Military Vehicle Options Arising from the Barrel Type Piston Engine

Military Vehicle Options Arising from the Barrel Type Piston Engine

Journal of Power Technologies 101 (1) (2021) 22–33 Military vehicle options arising from the barrel type piston engine Pawe l Mazuro1 and Cezary Chmielewski1,B 1Warsaw University of Technology B [email protected] Abstract in terms of efficiency, meaning that piston engines can deliver enhanced range and endurance. This is benefi- The article reviews knowledge about requirements for engines in cial in missions requiring a stopover for refueling and state-of-the-art unmanned aerial vehicles and tanks. Analysis of particularly useful for unmanned supply, observation design and operational parameters was carried out on selected and maritime missions. turboshaft and piston engines generating power in the range of 500 - 1500 kW (0.5 - 1.5 MW). The data was compared In contrast, land combat vehicles have significantly with the performance of innovative, barrel type piston engines, different drive unit requirements. High mobility en- which are likely to become an alternative drive solution in the ables the vehicle to rapidly change location after de- target vehicle groups. tection. To this end, the torque curve as a function of the rotational speed of the shaft is of decisive im- portance. Keywords: military UAV, tanks, turboshaft engines, piston engines, barrel type piston engines The complexity of tank engines adds an additional layer of requirements, impacting the reliability and durability of the power unit, and they come with re- 1 Introduction lated manufacturing and operating costs. In military land vehicles, the engine should be as small This article consolidates knowledge on options and as possible; the space saved can be used for other capabilities arising from use of the barrel type piston purposes. engine in military vehicles. As with UAVs, low fuel consumption is desirable in Firstly, the article presents engines already in use in combat land vehicles, as logistics issues have always military drones. Then, we look at issues concern- posed major problems throughout military history. ing engines that are used in tanks. After assessing present-generation drone and tank engines, we com- The barrel type engine is proposed as an alternative pare them with barrel type piston engines. drive unit for both UAVs and land combat vehicles. Requirements of air and land units are met by innova- The progress and evolution of unmanned aerial ve- tive construction. More details about solutions used hicles have raised their profile and importance in the in engines of this type are presented in Section4 of military. Drones play vital roles, complementing those this article. of manned combat aircraft. They perform missions of various types such as persistent intelligence, surveil- lance, target acquisition and reconnaissance (ISTAR). The autonomy of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), 2 Millitary UAVs which allows them to carry out missions without en- UAVs now form a standard element in the military dangering human assets, is highly valued but the key mix. Escalating demand for UAVs has driven intense feature is their flight endurance and range. research and development. Technological advance- Most UAVs whose power drive unit generates power ments have dramatically broadened drone capabilities between 0.5MW – 1.5MW are equipped with piston and endurance, with one high altitude pseudo satel- or turboshaft engines. The two constructions differ lite now able to stay aloft for months [1]. While UAVs in many ways. One major difference is specific fuel are unlikely to fully replace manned combat aircraft, consumption, which correlates with engine efficiency. at least in the foreseeable future, their autonomy de- The piston engine outperforms the turboshaft engine creases mission cost and ensures crew safety. Journal of Power Technologies 101 (1) (2021) 22–33 Military type UAV [2]: 2.1 Honeywell TPE331-10 • Combat UAVs A turboprop engine (military designation: T76), ori- • Endurance UAVs ginally designed in 1959 by Garrett AiResearch and • High autonomy UAVs certified in 1965. The series now includes 18 engine • Medium autonomy UAVs models and 106 configurations. The engine has be- • Reconnaissance UAVs en produced since 1999 by Honeywell Aerospace. The • Rotorcraft UAVs engines power output ranges from 575 to 1650 shp • Transport and utility UAVs (0.429 to 1.23 MW)[3]. • Cruise missiles. Endurance UAVs and cruise missiles are powered by different kinds of drive unit and fall outside the remit of this article. Combat UAVs can carry armament and sensor pack- ages. Due to their multitasking ability, they have an advantage over smaller reconnaissance drones. This group of UAVs is mainly used in airstrikes. Drones use sensor packages to gather data for long periods over extensive operating ranges, often above Figure 1: Honeywell TPE331-10 [3] rough terrain far from base. In special situations, UAVs are used as a measure that can be more eas- Version TPE331-10T (Fig.1) generates a maximum ily written off; hence drones are sent to places that of 0.671 MW power and is used in MQ-9 Reaper. are too dangerous for helicopters or attack aircraft, Works on the successor of the MQ-1 Predator began thereby ensuring crew safety. in 2005. The U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Reconnaissance, and high and medium autonomy and Department of Homeland Security required an UAVs, are intended for strategic research and data unmanned aerial vehicle for patrol operations, while gathering in foreign territory. During design, a the US Army was interested in a multipurpose long- maximalist-minimalist approach is used. This means range UAV. that a UAV is equipped with several high-performance In the meantime, a contract was signed for design and systems and multiple devices with a smaller range of construction of the MQ-9 Reaper search and attack capabilities. Airplanes were originally used for this drone (Fig.2 ). In 2007, the first Reaper squadron type of operation, but despite flying at high altitudes was created by the US Air Force, which then operated they were still liable to interception. Unmanned high- over Iraq. In 2008 the drones were used in combat altitude platforms can be smaller and more difficult to operations over Iraq and Afghanistan. detect and do not put pilots at mortal risk. Rotorcrafts are used in places with limited space for take-off and landing. In contrast to conventional air- craft, they can operate in tight spaces and hover pre- cisely. They move at lower speed and have a more complex structure than fixed-wing UAVs. The com- plexity of the rotorcraft results in higher cost of con- struction. Military transport and utility drones are used in lo- gistics. Every military operation depends on a steady supply of mat´eriel.The use of UAVs for transport pur- poses reduces the human risk involved in ambushes or attacks on land transport. They also reduce the risks inherent in all road transport, such as accidents cau- Figure 2: MQ-9 Reaper[4] sed by driver fatigue and error. In the next section, we present examples of drones The first Reaper concept used the Predator as a test powered by turboshaft or piston engines, generating platform. First, a version equipped with a turbo- power in the range of 0.5 - 1.5 MW. fan engine and a version with an enlarged airframe 23 j 33 Journal of Power Technologies 101 (1) (2021) 22–33 Relative to its predecessor Arriel 2C, it features a MQ-9 Reaper Lenght 11.0 m new axial compressor, a new HP compressor diffuser, Span 20.1 m new HP turbine blade material, and a new-generation, Height 2.1 m dual-channel FADEC linked to an upgraded fuel sys- Empty weight 2 220 kg tem [5]. Turbomeca Ariel 2N (Fig.3) drives the Eurocopter AS565MBe Panther, which is a medium- Fuel weight 1 815 kg weight, multipurpose twin-engine helicopter, adapted Armament weight 1 360 kg to work in all weather conditions. The helicopter can MTOW 4 760 kg be operated onboard of ships or at sea completing a Performance full range of maritime missions. Maximum speed 370 km/h Range 1 852 km The engine was designed for new helicopter concepts Service ceiling 15 240 km such as the Korean military helicopter LAH. Ariel 2N Endurance 28 h was used in the Tactical Robotics Cormorant (formerly Armament AirMule) (Fig.4). It is a compact, unmanned, single- Up to four AGM-114 Hellfire air to ground missiles engine, VTOL (Vertical Take-Off and Landing) air- Two 227 kg GBU-12 Paveway II laser-guided bombs craft that was constructed in Israel for the needs of the Lebanon conflict. The first flight is dated to Jan- uary 2009. The project assumed a quick and efficient mode of transporting wounded from the combat zone equipped with a turboprop engine was tested. The and delivering supplies in a crowded, urbanized area. second version is used at NASA under the name Al- It is also intended to be used in large-scale logistics tair. In contrast to the standard Reaper, Altair is operations when supplying huge combat teams in the unarmed and includes an advanced avionics package field or transporting personnel requiring transfer to required by measurement and research equipment. the rear. The MQ-9 Reaper served mostly in Afghanistan and The vehicle reduces the vulnerability of fighting units Iraq, where it used bombs and missiles to attack en- to mines and roadside improvised explosive devices. It emy vehicles, using precise guidance [2]. eliminates fatigue of drivers or pilots and allows high- risk operations to be undertaken without endangering the lives of crew [2]. 2.2 Turbomeca Arriel 2N Cormorant uses an innovative system of internal rotors Turboshaft engine, certified in December 2014, is the consisting of two large downward facing rotors that newest addition to the Arriel 2+ family. Arriel 2N keep the ship in the air and two smaller drive-direction generates take-off power of 0.53 MW.

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