Alessandro Anzani in 1906, on his fan-type engined motorbike
Alessandro Anzani began building motorcycle engines in France around 1905. Unusually, his motors were air-cooled rather than water-cooled, making them light. His first designs were two-cylinder V-engines, and he rode machines powered by them to records and race success in 1905 and 1906. In the same period he had developed a three-cylinder version, more powerful than the twins. As the image shows, the engine fit neatly into the motorcycle frame. Engines with cylinders arranged radially but only in the upper half-circle were termed fan type, or semi-radials; by about 1910 other manufacturers were building e.g. five-cylinder fan engines, most notably R.E.P. Three-cylinder fans were known as W or W-3 engines. The appeal of the fan configuration was that, because all the cylinder were above the horizontal there was little danger of the plugs being fouled by the lubricating oil. The disadvantage, particularly for an aircraft engine, was the extra weight required to counterbalance the pistons.
In response to the growing interest in aviation in France after the Wright brothers' visit in 1908, Anzani produced the first of a series of three-cylinder fan flight engines. The cylinders were each a single iron casting and the one-piece crankcase was aluminium.[2] Pistons were steel with cast rings.[2] In most of these the outer cylinders were at 60° to the central one, though a contemporary diagram[3] shows one, described as the cross channel engine, with a 55° angle. They were all air-cooled side-valve engines; each exhaust valve was controlled from below by a cam in the crankcase.[2] Each was mounted in a cell to the side of the cylinder, with the automatic, atmospheric pressure-driven spring-loaded inlet valve immediately above it, partly to minimise volume and partly to help cool the hot exhaust valve. Most contemporary and pre-1921 sources agree that the bores of these early engines were between 100 and 105 mm (3.93 and 4.13 in),[2][4][5] but strokes between 120 and 150 mm (4.72 and 5.90 in) are quoted. Most state the output of these engines at about 18 kW (24 hp) at around 1,400–1,600 rpm.
Installed replica of an Anzani 3W Motor
An engine of this sort famously powered Louis Blériot's Type XI monoplane across La Manche (the English Channel) on 25 July 1909. Contemporary sources differ on its bore, stroke and swept volume. The first description of the successful machine in Flight describes the engine as having dimensions of 100 × 150 mm, or a capacity of 3.53 litres.[4] However, a few months later they printed the engineering drawing of the 55° engine,[3] which has dimensions of 103 x 120 mm marked on it, clearly captioned as "used ... in the cross-Channel flight". If their identification was right, then Bleriot used a 3.00-litre engine. A head-on photograph of the cross-channel aircraft[6] also shows a 55° engine.
Even before the channel flight, Anzani was selling more powerful versions with larger bores:[7] a 120 mm bore, 4.4-litre (269 cu in) variant produced 26 kW (35 hp) and a 135 mm bore, 6.4-litre (390 cu in) engine gave 36 kW (45 hp). These fan engines remained in production until at least 1913,[8] though there were important improvements. The exhaust valve was moved to the cylinder head and operated by rockers via push rods, and a mixing chamber was arranged in the crankcase. The 1913 three-cylinder Anzani fan engine had a cylinder separation of 72°, presumably to lighten the counterbalance. By this stage it had its inlet manifold at the rear of the engine to minimise airflow cooling of the fuel air mixture.
Anzani was aware of the weight cost of the counterweight in the fan configuration and by December 1909 he had a symmetric 120° three-cylinder radial engine running. One example was a 3.1 litre (186 cu in) unit producing 22 kW (30 hp) at 1,300 rpm.[5] Although termed the Y engine after its symmetric cylinder arrangement, it ran in an inverted Y position so that the plugs, mounted on the upper in-plane side of the two lower cylinders were less than 30° below the horizontal and less prone to oiling than one serving a piston at 180° from upright.
Radials are smoother running than the less symmetric fan engines as well as lower weight but with the low power available from their three cylinders they had limited applications. They led, however, to Anzani's two-row radial engines, beginning with the 6-cylinder radials, two Ys on a common crankshaft. In the 21st century a restored Bleriot XI bearing the French Blériot factory serial number 56 — said to be the oldest flyable aircraft in the Western Hemisphere, bearing the American registration N60094 — is still flown in the United States on summer and early autumn weekends with one of these 120° cylinder angle "Y-type" radial engines.[9]
Variants
Anzani 3-cylinder fan engines
Output power: bore×stroke: capacity
10–12 hp (7.5–9 kW)
3.35 in × 3.35 in (85 mm × 85 mm): 88.5 cu in (1.45 L)
12–15 hp (9–11 kW)
3.35 in × 3.94 in (85 mm × 100 mm): 104 cu in (1.70 L)
25–30 hp (19–23 kW)
4.13 in × 5.12 in (105 mm × 130 mm): 206 cu in (3.38 L)
40–45 hp (30–34 kW)
5.32 in × 5.92 in (135 mm × 150 mm): 393 cu in (6.44 L)
The restored and flyable Blériot XI, with French Blériot factory serial number 56 and registry number N60094 at Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome uses one of these Anzani three-cylinder "true radial" engines for its straight-line, short distance "hop" flights. Another Blériot XI, with British registration G-AANG and said to be only three weeks older than the Old Rhinebeck example, is allowed to fly similar short 'hops' at the Shuttleworth Collection. Its original "fan-type" Anzani three-cylinder engine is thought to be the oldest airworthy aircraft engine in the world.[1] A 1910 Deperdussin monoplane that is also restricted to straight 'hops' uses a 'Y'-type Anzani engine.[10]
Engines on display
The Shuttleworth Collection also holds preserved examples of Anzani three-cylinder engines on static display.
At the Museo Nacional de Aeronáutica Argentina there is a three-cylinder Anzani semiradial in working order installed on a Bleriot 11. A Y three-cylinder engine is on display at the Engines hall at the same Museum
Brooklands Museum, Weybridge, U.K. has an Anzani 3-cylinder fan engine on static display.
Specifications
Anzani inverted Y-type aero engine in a Deperdussin (Shuttleworth Collection), and nearly identical to Old Rhinebeck's Bleriot XI engine
Data fromFlight:[11] according to them, these specifications describe the Channel flight engine
Gunston, Bill (1989). World Encyclopaedia of Aero Engines. Wellingborough: Patrick Stephens. ISBN1-85260-163-9.
Sanger, Ray (2008). Bleriot in England. Tonbridge, Kent: Air-Britain. ISBN978-0-85130-399-4.
"The Blériot short span monoplane-the Channel flyer: the engine". Flight (31 July 1909): 456.
"Flight engines at the Paris show". Flight: 691–2. 30 October 1909.
"Aeronautical Engines". Flight: 20–1. 4 January 1913.
"Cross Channel Anniversary". Flight (18 December 1959): 755.
Vivian, E. Charles (1920). . Archived from the original on 2011-10-07.
Hirschauer, Louis; Dollfus, Charles, eds. (1921). L'Année Aéronautique: 1920-1921. Paris: Dunod. p. 115.
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Anzani 3.
Anzani 72° fan engine start-up
Restored Anzani 3-cylinder "fan" engine runup, from the Humgarian Vintage Glider Club
Anzani Y-type replica starts
Old Rhinebeck's Anzani-powered Blériot XI "hops" for a short flight
January 06, 2023
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From 1905 to 1915 Alessandro Anzani built a number of three cylinder fan engines and radial engines one of which powered Louis Bleriot s 1909 cross channel flight An Anzani three cylinder engine that powers a Bleriot XI based in England is thought to be the oldest airworthy engine in the world 1 Anzani 3 cylinder72 Anzani fan engine Shuttleworth CollectionType Three cylinder air cooledNational origin FranceManufacturer AnzaniDesigner Alessandro AnzaniMajor applications Bleriot XI Contents 1 Design and development 2 Radial Y engines 3 Variants 3 1 Anzani 3 cylinder fan engines 3 2 Anzani 3 cylinder inverted Y radial engines 4 Applications 5 Survivors 6 Engines on display 7 Specifications 7 1 General characteristics 7 2 Components 8 See also 9 References 9 1 Notes 9 2 Bibliography 10 External linksDesign and development Edit Alessandro Anzani in 1906 on his fan type engined motorbike Alessandro Anzani began building motorcycle engines in France around 1905 Unusually his motors were air cooled rather than water cooled making them light His first designs were two cylinder V engines and he rode machines powered by them to records and race success in 1905 and 1906 In the same period he had developed a three cylinder version more powerful than the twins As the image shows the engine fit neatly into the motorcycle frame Engines with cylinders arranged radially but only in the upper half circle were termed fan type or semi radials by about 1910 other manufacturers were building e g five cylinder fan engines most notably R E P Three cylinder fans were known as W or W 3 engines The appeal of the fan configuration was that because all the cylinder were above the horizontal there was little danger of the plugs being fouled by the lubricating oil The disadvantage particularly for an aircraft engine was the extra weight required to counterbalance the pistons In response to the growing interest in aviation in France after the Wright brothers visit in 1908 Anzani produced the first of a series of three cylinder fan flight engines The cylinders were each a single iron casting and the one piece crankcase was aluminium 2 Pistons were steel with cast rings 2 In most of these the outer cylinders were at 60 to the central one though a contemporary diagram 3 shows one described as the cross channel engine with a 55 angle They were all air cooled side valve engines each exhaust valve was controlled from below by a cam in the crankcase 2 Each was mounted in a cell to the side of the cylinder with the automatic atmospheric pressure driven spring loaded inlet valve immediately above it partly to minimise volume and partly to help cool the hot exhaust valve Most contemporary and pre 1921 sources agree that the bores of these early engines were between 100 and 105 mm 3 93 and 4 13 in 2 4 5 but strokes between 120 and 150 mm 4 72 and 5 90 in are quoted Most state the output of these engines at about 18 kW 24 hp at around 1 400 1 600 rpm Installed replica of an Anzani 3W Motor An engine of this sort famously powered Louis Bleriot s Type XI monoplane across La Manche the English Channel on 25 July 1909 Contemporary sources differ on its bore stroke and swept volume The first description of the successful machine in Flight describes the engine as having dimensions of 100 150 mm or a capacity of 3 53 litres 4 However a few months later they printed the engineering drawing of the 55 engine 3 which has dimensions of 103 x 120 mm marked on it clearly captioned as used in the cross Channel flight If their identification was right then Bleriot used a 3 00 litre engine A head on photograph of the cross channel aircraft 6 also shows a 55 engine Even before the channel flight Anzani was selling more powerful versions with larger bores 7 a 120 mm bore 4 4 litre 269 cu in variant produced 26 kW 35 hp and a 135 mm bore 6 4 litre 390 cu in engine gave 36 kW 45 hp These fan engines remained in production until at least 1913 8 though there were important improvements The exhaust valve was moved to the cylinder head and operated by rockers via push rods and a mixing chamber was arranged in the crankcase The 1913 three cylinder Anzani fan engine had a cylinder separation of 72 presumably to lighten the counterbalance By this stage it had its inlet manifold at the rear of the engine to minimise airflow cooling of the fuel air mixture Radial Y engines Edit Anzani Y radial engine Anzani was aware of the weight cost of the counterweight in the fan configuration and by December 1909 he had a symmetric 120 three cylinder radial engine running One example was a 3 1 litre 186 cu in unit producing 22 kW 30 hp at 1 300 rpm 5 Although termed the Y engine after its symmetric cylinder arrangement it ran in an inverted Y position so that the plugs mounted on the upper in plane side of the two lower cylinders were less than 30 below the horizontal and less prone to oiling than one serving a piston at 180 from upright Radials are smoother running than the less symmetric fan engines as well as lower weight but with the low power available from their three cylinders they had limited applications They led however to Anzani s two row radial engines beginning with the 6 cylinder radials two Ys on a common crankshaft In the 21st century a restored Bleriot XI bearing the French Bleriot factory serial number 56 said to be the oldest flyable aircraft in the Western Hemisphere bearing the American registration N60094 is still flown in the United States on summer and early autumn weekends with one of these 120 cylinder angle Y type radial engines 9 Variants EditAnzani 3 cylinder fan engines Edit Output power bore stroke capacity 10 12 hp 7 5 9 kW 3 35 in 3 35 in 85 mm 85 mm 88 5 cu in 1 45 L 12 15 hp 9 11 kW 3 35 in 3 94 in 85 mm 100 mm 104 cu in 1 70 L 25 30 hp 19 23 kW 4 13 in 5 12 in 105 mm 130 mm 206 cu in 3 38 L 40 45 hp 30 34 kW 5 32 in 5 92 in 135 mm 150 mm 393 cu in 6 44 L 45 50 hp 34 38 kW Anzani 3 cylinder inverted Y radial engines Edit 40 hpApplications EditBleriot XI Caproni Pensuti triplane Deperdussin Type A Dufaux 4 Medwecki HL 2 Muller G M G II Perry Beadle T 1 Raab Katzenstein RK 9 Grasmucke Sikorsky S 1 Sikorsky S 2 Stelmaszyk S 1 Bozena VIH Holland H 1Survivors EditThe restored and flyable Bleriot XI with French Bleriot factory serial number 56 and registry number N60094 at Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome uses one of these Anzani three cylinder true radial engines for its straight line short distance hop flights Another Bleriot XI with British registration G AANG and said to be only three weeks older than the Old Rhinebeck example is allowed to fly similar short hops at the Shuttleworth Collection Its original fan type Anzani three cylinder engine is thought to be the oldest airworthy aircraft engine in the world 1 A 1910 Deperdussin monoplane that is also restricted to straight hops uses a Y type Anzani engine 10 Engines on display EditThe Shuttleworth Collection also holds preserved examples of Anzani three cylinder engines on static display At the Museo Nacional de Aeronautica Argentina there is a three cylinder Anzani semiradial in working order installed on a Bleriot 11 A Y three cylinder engine is on display at the Engines hall at the same Museum Brooklands Museum Weybridge U K has an Anzani 3 cylinder fan engine on static display Specifications Edit Anzani inverted Y type aero engine in a Deperdussin Shuttleworth Collection and nearly identical to Old Rhinebeck s Bleriot XI engine Data from Flight 11 according to them these specifications describe the Channel flight engine General characteristics Type 3 cylinder air cooled fan type Bore 100 mm 3 94 in Stroke 150 mm 5 90 in Displacement 3 53 litres 216 cu in Dry weight 65 kg 143 lb Components Valvetrain Automatic inlet valves mechanical exhaust valves driven from three separate cams in crankcase One inlet one exhaust per cylinder Fuel system Gronville and Arquembourg carburettor mixing chamber in crankcase Oil system Splash lubrication Cooling system Air ribbed cylinders Ignition Battery ignition one spark plug per cylinderSee also EditW 3 enginesRelated lists List of aircraft enginesReferences EditNotes Edit a b Shuttleworth Collection Bleriot XI Retrieved 5 January 2012 a b c d Flight 30 October 1909 pp 691 2 a b Flight 30 October 1909 p 691 a b Flight 31 July 1909 p 456 a b Vivian Pt 4 Ch III Sanger p 125 Gunston 1989 pp 15 6 Flight 4 January 1913 pp 20 1 Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome Pioneer Aircraft Bleriot XI oldrhinebeck org Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome Archived from the original on January 8 2014 Retrieved January 7 2014 Shuttleworth Collection Deperdussin Retrieved 5 January 2012 Flight 18 December 1959 Bibliography Edit Gunston Bill 1989 World Encyclopaedia of Aero Engines Wellingborough Patrick Stephens ISBN 1 85260 163 9 Sanger Ray 2008 Bleriot in England Tonbridge Kent Air Britain ISBN 978 0 85130 399 4 The Bleriot short span monoplane the Channel flyer the engine Flight 31 July 1909 456 Flight engines at the Paris show Flight 691 2 30 October 1909 Aeronautical Engines Flight 20 1 4 January 1913 Cross Channel Anniversary Flight 18 December 1959 755 Vivian E Charles 1920 A History of Aeronautics Archived from the original on 2011 10 07 Hirschauer Louis Dollfus Charles eds 1921 L Annee Aeronautique 1920 1921 Paris Dunod p 115 External links Edit Wikimedia Commons has media related to Anzani 3 Anzani 72 fan engine start up Restored Anzani 3 cylinder fan engine runup from the Humgarian Vintage Glider Club Anzani Y type replica starts Old Rhinebeck s Anzani powered Bleriot XI hops for a short flight Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Anzani 3 cylinder fan engines amp oldid 1101614195, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
