Cooling System
❖ Thermal efficiency is at best only 25-28%.
❖ This means that over 70% of the heat energy released by the fuel is
wasted.
❖ The exhaust gas is responsible for around 40%.
❖ Some of this energy can be recovered on some aircraft by driving a
turbine driven supercharger (turbocharger).
❖ Remaining 32% raises the temperature of the engine components
Why Cooling is required required?
If not controlled could lead to the following problems.
a) Structural failure of the engine components.
b) Over temperature of the oil(Breakdown of its lubricating properties).
c) The fuel can ignite as it enters the cylinder, before the spark plug fires. This
is called Pre-ignition.
d) The combustion process can become unstable even if the mixture has been
ignited by the spark plug. This is called Knocking or Detonation.
Both pre-ignition and knocking result in a loss of engine power.
TYPES OF COOLING SYSTEM
LIQUID COOLING
AIR COOLING
LIQUID COOLING
The liquid cooling system dissipates the heat from the engine by pumping a
mixture of Water and Glycol (anti-freeze) through passages built into the
cylinders and cylinder heads.
The liquid is then passed through an Air-cooled Radiator mounted in slip
stream of the propeller.
This ensures that there is an airflow through the radiator even with the aircraft
stationary on the ground.
An engine driven Pump circulates the liquid through the engine, and
temperature is controlled by a Thermostat.
The liquid is stored in a reservoir called a Header Tank.
AIR COOLING
The engine is Cowled to reduce drag and control the flow of air around
the engine to ensure equal cooling and so prevent overcooling at the front
of the engine.
The rate of flow can be altered on some aircraft by a variable Cowl Flap
or Gills at the rear of the engine cowling.
Few moving parts & Lighter in weight.
Cylinder Head Temperature Gauge
Pilot can monitor the temperature of the engine by the use of a Cylinder Head
Temperature Gauge.
The gauge uses a sensor which is fitted to the engines cylinder heads. If only
one sensor is fitted it will be fitted to the Hottest Cylinder.
This is usually one of the rearmost cylinders.
The sensor is a Thermocouple. The principle of operation of a thermocouple is
that the sensor produces a Voltage which is directly proportional to its
temperature.
The cockpit indication is displayed by a sensitive moving coil meter called a
Galvanometer. The scale reads temperature and not voltage.
Questions
1. The most efficient method for cooling a piston engine is to use
.................... However, the most common method of cooling is to use
................. because of the ................ involved.
a. air cooling liquid cooling reduced costs
b. liquid cooling air cooling reduced costs
c. fuel cooling air cooling reduced costs
d. liquid cooling fuel cooling reduced costs
2. At take-off cowl flaps should be selected:
a. fully closed to decrease drag
b. open
c. partially closed
d. fully closed to increase drag
3. A typical piston engine has a maximum thermal efficiency of:
a. 70%
b. 80%
c. 90%
d. 30%
4. In a four cylinder in-line engine air-cooled, (No. 1, 2, 3, 4 from the front)
the coolest cylinder while running will be:
a. 1
b. 2
c. 3
d. 4
5. The device utilized to measure temperature on a piston engine is:
a. thermometer
b. barometer
c. thermocouple
d. thermostat
6. The temperature measuring device fitted in a four cylinder inline engine,
(No. 1, 2, 3, 4 from the front), would normally be fitted to which cylinder?
a. 1
b. 2
c. 3
d. 4