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Serious Competition by Wankel Unit?

4th March 1960, Page 52
4th March 1960
Page 52
Page 52, 4th March 1960 — Serious Competition by Wankel Unit?
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Which of the following most accurately describes the problem?

THE Wankel engine might compete seriously with established types, said Mr. W. V. Appleby, chief power-unit designer of the British Motor Corporation, last week. He was addressing the Automobile Division of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers.

Adequate sealing for this engine, however, would be difficult to provide, and its high revolutions would necessitate heavy and costly reduction gear. It might also be hard to get favourable performance at low speeds. The engine might first be used for industrial purposes.

Mr. .Appleby based his views upon personal observation of a laboratory unit under test. Other subjects he dealt with included A.G. dynamos. Such a unit could produce .50 amp. where a comparable D.C. dynamo produced20 amp.

A new exhaust-valve steel, known as 21-4NS, had been developed. It was an austenitic steel having an ultimate tensile strength of 20 tons per sq. in. at 800° C. —4 tons per sq. in. higher than that of EN.54 (KE.965) steel. •

The new steel had to be machined at speeds lower than normal, and could not be flameor induction-hardened. This, however, was no disadvantage because it hardened in use.

After stating that the use of better material for crankshafts gave limited advantages, Mr. Appleby claimed that increasing the fillet radius from za-, in. to in. improved the strength of a crankshaft by 15 per cent.

He did not favour a short stroke because it attenuated the combustion chamber and increased engine length. American engineers were "running into trouble" by employing compression ratios of 10 to 1.

[A description of the Wankel engine appears on page 135. The new Lucas A.C. dynamo is dealt with on page 133.1


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