Maybach VL I.
| Maybach | |
|---|---|
 A structurally similar engine of the type VL II |
|
| VL I | |
| Production period: | 1924–? |
| Manufacturer: | Maybach |
| Working principle: | Otto |
| Motor design: | V12 engine |
| Valve control: | OHV valve control |
| Displacement: | 33,251 cm 3 |
| Mixture preparation: | Four carburetors |
| Engine charging: | no |
| Power: | approx. 309 kW |
| Dimensions: | 950 kg |
| Previous model: | Mb IVa |
| Successor: | VL II |
The Maybach VL I is a twelve-cylinder engine - gasoline engine in V-arrangement of the aviation engine of the airship LZ 126 was designed and built from the 1924th The engine was developed under the aspects of high operational safety and service life as well as low fuel consumption, which were necessary for use as an airship engine. Zeppelin LZ 126 had five of these engines.
technology
The VL I is a V-12 four-stroke - gasoline engine with individually standing cast iron cylinders . With a cylinder bore of 140 mm and a piston stroke of 180 mm, the engine has a displacement of 33.25 liters. The crankshaft is on roller bearings and is equipped with a vibration damper for low-vibration engine operation. The engine has overhead valves , one large intake valve and two small exhaust valves per cylinder, which are actuated by a camshaft located between the rows of cylinders via tappets , push rods and rocker arms . Most of the engine's ancillaries are located on the control side to reduce vibration. The mixture is prepared by four fire-safe carburetors from Maybach, two each for a cylinder bank. They are fed with fuel from overlying drop tanks. The engine is started with compressed air, which is pressed by a two-stage compressor into two pressure bottles with a total volume of 50 liters at a pressure of around 29 bar while the engine is running. When the bottles are full, the air compressor switches itself off. A special feature of the engine is that the direction of rotation of the crankshaft can be changed in order to brake the airship or drive it backwards. For this purpose, the valve timing is changed by moving the camshaft, which is provided with double cams, in the longitudinal direction with compressed air. The engine is operated by a machinist in the engine nacelle with a lever on the control side.
Technical specifications
| Parameters | VL I |
|---|---|
| Engine design | Twelve-cylinder V-engine |
| Working principle | Gasoline engine |
| Mixture preparation | 2 × 2 Maybach carburettors |
| Valve control |
OHV valve control , 1 × inlet, 2 × outlet valve |
| Bore × stroke | 140 × 180 mm |
| Displacement | 33251 cc |
| Rated speed | 1400 min −1 |
| Nominal power at nominal speed | 420 PS (approx. 309 kW) |
| Torque at rated speed | 2107 Nm |
| Medium piston speed | 8.4 m / s |
| Compression ratio | 5.8: 1 |
| Specific fuel consumption | 258.3 g / kWh |
literature
- Peter Kleinheins: The big zeppelins: The history of airship construction . 3. Edition. Springer, Berlin 2005, ISBN 3-540-21170-5 , pp. 93–94 ( limited preview in Google Book search).