Test cell club propeller.

[RoarkS]

So I've got a fun little side project.

I'm building up a test stand for the local A&P school with a rebuilt O-320-E2D.

I **Think** I have a propeller that I can slap on it just for the sake of running an engine but what's the fun in that?

Lycoming manual says to use a test cell club prop => I talked to Lycoming, they didn't know and sent me to sensenich => radio silence. I was willing to buy one.

Anyway it says that they are mostly for engine cooling and to limit RPM.

Here's where I'm at:

I've had pretty good luck with Solidworks CFD... in fact it was borderline a miracle on the last project. Tested a component ISO 5kft to 25kft ±30° and it worked exactly as predicted. Even had some parts of the design spilling over to supersonic...

So here's what I'm thinking... I model up a prop, mess with the pitch until at 2700 RPM it's sucking out 292 ft-lbs (150hp). Is there really anything more to it?

 

[rather_be_riding]

Compare it with OpenFlow? Purely to satisfy my curiousity that is!

 

[Ng2020]

What are you planning to get from the tests? Is it for Experimental/research purposes only?
Otherwise you'd need to calibrate it. If you want to go down a rabbit hole, have a look at Casa AWB 61-003, there's a few documents referenced within.

 

[WKTaylor]

http://www.arrowprop.com

Need a Test Club (propeller)? Let Arrowprop manufacture you one. The majority of aircraft engine overhaul shops use Arrowprop Test Clubs.

Regards, Wil Taylor
o Trust - But Verify!
o We believe to be true what we prefer to be true. [Unknown]
o For those who believe, no proof is required; for those who cannot believe, no proof is possible. [variation,Stuart Chase]
o Unfortunately, in science what You 'believe' is irrelevant. ["Orion", Homebuiltairplanes.com forum]

 

[RoarkS]

@rather be riding: Never used it. I've heard of OpenFoam and understand openflow is a windows port. I'll check it out.

@Ng2020: It's literally a test stand for mechanics to train on running/setting up recip engines. Anything more than that is just for my fun really. Curious if I could use it to prove out prop design with CFD, I've got a nice load cell I'd have to get creative with.

@WKTaylor... I'll check it out. Thanks!

 

[enginesrus]

If I was going to make a test prop, I'd have the blades adjustable on the barrel. That is manually having to stop the prop and turn the blades by hand, you would need very accurate angular divisions to be able to adjust it. That way it could be tuned to what ever engine HP and RPM your trying to test at. That also would make the tuning a bit more complex and exciting.