Nacelles and Cowlings of Engines. Engine Mounts
Nacelles and Cowlings of Engines. Engine Mounts
ENGINE MOUNTS
Part 1
NACELLES AND COWLINGS OF ENGINES
The engine mounts is intended to attach an engine with the units and equipment
installed on it to attachment fittings of an airframe.
From the point of view of structural mechanics engine mounts are subdivided into
truss, beam, truss-girder and frame. We should note that, in many cases truss
engine mounts are very original. For example (bypass) turbojets are frequently
attached to airframe by separate rods.
Such system provides geometrical stability only as a whole. Engine mounts are
usually designed as statically indeterminate systems. It promotes reliability and
survivability of engine mounts. However rigging of engine mounts becomes
complicated. It is necessary to keep in mind that engine is attached to engine
mounts by brackets or trunnions. They are arranged on the engine in the
strongest and the most stiff places.
(Bypass) turbojets and turboprops are usually attached to engine mounts at two
(seldom at three) supporting locations. Afterburners and extension pipes are
movably attached by the additional supporting locations.
When designing the engine mounts, it is necessary to provide access to units of
the engine (and to the equipment installed on it) for maintenance. It is also
required to provide a fast engine replacement.
Requirements to engine mounts are the following.
1. Carry all loadings from engine with the units and the equipment installed on it
under any allowable operation conditions. Thus casing of the engine must not
include in airframe of aircraft.
2. Provide specified strength and stiffness at minimal mass.
3. Absorb the vibration from engine and propeller that they were not transmitted
to an airframe of aircraft.
4. Compensate for temperature deformations of engine parts without any
additional load in these parts and in aircraft airframe.
5. Maintain high survivability and specified service life.
6. Aerodynamic drag should be minimal.
7. Maintainability (little duration of installation and removal of engine; ease of
rigging; good access at maintenance.)
2.2 Loadings
(a) Each engine mount and its supporting structure must be designed for a limit
load factor in a lateral direction, for the side load on the engine mount, at least
equal to the maximum load factor obtained in the yawing conditions but not less
than 1.33.
(b) This side load may be assumed to be independent of other flight conditions.
(A) When engine is mounted to a wing, side load directed from axis of airplane
must be not less than Pz = ω2xr ⋅mP.P ,
where mP.P — power plant mass; ωx — limit roll angular velocity; r — distance
from engine center of gravity to longitudinal axis of airplane in plane view.
(B) Simultaneous action of above specified side load and weight of engine must
be considered too.
Critical condition 1 corresponds to curved flight with limit lift
coefficient and limit load factor.
3 Airframes of engine mounts
In Fig.13 the engine mounts of turbojet with the axial-flow compressor is shown.
Here the engine is attached at two supporting locations to load–carrying frames.
Fig. 13 Engine mounts of turbojet with axial-flow compressor inside a fuselage
The node A carries thrust and is loaded in addition by side loads. The rod 5 takes
part in carrying side loads. The load–carrying element A represents a pin, Fig. 14.
When mounting the engine, the lower part of this pin enters into the spherical
bearing installed on the engine. Such way of attachment in the node A provides
some translation along the vertical line and turn at rigging of engine and at its
thermal expansion. This pin is attached to a longitudinal beam of fuselage in two
nodes. The pin is attached to the top cap of the beam with the steel bolt. The pin is
pressed to the lower cap of the beam with a steel wedge. Thus the beam carries out
thrust force.
All rods of the structure are made of high-strength
alloyed steel. They are attached to the brackets of
engine and to the brackets of load–carrying
frames with bolts. The rods 3, 4, 5, arranged at the
second supporting location, are regulated. It allows
to change their length at rigging of engine.
The engine is installed and removed when the tail
part of a fuselage is detached with a special hand
cart. To simplify mounting, casing of the engine
carries on the brackets with rollers. In the fuselage
there are directing rails. By these rails the engine
is rolled inside of the fuselage, and then attached
Fig. 14. Node A to engine mounts.
In case of arrangement of two engines side-by-side in the tail part of a fuselage each
of them is attached to load–carrying frames and beams of a fuselage similarly. Thus
the pin, carrying the engine thrust, can be placed either from above or sideways of
engine, depending on convenience of arrangement.
Engine mounts of (bypass) turbojets to a fuselage. Such structures were used at
Tu-104, Tu-124 airliners. We shall consider the engine mounts shown in Fig.15.
Fig.18. Engine mounts of (bypass) turbojet with pylon under the wing