From the Rolls-Royce experimental archive: a quarter of a million communications from Rolls-Royce, 1906 to 1960's. Documents from the Sir Henry Royce Memorial Foundation (SHRMF).
Kestrel engine cylinder issues, evaporative cooling failures, and future design considerations.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 179\3\ img105 | |
| Date | 30th March 1932 | |
| -4- Hs.{Lord Ernest Hives - Chair}/V.W.30.3.32. Cont'd.{John DeLooze - Company Secretary} however, which are proposed for the 1932 engines makes it possible for us to run full power steaming without any excessive cylinder head temperatures. We therefore consider that this complaint, although at present not a serious one, should become less. GENERAL POSITION. The cylinders, practically speaking, are the only part which gives us any trouble at all on the Kestrel engines. From the above report it will be seen that we are rather hopeful of making the present construction into quite a reliable unit. By this we do not mean to suggest that we should not expedite to the utmost, alternatives. It will be seen from another report that the two piece head cylinder failed when running under evaporatively cooled conditions. I think that we have got to accept now, that any cylinder we make must be capable of running under these conditions because either due to the pilot forgetting to open the shutters or due to loss of water in aerobatics, the engines will at sometime or other always be run boiling excessively. With the present design the cylinder distortion is the one fault we have to swallow. We have pointed out how this is likely to be reduced in future. It will be very difficult to make an engine at the necessary weight/horse-power in which parts do not distort. There are a number of pieces which it is impossible to measure that, when the engine is running, we should imagine take up various shapes. Hs.{Lord Ernest Hives - Chair} Report on Liner Distortion to follow. | ||