South Africa's ADEPT Airmotive has developed what it calls the world's first modern GA aircraft engine that runs on a range of different fuels.
The unique, liquid-cooled engine, with advanced electronic engine management, was unveiled recently at Virginia Airport, Durban, where it powered a South African-designed, all-composite SA Ravin 500 light aircraft.
In addition to normal unleaded petrol (mogas), with an octane rating as low as 85, or standard aviation fuel (avgas), the ADEPT 320T engine can operate on more environmentally friendly alternatives like bio fuel or liquid petroleum gas (LPG). The engine, which produces 320 horsepower, sets new standards for performance and low life-cycle costs.
The ADEPT 320T boasts the lowest lead, nitrous oxide, and carbon dioxide emissions and noise levels, setting it apart from existing technology. At an installed weight of 158kgs, it is roughly 30 per cent lighter than traditional piston engines of comparable horsepower and offers fuel efficiencies of up to 30 per cent better than conventional GA powerplants.
The architecture of the 320T’s compact engine is entirely different from that of traditional GA engines. It is a 120-degree V6 engine, which is dimensionally short, ensuring high levels of strength, durability and smoothness. As a result, it is well balanced and reduces vibration and materials fatigue. In addition, the 320T drives its constant speed propeller through a speed reduction unit, which allows the engine to rev higher, increasing both engine efficiency and providing optimum propeller efficiency.
With motions well underway in the US to mandate the transition to unleaded avgas for GA aircraft, the ADEPT 320T could perhaps prove an alternative for the future.
The ADEPT 320T engine. (Adept Airmotive)
