Propeller

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A propeller is a type of fan that transmits power by converting rotational motion into thrust. A pressure difference is produced between the forward and rear surfaces of the airfoil-shaped blade, and a fluid (such as air or water) is accelerated behind the blade. Propeller dynamics can be modelled by both Bernoulli's principle and Newton's third law. A marine propeller is sometimes colloquially known as a screw propeller or screw.

(PROPPELER  AIRPLANE THEORY VIDEO)

Theory of operation

A propeller is the most common propulsor on ships, imparting momentum to a fluid which causes a force to act on the ship.

The ideal efficiency of any size propeller (free-tip) is that of an actuator disc in an ideal fluid. An actual marine propeller is made up of sections of helicoidal surfaces which act together 'screwing' through the water (hence the common reference to marine propellers as "screws"). Three, four, or five blades are most common in marine propellers, although designs which are intended to operate at reduced noise will have more blades. The blades are attached to a boss (hub), which should be as small as the needs of strength allow - with fixed-pitch propellers the blades and boss are usually a single casting.

An alternative design is the controllable-pitch propeller (CPP, or CRP for controllable-reversible pitch), where the blades are rotated normally to the drive shaft by additional machinery - usually hydraulics - at the hub and control linkages running down the shaft. This allows the drive machinery to operate at a constant speed while the propeller loading is changed to match operating conditions. It also eliminates the need for a reversing gear and allows for more rapid change to thrust, as the revolutions are constant. This type of propeller is most common on ships such as tugs where there can be enormous differences in propeller loading when towing compared to running free, a change which could cause conventional propellers to lock up as insufficient torque is generated. The downsides of a CPP/CRP include: the large hub which decreases the torque required to cause cavitation, the mechanical complexity which limits transmission power and the extra blade shaping requirements forced upon the propeller designer.

For smaller motors there are self-pitching propellers. The blades freely move through an entire circle on an axis at right angles to the shaft. This allows hydrodynamic and centrifugal forces to 'set' the angle the blades reach and so the pitch of the propeller.

A propeller that turns clockwise to produce forward thrust, when viewed from aft, is called right-handed. One that turns anticlockwise is said to be left-handed. Larger vessels often have twin screws to reduce heeling torque, counter-rotating propellers, the starboard screw is usually right-handed and the port left-handed, this is called outward turning. The opposite case is called inward turning. Another possibility is contra-rotating propellers, where two propellers rotate in opposing directions on a single shaft, or on separate shafts on nearly the same axis. One example of the latter is the CRP Azipod by the ABB Group. Contra-rotating propellers offer increased efficiency by capturing the energy lost in the tangential velocities imparted to the fluid by the forward propeller (known as "propeller swirl"). The flow field behind the aft propeller of a contra-rotating set has very little "swirl", and this reduction in energy loss is seen as an increased efficiency of the aft propeller.

An azimuthing propeller is a propeller that turns around the vertical axis. The individual airfoil-shaped blades turn as the propeller moves so that they are always generating lift in the vessel's direction of movement. This type of propeller can reverse or change its direction of thrust very quickly,

Type of propellers

 1. Fixed pitch

The propeller is made in one piece. Only one pitch setting is possible and is usually two blades propeller and is 

often made of wood or metal

   Wooden Propellers :

Wooden propellers were used almost exclusively on personal and business aircraft prior to World War II .A wood propeller is not cut from a solid block but is built up of a number of seperate layers of carefully selected .any types of wood have been used in making propellers, but the most satisfactory are yellow birch, sugar mable, black cherry, and black walnut. The use of lamination of wood will reduce the tendency for propeller to warp. For standard one-piece wood propellers, from five to nine seperate wood laminations about 3/4 in. thick are used.

Metal Propellers 

During 1940 , solid steel propellers were made for military use. Modern propellers are fabricated from high-strength , heat-treated,aluminum alloy by forging a single bar of aluminum alloy to the required shape. Metal propellers is now extensively used in the construction of propellers for all type of aircraft. The general appearance of the metal propeller is similar to the wood propeller, except that the sections are generally thinner.

 2. Ground adjustable pitch:

The pitch setting can be adjusted only with tools on the ground before the engine is running. This type of propellers usually has a split hub. The blade angle is specified by the aircraft specifications. The adjustable - pitch feature permits compensation for the location of the flying field at various altitudes and also for variations in the characteristics of airplanes using the same engine. Setting the blade angles by loosened the clamps and the blade is rotated to the desired angle and then tighten the clamps.

 3. Two-position : A propeller which can have its pitch changed from one position to one other angle by the pilot while in flight.

4. Controllable pitch: The pilot can change the pitch of the propeller in flight or while operating the engine by mean of a pitch changing mechanism that may be operated by hydraulically.

 5. Constant speed : The constant speed propeller utilizes a hydraulically or electrically operated pitch changing mechanism which is controlled by governor. The setting of the governor is adjusted by the pilot with the rpm lever in the cockpit. During operation, the constant speed propeller will automatically changs its blade angle to maintain a constant engine speed. If engine power is increase, the blade angle is increased to make the propeller absorb the additional power while the rpm remain constant. At the other position, if the engine power is decreased, the blade angle will decrease to make the blades take less bite of air to keep engine rpm remain constant. The pilot select the engine speed required for any particular type of operation.

6. Full Feathering : A constant speed propeller which has the ability to turn edge to the wind and thereby eliminate drag and windmilling in the event of engine failure. The term Feathering refers to the operation of rotating the blades of the propeller to the wind position for the purpose of stopping the rotation of the propeller to reduce drag. Therefore , a Feathered blade is in an approximate in-line-of-flight position , streamlined with the line of flight (turned the blades to a very high pitch). Feathering is necessary when the engine fails or when it is desirable to shutoff an engine in flight.

 7. Reversing : A constant speed propeller which has the ability to assume a negative blade angle and produce a reversing thrust. When propellers are reversed, their blades are rotated below their positive angle , that is, through flat pitch, until a negative blade angle is obtained in order to produce a thrust acting in the opposite direction to the forward thrust . Reverse propeller thrust is used where a large aircraft is landed, in reducing the length of landing run.

 8. Beta Control : A propeller which allows the manual repositioning of the propeller blade angle beyond the normal low pitch stop. Used most often in taxiing, where thrust is manually controlled by adjusting blade angle with the power lever.

REFERENCE 

http://www.thaitechnics.com/propeller/prop_type.html

AIRCRAFT PROPELLER CONTROL AND OPERATION

Propeller Control   

Basic requirement:  For flight operation, an engine is demanded to deliver power within a relatively narrow band of operating rotation speeds. During flight, the speed-sensitive governor of the propeller automatically controls the blade angle as required to maintain a constant r.p.m. of the engine.

           Three factors tend to vary the r.p.m. of the engine during operation. These factors are power, airspeed, and air density. If the r.p.m. is to maintain constant, the blade angle must vary directly with power, directly with airspeed, and inversely with air density. The speed-sensitive governor provides the means by which the propeller can adjust itself automatically to varying power and flight conditions while converting the power to thrust.

 

Fundamental Forces: Three fundamental forces are used to control blade angle . These forces are:

1. Centrifugal twisting moment, centrifugal force acting on a rotating blade which tends at all times to move the      blade into low pitch.
2. Oil at engine pressure on the outboard piston side, which supplements the centrifugal twisting moment                toward low pitch.
3. Propeller Governor oil on the inboard piston side, which balances the first two forces and move the blades         toward high pitch Counterweight assembly (this is only for counterweight propeller) which attached to the           blades , the centrifugal forces of the counterweight will move the blades to high pitch setting

Constant Speed, Counterweight Propellers 

# The Counterweight type propeller may be used to operate either as a controllable or constant speed propeller. The hydraulic counterweight propeller consists of a hub assembly, blade assembly, cylinder assembly, and counterweight assembly.

# The counterweight assembly on the propeller is attached to the blades and moves with them. The centrifugal forces obtained from rotating counterweights move the blades to high angle setting. The centrifugal force of the counterweight assembly is depended on the rotational speed of the propellers r.p.m. The propeller blades have a definite range of angular motion by an adjusting for high and low angle on the counterweight brackets.

#  Controllable : the operator will select either low blade angle or high blade angle by two-way valve which permits engine oil to flow into or drain from the propeller.

# Constant Speed : If an engine driven governor is used, the propeller will operate as a constant speed. The propeller and engine speed will be maintained constant at any r.p.m. setting within the operating range of the propeller.

 Governor Operation (Constant speed with counterweight ) 

the Governor supplies and controls the flow of oil to and from the propeller. The engine driven governor receives oil from the engine lubricating system and boost its pressure to that required to operate the pitch-changing mechanism. It consists essentially of :

1. A gear pump to increase the pressure of the engine oil to the pressure required for propeller operation.

2. A relief valve system which regulates the operating pressure in the governor. 

3. A pilot valve actuated by flyweights which control the flow of oil through the governor

4. The speeder spring provides a mean by which the initial load on the pilot valve can be changed through the        rack and pulley arrangement which controlled by pilot.

    The governor maintains the required balance between all three control forces by metering to, or drain from,        the inboard side of the propeller piston to maintain the propeller blade angle for constant speed operation.

    

    The governor operates by means of flyweights which control the position of a pilot valve. When the propeller      r.p.m. is below that for which the governor is set through the speeder spring by pilot , the governor flyweight      move inward due to less centrifugal force act on flyweight than compression of speeder spring. 

    If the propeller r.p.m. is higher than setting , the flyweight will move outward due to flyweight has more               centrifugal force than compression of speeder spring . During the flyweight moving inward or outward , the         pilot valve will move and directs engine oil pressure to the propeller cylinder through the engine propeller           shaft.

Principles of Operation (Constant Speed with Counterweight Propellers) 

The changes in the blades angle of a typical constant speed with counterweight propellers are accomplished by the action of two forces, one is hydraulic and the other is mechanical.

 1. The cylinder is moved by oil flowing into it and opposed by centrifugal force of counterweight. This action moves the counterweight and the blades to rotate toward the low angle positon.

 2. When the oil allowed to drain from the cylinder , the centrifugal force of counterweights take effect and the blades are turned toward the high angle position.

 3. The constant speed control of the propeller is an engine driven governor of the flyweight type.

Governor Operation Condition

On-Speed Condition

The on-speed condition exists when the propeller operation speed are constant . In this condition, the force of the flyweight (5) at the governor just balances the speeder spring (3) force on the pilot valve (10) and shutoff completely the line (13) connecting to the propeller , thus preventing the flow of oil to or from the propeller.

The pressure oil from the pump is relieved through the relief valve (6). Because the propeller counterweight (15) force toward high pitch is balanced by the oil force from cylinder (14) is prevented from moving, and the propeller does not chang pitch

Under-Speed Condition

The under-speed condition is the result of change in engine r.p.m. or propeller r.p.m.which the r.p.m. is tend to lower than setting or governor control movement toward a high r.p.m. Since the force of the flyweight (5) is less than the speeder spring (3) force , the pilot valve (10) is forced down. Oil from the booster pump flows through the line (13) to the propeller. This forces the cylinder (14) move outward , and the blades (16) turn to lower pitch, less power is required to turn the propeller which inturn increase the engine r.p.m. As the speed is increased, the flyweight force is increased also and becomes equal to the speeder spring force. The pilot valve is move up, and the governor resumes its on-speed condition which keep the engine r.p.m. constant.

Over-Speed Condition

The over-speed condition which occurs when the aircraft altitude change or engine power is increased or engine r.p.m. is tend to increase and the governor control is moved towards a lower r.p.m. In this condition, the force of the flyweight (5) overcomes the speeder spring (3) force and raise the pilot valve (10) open the propeller line (13) to drain the oil from the cylinder (14). The counterweight (15) force in the propeller to turn the blades towards a higher pitch. With a higher pitch, more power is required to turn the propeller which inturn slow down the engine r.p.m. As the speed is reduced, the flyweight force is reduced also and becomes equal to the speeder spring force. The pilot valve is lowered, and the governor resumes its on-speed condition which keep the engine r.p.m. constant.

Flight Operation 

This is just only guide line for understanding . The engine or aircraft manufacturers' operating manual should be consulted for each particular aircrat.

 Takeoff : 

Placing the governor control in the full forward position . This position is setting the propeller blades to low pitch angle Engine r.p.m. will increase until it reaches the takeoff r.p.m. for which the governor has been set. From this setting , the r.p.m. will be held constant by the governor, which means that full power is available during takeoff and climb

  Cruising : 

Once the crusing r.p.m. has been set , it will be held constant by the governor. All changes in attitude of the aircraft, altitude, and the engine power can be made without affecting the r.p.m. as long as the blades do not contact the pitch limit stop.

 Power Descent : 

As the airspeed increase during descent, the governor will move the propeller blades to a higher pitch inorder to hold the r.p.m. at the desired value. 

 Approach and Landing :

Set the governor to its maximum cruising r.p.m. position during approach. During landing, the governor control should be set in the high r.p.m. position and this move the blades to full low pitch angle.

Hydromatic Propellers

Basic Operation Principles :
The pitch changing mechanism of hydromatic propeller is a mechanical-hydraulic system in which hydraulic forces acting upon a piston are transformed into mechanical forces acting upon the blades.

Piston movement causes rotation of cam which incorporates a bevel gear (Hamilton Standard Propeller) . The oil forces which act upon the piston are controled by the governor

 Single Acting Propeller:

The governor directs its pump output against the inboard side of piston only, A single acting propeller uses a single acting governor. This type of propeller makes use of three forces during constant speed operation , the blades centrifugal twisting moment and this force tends at all times to move the blades toward low pitch , oil at engine pressure applied against the outboard side of the propeller piston and this force to supplement the centrifugal twisting moment toward the low pitch during constant speed operation., and oil from governor pressure applied against the inboard side of the piston . The oil pressure from governor was boosted from the engine oil supply by governor pump and the force is controlled by metering the high pressure oil to or draining it from the inboard side of the propeller piston which balances centrifugal twisting moment and oil at the engine pressure.

 Double Acting Propeller: 

The governor directs its output either side of the piston as the operating condition required. Double acting propeller uses double acting governor. This type of propeller , the governor pump output oil is directed by the governor to either side of the propeller piston.

Principle Operation of Double Acting : 

 Overspeed Condition : 

When the engine speed increases above the r.p.m. for which the governor is set . Oil supply is boosted in pressure by thr engine driven propeller governor , is directed against the inboard side of the propeller piston. The piston and the attached rollers move outboard. As the piston moves outboard , cam and rollers move the propeller blades toward a higher angle , which inturn, decreases the engine r.p.m. 

Underspeed Condition

When the engine speed drops below the r.p.m. for which the governor is set. Force at flyweight is decrease and permit speeder spring to lower pilot valve, thereby open the oil passage allow the oil from inboard side of piston to drain through the governor. As the oil from inboard side is drained , engine oil from engine flows through the propeller shaft into the outboard piston end. With the aid of blade centrifugal twisting moment, The engine oil from outboard moves the piston inboard. The piston motion is transmitted through the cam and rollers . Thus, the blades move to lower angle

The Feathering System

Feathering : 

For some basic model consists of a feathering pump, reservoir, a feathering time-delay switch, and a propeller feathering light. The propeller is feathered by moving the control in the cockpit against the low speed stop. This causes the pilot vave lift rod in the governor to hold the pilot valve in the decrease r.p.m. position regardless of the action of the governor flyweights. This causes the propeller blades to rotate through high pitch to the feathering position.

 Some model is initiated by depressing the feathering button. This action, auxiliary pump, feather solinoid, which positions the feathering valve to tranfer oil to feathering the propeller. When the propeller has been fully feathered, oil pressure will buildup and operate a pressure cutout switch which will cause the auxiliary pump stop. Feathering may be also be accomplished by pulling the engine emergency shutdown handle or switch to the shutdown position.

Unfeathering :

Some model is accomblished by holding the feathering buttn switch in the out position for about 2 second . This creates an artificial underspeed condition at the governor and causes high-pressure oil from the feathering pump to be directed to the rear of the propeller piston. As soon as the piston has moved inward a short distance, the blades will have sufficient angle to start rotation of the engine. When this occurs , the un-feathering switch can be released and the governor will resume control of the propeller.

REFERENCE

http://www.thaitechnics.com/propeller/prop_control_3.html