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Sunday, November 22, 2009

Another Challenger to the Lycoming/Continental GA Engines

Click top 2 for Large Pics

















In this case, it's the liquid cooled 120° V-6 Adept aviation engine Adept 320T avgas/mogas engine.

I'm dubious on market success, given that it has to use gasoline, though it is automotive fuel (mogas) compatible.

The cost, and relative unavailability of the fuel is what is driving people toward small turbine and diesel engines.

I came across their web site in a strange way, they were mentioned in an ad for Autodesk® CAD products on the back cover of the ASME magazine, Mechanical Engineering, and looked at their technology.

The basic features of the engine are:
  • 320 hp out of 3.2 liter. I'm not sure of the RPM.
  • Higher speed than legacy horizontally opposed twins, with a reduction gearbox.
  • The engine, "has a fairly over-square bore/stroke ratio (98mm x 70mm)," which they claim keeps piston speed below that of the current engines.
  • Liquid cooling.
  • Operates on 94 Octane fuel, obviating the need for the increasingly scarce 100LL
  • 2000 Hour TBO.
  • They are not looking into helicopter applications, but they might at a later time.
There is a relatively uneventful video of an engine run at the bottom of this post.

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