CPL AGK Flashcards
Radial engines have great power to weight ratios, however they….
Have a large frontal area, and thus produce large amounts of drag
Inline inverted engines are designed to
Give the prop clearance from the ground (and also to increase forward visibility)
The more cylinders there are….
the smoother the engine runs (due to more constant power strokes)
Compression ratio=
Total volume of cylinder/clearance volume
What are the units/values for 1 horsepower
33000 foot pounds/minute
550 foot pounds/second
0.746 kW
What is indicated horsepower
Pure power generated from the engine
What is friction horespower
Horsepower loss due to frictional forces inside the engine
HP
BHP=IHP-FHP
volumetric efficiency=
amount of cht of charge (by weight) in cylinder @ standard temperature and pressure arge in cylinder (by weight)/Maximum amoun
What is a typical volumetric efficiency
70%-80%
What is thermal efficiency?
Ratio of power actually delivered by the engine to the power theoretically available in the fuel
What is a typical thermal efficiency value
30%
when the engine is off, what should the manifold pressure read
atmospheric pressure
How are magnetos powered?
Engine driver
What is engine kickback
When the spark occurs too early and causes the crankshaft is pushed in the wrong direction (this is why we need impulse coupling to delay the spark, as this phenomenom often occurs at low rpm)
Why do we only use the left magneto on startup
because only 1 spark plug is required on start up
What does the distributor in an ignition system do
distributes the current to the different spark plugs
What is a “dead-cut check”
A check whereby the magnetos are checked if they are earthing or not
What does the accelerator pump in a carby system provide
Additional mixture when the throttle is opened rapidly in order to avoid power lag.
What does the enrichment valve do
provides additional fuel at <75% power settings to aid in cooling
What is the idling jet for?
Used to provide fuel when the throttle is almost closed at low rpms (is positioned after the throttle bautterfly for this purpose
What are the conditions for carby icing
<50% humidity and around 35 degrees celcius
What is impact ice
Supercooled water droplets in the intake impact on metal surfaces and then freeze
What is fuel icing
Vaporisation of fuel causing a temperature drop which causes water to precipitate which will then freeze onto surfaces
What is throttle icing
Air that accelerates decreases in temperature
In what conditions is throttle icing most likely to occur
greatest at low power settings
-10 to 20 degrees celcius with a high relative humidity
What are some of the advantages of fuel injection systems
No fuel icing
More efficient
Fewer maintenance problems
Faster acceleration response
What are some of the disadvantages of fuel injection systems
Vapour locks
More susceptible to contamination (due to having thin lines)
Fuel that goes through return lines may be vented overboard if the tank it is being delivered to is full
What are the purposes of oil
clean, cool, lubricate, protect, seal
Why is straight mineral oil used for the first 50ish hours of engine life?
Because it allows the surfaces to rub together and create their own fit
Why do we prefer ashless dispersant oil in general use
Because it doesn’t possess the carbon-forming characteristics of mineral oil, and it prevents sludge from forming (therefore less oil blocks)
Why are synthetic oils so good?
Because they have been designed to operate at a large variety of temperatures and altitudes
Can you mix aircraft oil types?
yes (although take caution with mixing of synthetic oils due to lack of data on effects)
Can we use motor oils in planes?
No
How can we tell that an aircraft is burning oil?
Rich blue smoke is coming out of the exhaust
Oil consumption is a good indication of….
engine health
Commercial aviation oil number is what compared to the SAE oil number
2 times
e.g. aviation=80 but SAE=40
What is the approximate specific gravity of piston airplane oil
0.9
Why does oil need to be changed reguarly
oxidation and water absorption
Describe the oil system typical of most light aircraft
Wet-sump
stores oil in a collector tank
gravity dependent (although does have a pump)
Incorporates pressure relieve valve to prevent against excessive pressure
Describe the oil system typical of aerobatic aircraft
Dry-sump
Uses a scavenge pump to attain oil from an external tank
Due to the pump systems, inverted flight is possible
give some reasons as to low oil pressure
low qty
leak in the oil lines/tank
failure of the oil pump
oil pressure relief valve stuck open
Are pressure gauges reliable?
Not all instruments are reliable, and so it is important to crosscheck with other instruments in order to deduce the issue, as using multiple data sources should result in more accurate interpretation
What is supercharging
artificially increasing the pressure available to the intake manifold. the more air=more fuel=bigger boom=more power
Differentiate between a supercharger and a turbocharger
supercharger=compressor is controlled by the mechanical gears of the engine. Turbocharger uses exhaust gases to turn a turbine which turns a compressor.
How does a supercharger increase pressure
Air is forced out from the impeller, gains kinetic energy and flows out through diffuser vanes, this kinetic energy is then converted into an approximate 50% increase in pressure
What are the factors that influence how much pressure a supercharger will develop
RPM
Diameter of impeller
Shape of impeller blades
Shape of diffuser vanes