a INTRODUCTION Aeroplane performance centres around two forces acting on an aeroplane. These forces, which act in opposite directions, are thrust and drag. Drag was introduced in the last chapter. In this chapter, engine thrust and its relationship to power are examined. ‘Thrust is a force exerted by an aeroplane because a large quantity of air, which has mass, is accelerated backward. A propeller generates thrust by producing a relatively small change in velocity to a large mass of air. Conversely, a turbojet utilises a smaller mass flow but imparts a much greater change in the air's velocity. Both types of aeroplane engine therefore produce thrust by a change in velocity of the air. VARIATION OF JET THRUST WITH SPEED The red line in the diagram below shows us that jet thrust does not vary significantly with airspeed. This is because thrust depends on mass flow multiplied by the velocity change imparted by the engine. As speed increases, the mass flow increases due to ram effect. However, the velocity change decreases due to intake momentum drag. The product of mass flow and velocity increases, therefore, thrust remains almost constant with speed. INTAKE MOMENTUM DRAG ‘As an aeroplane's forward speed increases, the additional velocity imparted by the engine reduces, This is because the velocity of the air entering the engine is inoreasing, while the exit speed remains constant. The velocity increase imparted by the engine reduces, resulting in a loss in thrust. This loss in thrust is known as intake momentum drag. The intake momentum drag at different speeds is shown by the green area in the above diagram, PerformanceChapter 3. Thrust and Power RAM EFFECT At higher speeds, there is an increase in the mass of air that is accelerated. This is due to the stagnation pressure increasing, which increases the air density and mass flow. The increase in mass flow, which results in thrust increasing, is known as ram effect. The area shaded orange in the previous diagram shows the increase in thrust due to ram effect as aeroplane speed increases. The previous diagram shows us that at any given airspeed, the loss of thrust from intake momentum drag is approximately equal to the increase in thrust from ram effect. Hence, thrust remains approximately constant with speed. HIGH AND LOW BYPASS RATIO ENGINES The statement that thrust is constant with speed is only true for low bypass ratio engines. In the above diagram, the continuous red line shown is for a low bypass ratio engine. However, the dashed red line shows that thrust reduces with forward speed for @ modem, high bypass ratio engine. This is because the ram effect is now insufficient to compensate for the intake momentum drag. ‘These notes and the JAR performance exam only consider low bypass ratio engines. Therefore, ‘assume that thrust is constant with speed. 32 PerformanceThrust and Power Chapter 3 VARIATION OF THRUST WITH ALTITUDE Thrust As allitude increases, thrust available reduces because the air density and, therefore, mass flow reduce, The above diagram shows the reduction in thrust available as altitude increases. VARIATION OF THRUST WITH TEMPERATURE Although an increase in temperature slightly reduces air density and, therefore, mass flow, in practice itis either the TGT limit or rpm limit that restricts the available thrust. On hot days (above ISA + 15°C), the TGT limit is reached first. If the outside air temperature gets, hotter, the TGT is reached at a slightly slower rpm, resulting in the mass flow and thrust available reducing. Conversely, the thrust available increases as the outside air temperature gets colder. This is because the rpm at which the TGT becomes limiting is faster, and, therefore, the mass flow is greater. Therefore, as temperature increases above ISA + 15°C, thrust reduces. The red line in the graph below shows this. 1SA+8Q, ISA+ 45 "SA_Deviation| However, at outside air temperatures below ISA + 15°C, the rpm limit is reached first. Provided the thrust is regulated by the rpm limit, the thrust does not change with temperature. This is, shown by the blue line in the above graph. : The rpm can be limited manually by a flight engineer, but is normally achieved today ‘electronically by flat rating the engine below ISA + 15°C. Performance 33