 hp (67 kW) Cirrus I, which passed its 50 hour type rating in 1925. It was the first air-cooled inline engine, a design that proved extremely popular for light aircraft. The basic layout was quickly copied by a number of other manufacturers. Later versions named the Cirrus II, and Cirrus III were produced each with slightly greater displacement, and power.
After purchase by Hermes the Cirrus Hermes I, II, III & IV were produced ranging in power from 105 hp to 140 hp depending on type. The later Cirrus engines were designed to run inverted.Lumsded 2003, p.132.
The XIV-2220 (XI-2220 from 1944) was an experimental 2,500 hp liquid-cooled inverted-V-16 aircraft engine designed by Chrysler starting in 1940. Although several aircraft designs had considered using it, by the time it was ready for use in 1945 the war was already over. Only a few engines were built during the program, and it retained its 'X' designation the entire time as the XIV-2220, or simply XI-2220 in Chrysler terminology. The IV-2220 is historically important as it was Chrysler's first hemi, a design that would re-appear for many years later and is now a Chrysler trademark.
[Abstract not available for the category]
The Lyulka AL-21 is an axial flow turbojet engine created by the Soviet company named for its chief designer Arkhip Mikhailovich Lyulka (1908-1984).
AL-21 entered service in the early 1960's. With later marks (AL-21F-3) it was used in the Sukhoi Su-17M 'Fitter', Sukhoi Su-24 'Fencer', early Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-23 'Flogger', and Sukhoi T-10 (Sukhoi Su-27 'Flanker' prototype). A non-afterburning version powered the Yakovlev Yak-38 'Forger' VTOL fighter.
The Hispano-Suiza 12X was an aircraft piston engine designed in France by Hispano-Suiza during the early 1930s. A 12-cylinder Vee, liquid-cooled design, the 12X was used on several aircraft types, some of them being used in limited numbers during World War II. Due to the 12X's limited power output, its derivative the more powerful Hispano-Suiza 12Y had a longer career.
The Jumo 004 was the world's first turbojet engine in production and operational use, and the first successful axial compressor jet engine ever built. Some 8,000 units were manufactured by Junkers in Germany during late World War II and powered the operational Messerschmitt Me 262 jet fighter, Arado Ar 234 jet recon-bomber, and prototypes of the Horten Ho 229 aircraft. Variants of the engine were produced in Eastern Europe in the years following the war.
Aircraft engines produced by the British company of Napier & Son.
The 12Z was the final evolution of the series of Hispano-Suiza V-12 aircraft engines, which had just entered production when France fell to the Germans during World War II. A small number were produced during the war but the German occupation government would not allow full-scale production to start. After the war small numbers were built to equip new designs, but the rapid introduction of the jet engine ended further development.
The General Electric J79 is an axial-flow turbojet engine built for use in a variety of fighter and bomber aircraft. Produced by General Electric Aircraft Engines and under license by other companies worldwide, it was one of the first US-designed engines to outperform designs from the United Kingdom, which had previously led in the jet field.
A simplified civilian version, designated the CJ805, powered the Convair 880, while an aft-turbofan derivative, the CJ805-23, powered the Convair 990 airliners and a single Sud Aviation Caravelle intended as a prototype for the US market.
The Rolls-Royce Olympus is a high-powered axial-flow turbojet aircraft engine, originally developed and produced by Bristol Aero Engines (hence the name from Greek mythology, a long time tradition of the company), later passed to Bristol Siddeley, and finally to Rolls-Royce. The original design was used as the powerplant for the Avro Vulcan V Bomber. It was later developed for sustained supersonic performance as part of the BAC TSR-2 program, and when this was cancelled was used as the powerplant for Concorde. The engine is still in production for industrial and naval power. Curtiss-Wright in the USA built a licensed version as the J67.
The Nakajima Ha-1 Kotobuki was an aero-engine developed by Nakajima. It was a radial piston developed under licence from the Bristol Jupiter.
The Gnome-Rhône 14M was a small 14-cylinder two-row air-cooled radial engine that was used on several French and German aircraft of World War II.
The Viper was a turbojet engine developed and produced by Armstrong Siddeley and then by its successor companies Bristol-Siddeley and Rolls-Royce Limited. It entered service in 1953.
The design originally featured a seven-stage compressor based on their Sapphire engine — the Viper is in effect a small scale Sapphire.
The North American Eagle Project is a jet powered automobile that is intended to challenge the 763 mph (1.102M) land speed record. It is a cooperation of Canadian and American engineers, pilots and mechanics. Their goal is , or Mach 1.058. http://www.landspeed.com/files/acceleration_estimates2.pdf The ThrustSSC team set the current record in 1997 and was led by Richard Noble and driven by RAF pilot Andy Green, both from Great Britain. It is unique in that the vehicle was converted from a former Lockheed F-104 jet fighter.
The Rolls-Royce RB.80 Conway was the first by-pass engine (or turbofan) in the world to enter service. Development started at Rolls-Royce in the 1940s, but it was used only briefly in the late 1950s and early 1960s before other turbofan designs were introduced that replaced it. The Conway powered versions of the Handley Page Victor, Vickers VC10, Boeing 707-420 and Douglas DC-8-40. The name "Conway" is an Anglo-Saxon permutation of River Conwy, in Wales, in keeping with Rolls' use of river names for jet engines.
The Eurojet EJ200 is a military turbofan, used as the powerplant of the Eurofighter Typhoon and the Bloodhound SSCBLOODHOUND SSC . The engine is largely based on the Rolls-Royce XG-40 technology demonstrator which was developed in the 1980s. The EJ200 is built by the EuroJet Turbo GmbH consortium.
The Soyuz/Tumansky R-15BD-300 is an axial flow, single shaft turbojet with afterburning capabilities.
The Pratt & Whitney J58 (also known as the JT11D) was a variable cycle turbojet aircraft engine used on the Lockheed A-12, and subsequently on the YF-12 and SR-71 Blackbird aircraft. It was essentially a hybrid turbojet/ramjet engine.
The Continental I-1430 Hyper was a liquid-cooled aircraft engine developed in the United States by a partnership between the US Army Air Corps and Continental Motors. It was the "official" result of the USAAC's hyper engine efforts that started in 1932, but never entered widespread production as it was too small to be useful when it finally matured.
The Armstrong Siddeley Mongoose was a British five cylinder radial aero engine produced by Armstrong Siddeley. Developed in the 1920s it was used in the Hawker Tomtit trainer and Parnall Peto seaplane amongst others.
The Armstrong Siddeley Jaguar was an aero engine developed by Armstrong Siddeley. The Jaguar was a petrol-fuelled air-cooled 14-cylinder two-row radial engine design. The Jaguar III was first used in 1923, followed in 1925 by the Jaguar IV and in 1927 by the Jaguar VI.
The RD-33 turbofan engine was developed in 1985 to power the Mikoyan MiG-29 fighter. It is an 8000-9000 kgf thrust class turbofan twin-shaft engine with afterburner built by the Klimov company of Russia and has several variants. It has an important feature of modular design, individual parts can be replaced separately and has a good tolerance to the environment. The RD-33 is simple to maintain and retains good performance in complex environments. Klimov :: Production :: Aircraft Program :: RD-33 family<!-- Bot generated title -->
The Pratt & Whitney X-1800 (XH-2240) was an American aircraft engine project developed between 1938 and 1940 which was canceled with only one example being built.
#redirect Continental I-1430
This is a list of aircraft engines in use by Japan during World War II.
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The Pobjoy R was a British seven-cylinder, air-cooled, aircraft engine designed and built by Pobjoy Airmotors.Lumsden 2003, p.178. Introduced in 1926 it was a popular engine for ultralight and small aircraft in the 1930s. A notable feature of the Pobjoy R was the propeller reduction gear which allowed the engine to operate at high RPM.
The Bristol Cherub was a British two-cylinder, air-cooled, aircraft engine designed and built by the Bristol Aeroplane Company. Introduced in 1923 it was a popular engine for ultralight and small aircraft in the 1930s.
The Hispano-Suiza 14AB was a 14 cylinder twin row air cooled radial engine. In 1929 the Hispano-Suiza company bought a license to produce the Wright Whirlwind engine. The technology from that engine was used to produce a number of different radial engines with greater displacements, power and number of cylinders. The most significant of them was 14AB. The 14AB was a very compact design with relatively good performance and some 2,500 engines were produced. The 14AB though suffered from cooling problems and many aircraft originally designed for the 14AB were instead redesigned to use the more reliable Gnome-Rhône 14M series of engines and the American Wright or Pratt & Whitney R-1535 engines.
The original Atar Volant or C.400 P1 was a turbojet engine produced by SNECMA (Société National d'Etude et de Construction de Moteurs d'Aviation) engineers, as part of their 'Atar' series. Encased in a basic fairing which could hold fuel and remote-control equipment, the unit weighed 5,600 pounds (2550 kg) and generated a thrust of approximately 6,200 pounds-force (27.6 kN); the Atar Volant was able to cause vertical lift, which was precisely its purpose. There were later Atar Volant models, each made improvements and alterations to the previous designs, and eventually resulted in a fully-fledged craft.
The Ranger SVG-770 was an air-cooled inverted Vee aero-engine developed by the Ranger Aircraft Engine Division of the Fairchild Engine & Aircraft Corporation<ref name="Janes"></ref>.
The Bristol Lucifer was a three-cylinder, air-cooled, radial engine for aircraft built in the UK in the 1920s. It produced 100 hp (75 kW).
The Armstrong Siddeley Serval was a British aero engine developed by Armstrong Siddeley in the late 1920s. Following the company tradition the engine was named after the Serval wild cat.
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The General Electric GE38 is a gas turbine developed by GE Aviation for turboprop and turboshaft applications.
The Armstrong-Siddeley Adder was an early British turbojet engine developed by the Armstrong Siddeley company and first run in November 1948.
The Adder, a pure-jet derivative of the Armstrong Siddeley Mamba, was originally developed as an expendable engine to power the Jindivik 1 target drone. The engine was then developed into a longer-life engine before evolving into the more-powerful Armstrong Siddeley Viper.
The Adder was flight tested in the tail of the Avro Lancaster III SW342, the aircraft also having been previously modified and used for icing trials of the Mamba by Armstrong Siddeley's Flight Test Department at Bitteswell.
The Vedeneyev M14P is a nine cylinder radial, four-stroke, air cooled petrol engine. The induction system uses a gear driven supercharger and a carburettor of automatic mixture type. Power is transmitted to the propeller via a reduction gearbox. Its design dates from the 1930s. It is a development of the Ivchenko AI-14 engine.
The engine has a speed governor, carburettor, two magnetos, mechanical fuel pump, generator and oil pump. The engine remains fully operational during inverted flight. The engine is pneumatically started.
The engine is left-turning (counter-clockwise) when viewed from the cockpit. This is opposite to the rotation to most Western aero-engines.
In recent times, the M-14P has become increasingly popular in experimental aircraft designs such as the Murphy Moose, Radial Rocket and others.
* Engine Power Output 360-450 hp, last development: 460 hp electronic injection (much less consumption: ~30 liters/hour at cruise power) * Weight 214 kg (472 lb) * Displacement 10.2 litres * Diameter 985 ± 3 mm * Time Between Overhauls, TBO 2250 hours by US standards. Typically the Russian logbook states "engine life 2250 hours" with IRAN's or Inspect and Replace As Necessary every 500 hours or so. Some have confused these IRAN's as low TBO's or overhauls.
This engine was used by the Yakovlev and Sukhoi Design Bureaus.
The Armstrong Siddeley Lynx is a seven cylinder aero-engine developed by Armstrong Siddeley. Testing began in 1920 and 6,000 had been produced by 1939. In Italy Alfa Romeo built a licensed version of this engine named the Alfa Romeo Lynx.<ref name="aroca-qld.com"></ref>
The Armstrong Siddeley Panther was a 37-litre 14-cylinder twin-row air-cooled radial aero engine developed by Armstrong Siddeley. It was originally named the Jaguar Major.Lumsden 2003, p.72.
The Armstrong Siddeley Leopard was a British 14-cylinder twin-row air-cooled radial aero engine developed in 1927 by Armstrong Siddeley.
The Armstrong Siddeley Cheetah is a seven-cylinder British air-cooled aircraft radial engine of 834 cu in (13.65 L) capacity introduced in 1935 and produced until 1948. Early variants of the Cheetah were initially known as the Lynx Major.<ref name = "Lumsden p.74">Lumsden 2003, p.74.</ref>
The Cheetah was used to power many British trainer aircraft during World War II including the Avro Anson and Airspeed Oxford.
The Lyulka AL-7 was a turbojet designed by Arkhip Mikhailovich Lyulka and produced by his Lyulka design bureau. The engine was produced between 1954 and 1970.Gunston 1989, p.100.
The Lycoming R-7755 was the largest piston driven aircraft engine ever produced; with 36 cylinders totaling about 127 litres of displacement and a power output of 5,000 horsepower. It was originally intended to be used in the "European bomber" that eventually emerged as the Convair B-36. Only two examples were built before the project was terminated in 1946.
The BMW 802 was a large air-cooled radial aircraft engine, built using two-rows of 9-cylinders to produce what was essentially an 18-cylinder version of the 14-cylinder BMW 801. Although promising at first, development dragged on and the project was eventually cancelled to concentrate of jet engines instead.
The Hispano-Suiza 8 was a water-cooled V8 aero engine introduced by Hispano-Suiza in 1914 and used by a number of Allied aircraft during the First World War. The original Hispano-Suiza 8A was rated at 140 hp (102 kW) and the later Hispano-Suiza 8F reached 300 hp (220 kW).
The Rolls-Royce RB.168 Spey is a low-bypass turbofan engine originally designed and manufactured by Rolls-Royce that has been in widespread service for over 40 years. Intended for the civilian jet airliner market when it was being designed in the late 1950s, the Spey concept was also used in various military engines, and later as a turboshaft engine for ships known as the Marine Spey, and even as the basis for a new civilian line, the Rolls-Royce Tay. Aviation versions of the "base model" have accumulated over 50 million hours of flight time. In keeping with Rolls-Royce naming policies, the engine is named after the River Spey.
The Turbo Union RB199 is an aircraft turbofan jet engine designed and built by Turbo-Union, a joint venture between Rolls-Royce, MTU and FiatAvio (now Avio).
The Hitachi Hatsukaze was a series of aircraft engines built in Japan prior to and during World War II. They were air-cooled, four-cylinder, inverted inline engines developing around 82 kW (110 hp). The original Hatsukaze was a license-built Hirth HM 504.
Hatsukaze engines were produced in very large numbers, since this motor was the powerplant for the licence-built Bücker Bü 131 Jungmann variants that were the standard primary trainers for the Imperial Japanese Navy and Imperial Japanese Army. The naval version of the engine was designated GK4, the army version Ha-47, and the joint-army-navy designation was Ha[11].
The Hatsukaze was also linked to a compressor to create a primitive jet engine called a motorjet, the Tsu-11 intended to power Ohka flying bombs.
SMA Engines (Société de Motorisations Aéronautiques) is a French manufacturer of diesel engines for light aircraft. It employs 60 people. Its production is currently limited to one model, the SMA SR 305-230-1 (rated at 227 horsepower), which has received a Supplemental Type Certificate for installation in the Cessna 182.
The ASX, likely short for Armstrong Siddeley eXperimental, was an early axial flow jet engine built by Armstrong Siddeley that first ran in April 1943. Very little information on the engine is available, and it appears it was never put into production. A conversion to turboprop as the ASP was somewhat more successful, and as the Armstrong Siddeley Python saw use in the Westland Wyvern.
The ASX was unique in layout. The inlet to the 14-stage compressor was placed near the middle of the engine, the air flowing forward as it was compressed. From there it fed into 11 flame cans arranged around the outside of the compressor, flowing back past the inlet, and finally through the turbine. This layout allowed the compressor and combustion areas to be "folded" together to make the engine shorter, although the overall reduction in the case of the ASX appears to be fairly limited. Additionally this makes it more difficult to service the compressor, although in modern designs it is the "hot section" that generally requires most servicing.
At full power the engine ran at 8,000 rpm and developed 2,600 lbf (12 kN) of thrust at sea level. For cruise the engine ran at 7,500 rpm and developed 2,050 lbf (9.1 kN). It weighed 1,900 lb (865 kg). The ASP conversion used a second turbine stage to drive the propeller through a gearbox, producing 3,600 shp, as well as 1,100 lbf (4.9 kN) of leftover jet thrust.
Beyond this, little has been published about this engine. Armstrong Siddeley appears to have given up on the design just after the war, and took over the Metrovick F.9 Sapphire design instead.
This is a list of aircraft engines in use by the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Force during World War II
The General Electric J47 turbojet (GE company designation TG-190) was developed General Electric from the earlier J35 engine, and first flew in May 1948. The J47 was the first axial-flow turbojet approved for commercial use in the United States. It was used in many types of aircraft and more than 30,000 were manufactured before production ceased in 1956. It saw continued service in the US military until 1978.
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Aircraft engines produced by the British company of Sunbeam, designed by Louis Coatalen
The Sunbeam Silver Bullet was the last attempt on the land speed record by Sunbeam of Wolverhampton. It was built in 1929 for Kaye Don. Powered by two supercharged aero-engines of 24 litres each, it looked impressive but failed to achieve any records. <ref name="Sunbeam AU" ></ref> <ref name="Sunbeam AU Photo" ></ref>
Sunbeam's 1927 200 mph land speed record won with the Sunbeam 1000HP had been broken by 1929, and the company decided to build a car capable of reaching so as to recover it. Only aero engines offered enough power to do this, and such a car would also provide a test bed for developing a new generation of Sunbeam aero-engines.
The General Electric YJ93 turbojet engine was designed as the powerplant for both the North American XB-70 Valkyrie bomber and the North American XF-108 Rapier interceptor. The YJ93 was a single-shaft axial-flow turbojet with a variable-stator compressor and a fully-variable convergent/divergent exhaust nozzle. The maximum sea-level thrust was 28,800 lbf.<ref name="Jenkins_Landis"/>
The engine used a special high-temperature JP-6 fuel. The six YJ93 engines in the XB-70 Valkyrie were capable of producing a thrust to weight ratio of 5, allowing for a speed of 2,000 mph (approximately Mach 3) at an altitude of 70,000 feet.National Museum of the USAF
The XF-108 interceptor was cancelled outright and the B-70 project was reoriented to a research project only.NB-58A Testbed for General Electric J93<!-- Bot generated title -->
The Avro Canada TR.4 Chinook was Canada's first turbojet engine, designed by Turbo Research and manufactured by A.V. Roe Canada Ltd. Named for the warm Chinook wind that blows in the Rocky Mountains, only three Chinooks were built and none were used operationally. The Chinook was nevertheless an extremely successful design in terms of introducing new concepts and materials, and after being scaled up from to , would go on to become one of the early jet age's most respected designs, the Orenda.
The Pratt & Whitney PW1120 turbofan was a derivative of the F100 turbofan. It was installed as a modification to a single F-4E fighter jet, and also powered the abortive IAI Lavi.
The GTRE GTX-35VS Kaveri is a low-bypass-ratio afterburning turbofan being developed by the Gas Turbine Research Establishment (GTRE), a lab under the DRDO in Bangalore, India. An indigenous Indian design, the Kaveri was intended to power production models of the HAL Tejas fighter, originally called the "Light Combat Aircraft" (LCA), but it was officially de-linked from HAL Tejas program in September, 2008. It was announced in November 2008 that the Kaveri engine will be installed on HAL Tejas by December 2009, apparently for tests only.
The Manly-Balzer was the first purpose-designed aircraft engine, first built in 1901 for the Langley Aerodrome project. The engine was originally ordered from Stephen Balzer(1864-1940) in New York, but his five-cylinder radial engine design failed to live up to its claims. Langley's chief assistant, Charles Manly, then reworked the engine to produce a design that held the record for power-to-weight ratio for any engine for many years. Manly would later work for Glenn Curtiss, and was one of the teammembers who designed the famous Curtiss OX-5.
The problem with powering the Aerodrome had been known as early as 1898 when work on the man-carrying versions first started. At the time the gasoline engine was a fairly new invention, and no engine in the world had the needed performance. After a short search they decided to contract the development to one of the few engine builders in the area, New York's Stephen Marius Balzer.
Balzer was a Hungarian immigrant who had a mechanical bent and started designing various devices while working in the watch repair department in Tiffany's. He followed this with a night course in engineering, and struck out on his own to develop what would become the New York's first car in 1894, a small three-wheel carriage powered by a three-cylinder rotary engine of his design. Balzer was convinced he could build an engine to Langley's requirements by scaling up his existing design into a larger five-cylinder one. Langley gave him a contract in December 1898, and work started on the new design.
The engine was completed fairly quickly, but proved to be underpowered, delivering 8-10 hp when they had asked for at least 12. As it would be rediscovered by many engineers after him, Balzer found that scaling up his existing design simply didn't work. Manly worked with him to try to improve the design, but by 1899 it was clear that it wasn't going to work any time soon. Balzer never gave up on the engine, and continued to work on it for years, eventually going bankrupt in the process.
While on a trip in Europe in 1900, every engineer he met told Manly that the rotary design was hopeless. Manly eventually became convinced of this himself, and started work on adapting one of the existing Balzer engines into a non-rotating radial engine instead. The main concern was cooling, which he solved by welding a jacket to each cylinder and filling it with water. The results were more than encouraging, and the engine was soon delivering 12-16 hp, double what it had. This version was soon in place on a 1/4 scale model of the "Great Aerodrome", which flew successfully in 1901.
Encouraged by this success, Manly started scaling up the engine with larger cylinders and new lightweight pistons. The resulting design weighed 120 pounds, and delivered 52 hp, making it by far the most powerful lightweight engine of its era, far outperforming the one that would eventually be successful on the Wright Flyer. The engine was delivered in March 1903 while work on the Great Aerodrome continued, and was fitted for testing that summer. In September the aircraft was moved to the Potomac River for testing, where it crashed in spectacular fashion on October 7th. Ironically, Langley had also fallen prey to the "scale it up" problem, and the full-sized model of what was a sturdy 1/4 scale model was hopelessly fragile.
Glenn Curtiss later revived the engine in an effort to break the Wright's patents on aircraft by flying the Aerodrome. Although his new version of the Aerodrome itself was heavily modified, the engine was used "as is", and proved to be entirely successful.
Years later Manly was asked by the Smithsonian Institution to write a monograph about the engine, and returned a version of the story that significantly downplayed Balzer's contribution, reducing it to supplying a non-working design that he rebuilt. Balzer's family was upset, and the Smithsonian eventually wrote a much more balanced version.
The Siddeley Puma was a British aero engine developed towards the end of World War I and produced by Siddeley-Deasy. The first engines left the production lines of Siddeley-Deasy in Coventry in August 1917 and the production continued until December 1918. At least 4,288 of the 11,500 ordered engines were delivered, then the orders were cancelled following the Armistice. Production was continued under the name Armstrong Siddeley Puma when the manufacturer was bought by Armstrong Whitworth and became Armstrong Siddeley.
The Metropolitan-Vickers F.2 was an early turbojet engine and the first British design to be based on an axial-flow compressor. It was considered too unreliable for use during the war, and never entered production. The potential of the engine and the investment did not go to waste, however, and eventually resulted in an engine design that was passed on by Metropolitan-Vickers ("Metrovick") when they left the gas turbine business to Armstrong Siddeley; as the Sapphire.
The Monosoupape (French for single-valve), was an engine design used by Gnome et Rhône's later rotary engines, and first introduced in 1913. It used a clever arrangement of internal transfer ports and a single valve to replace a large number of moving parts found on more conventional rotary engines, and made the Monosoupape engines some of the most reliable of the era. British aircraft designer Thomas Sopwith described the Monosoupape as "one of the greatest single advances in aviation".<ref name=nahum></ref>
The Centurion is a series of diesel cycle aircraft engines for general aviation built by Thielert. They are based on Mercedes-Benz automotive engines, albeit heavily modified.
Each Centurion engine is water cooled and turbocharged. It has a one-control digital engine management system (FADEC) which simplifies engine management for the pilot as well as improving reliability as it prevents the engine being operated improperly. The engine runs on either jet fuel or diesel fuel. The high compression ratio of the engine combined with the digitally controlled fuel injection system dramatically reduces emissions as well, putting it on par with modern automobile engines.
A Centurion engine is always fitted with a (variable pitch) constant speed propeller which allows the engine to be operated at it optimum speed at all times. However, the engine rotates far too quickly for any suitable propeller and so the propeller is driven through a reduction gear which is also fitted as standard. The CSU and reduction gear result in a propeller tip speed 10-15% lower than comparable conventional avgas engines, considerably reducing propeller noise.
The high compression of a diesel engine results in much better fuel efficiency. Also, the higher RPM of the Centurion (in comparison to conventional aircraft piston engines) allows higher power to be developed from smaller cylinder displacement.
Several of the standard features of a Centurion engine are available also as options for the conventional aviation engines against which the Centurion is marketed. The CSU, turbocharger, FADEC, and reduction gearbox are necessary (and not optional) on a Centurion engined aircraft.
An aircraft engine fitted with turbocharger and constant speed unit can often replace one of higher maximum power output which does not have these two features. During take off a CSU allows full power to be developed by allowing the engine to run at a quicker, optimum speed. During the cruise a CSU allows the engine to be operated at full power without overspeeding the engine. A turbocharged engine allows greater power to be developed at altitude in comparison to a naturally aspirated engine.
A Centurion engine complete with CSU, reduction gearbox, turbocharger and FADEC engine management system is considerably heavier that the ubiquitous conventional Continental and Lycoming engines against which it is marketed. This weight disadvantage is compensated by the Centurion's considerably lower fuel consumption, which, for certain journeys, may allow for the same useful load to be carried.
The Centurion engine, although it lacks the magnetos and spark plugs of the conventional Lycoming and Continental engines against which it competes, is considerably more complex than those engines.