Plane Facts: Propellers - Plane & Pilot

Fun facts about propellers

Plane & Pilot

Thursday, March 16, 2017

Key Takeaways:

Early propeller development began in China around 500 BCE, with significant advancements by Leonardo da Vinci, Mikhail Lomonosov, and Sir George Cayley.
The Wright brothers' key innovation was the twisted airfoil design, achieving approximately 82% propeller efficiency (compared to today's 90%).
Propeller technology evolved through controllable pitch, constant-speed, feathering, and reversible pitch designs, impacting aircraft performance and efficiency.
Modern propeller applications range from single-blade designs to those with up to 14 blades, influencing speed, noise, and other factors, with ongoing innovation in electric aircraft propulsion.

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First manmade aerial propellers:China, c. 500 BCE, child’s toy

Leonardo da Vinci airscrew designs:c. 1480

First coaxial helicopter blade design:Mikhail Lomonosov, 1754

Year of first airborne propeller use:1784

Aircraft it was used in:a balloon

Means of power:hand-cranking

Early experimenter with metal prop blades:Sir George Cayley, c. 1790

First practical aircraft propeller design:Wright Brothers

Their discovery:the twisted airfoil design

Basis of twisted airfoil:propeller blades are more like wings than screws

Efficiency of Wrights’ propellers:about 82%

Efficiency of today’s propellers:around 90%

First useful metal aircraft propellers:Alberto Santos-Dumont, 1906

Number of propellers Hartzell produces each year:around 3,000

Largest production plane prop:Garuda prop, 22 ft.6 in. diameter on Linke-Hofmann R.II

One main reason for taildragger configuration:better clearance for longer blades

Largest prop on fighter plane:Vought F4U Corsair, 1939, 13 ft., three-blade

Replacement:four-blade prop with shorter blades

Fewest blades on a production propeller:1

Manufacturer:Everel Propeller Corp.

Applications:J-2 Cub (option), Taylorcraft, Cessna Airmaster

First practical controllable pitch prop:1927, electrically actuated

Advantage over hydraulics:adjustable without engine power

First production constant-speed propeller:1930, Hamilton Standard

Actuation mechanism:hydraulic (oil pressure)

Recognition for achievement:Collier Trophy

First feathering propeller: 1937, Hamilton Standard Hydromatic

First reversible pitch propeller: probably Hamilton Standard, around 1947, DC-6

Propellers on Spruce Goose (H-4):eight four-blade Hamilton Standard, 17 ft. 2 in. diameter

Most common shape of propeller tips:rounded and square

Purported benefit of square tips:greater strength

Advantage of three-blade props vs. two-blades:quieter and smoother

Reason #1 for this:shorter blades = slower tip speeds

Reason #2 for this:more but smaller pressure pulses per revolution

Most propeller blades, production airplane:Antonov SV-24, 14 blades per engine (4 engines)

Arrangement:two discs per engine, 8 blades forward, 6 in the rear

Weight of metal three-blade propeller/spinner on Cirrus SR20:80.7 lbs.

Weight of Hartzell three-blade Raptor composite prop on same plane:51.2 lbs.

Long-accepted forward aircraft speed limit for prop planes: around 500 mph

Reason for a “speed limit”:shockwaves from tips going supersonic

Rationale for more than two blades:shorter blades, slower tip speeds

Negatives for multiple blades:other blades disturb the airstream

Fastest propeller-driven plane (turboprop):XF-84F Thunderscreech, Mach .83 (disputed)

Fastest piston-powered propeller plane:Rare Bear (modified Grumman F8F Bearcat), 528 mph

Fastest combat-duty propeller plane, WWII (disputed):Messerschmitt Me 209, 470 mph

Fastest propeller-driven seaplane:Macchi M.C.72, 441 mph

Popular motorglider propeller type:folding blade

Extension mechanism:centrifugal force

Retraction mechanism:airflow

Next-gen propeller applications:NASA experimental electric planes have as many as 18 engines, all with props

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