Found pics

[christine]

115d6b89598e7ad0adbdee11f364ced6.jpg (123.34 KiB) Viewed 231 times

[christine]

Like buses , and then 2 diesel ones come along at the same time

[slowanimals]

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[Hooli]

Here's an engine rarely seen since they were intended to be disposable. This is the 4 cylinder radial engine from a WWII German G7A torpedo. It ran on Decaline fuel (decahydronaphthalene), which was first burned using compressed air (stored in a tank onboard) as an oxidizer. The combustion byproducts were then passed through a device called a 'wet heater', which also introduced water (from a 57L storage tank) to produce superheated steam. This high pressure mixture of superheated steam and compressed air was finally sent through the engine to drive the pistons.

Since the entire internal combustion/steam generator system was self-contained inside the hull of the torpedo, it could run underwater. The 4 cylinder, 'X' type radial engine produced up to 350 horsepower at its maximum power setting, which was enough to push the 26' (just over 7 meters) torpedo along at nearly 50mph while submerged.

FB_IMG_1714582085245.jpg (109.13 KiB) Viewed 228 times

[JimH]

I only learned of that torpedoes had engines fairly recently when I was looking at a sectioned Mk8 torpedo in the museum at Lyness on Hoy. Up until then I'd never given it much thought and assumed they were just blown out the tube with compressed air or something. Anyway, looking at this section made me realise that the engines really were something. The British ones used something that ran on the Brotherhood Burner Cycle which took compressed air at mental psi from a tank in the body of the torpedo and fed it into a combustion chamber where the outgoing air was heated to about 1000C. This was then blown into the engine along with additional fuel. The engine was a four cylinder radial engine like the one above. Power output in WW2 was around 400-450hp but they mucked around with trick fuels and pushed the outputs into the 6-700hp range which is pretty startling.

The other thing I learned was that the Belgrano was sunk by a Mk8 so they had a pretty long service life.

The engines were built by Peter Brotherhood who I only knew as one time builders of very forgettable traction engines and steam wagons but the company still exists and I assume are still building the modern version of their engine. For professional reasons I was on Hoy recently and in the museum store was a brand new engine in a crate. It took me all my will power not to pop it in the back of the van.

There seems to be very little on the subject of these engines and their design but if anyone knows of a good text or two then please let me know because they are fascinating things. Someone on HMVF has an 8 cylinder one in a bit of a state which must have been bit if a beast.

If anyone knows can they tell me how they started the thing? Were they started in the tubes somehow or did they just hope they started by the propeller when they were blown out the tube? How many didn't start and just went to the bottom?

[Asimo]

Page 43 onwards. https://apps.dtic.mil/sti/tr/pdf/AD0595766.pdf

Screenshot 2024-05-02 at 12.58.51.png (1.5 MiB) Viewed 163 times

[Asimo]

Page 43 onwards. https://apps.dtic.mil/sti/tr/pdf/AD0595 ... Screenshot 2024-05-02 at 12.58.51.png

If by "started" you mean initiated the crankshaft turning, then that would happen as soon as cold pressure from the tank got into one of the 4+ cylinders.
If you mean how was the fuel ignited in the burner, I don't know, but it could have used some sort of catalyst, rather like igniting rocket fuel.

[Hooli]

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[slowanimals]

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[mercrocker]

It is almost surreal seeing old British tin in such American settings.....There are/were but a handful of six-pot Farinas in Canada and I think I remember that black/orchid A55 being on the Farina Forum (maybe Michigan or somewhere near the Great Lakes). Best one is that Somerset-registered Six complete with faded orange badge, imagine encountering that completely unexpectedly.....