Ultra Electronics' Precision Air Systems (booth 611) is showing its dual-fuel small engine, the DF 70, but sales and marketing manager Keith Scivier says he may have to change the engine's name, as it is now being tested with diesel fuel as well as jet fuel and gasoline.
"It seems to work fine with everything," he said.
The five-horsepower engine has about 190 hours on JP8 and JP5 and a similar number of hours on gasoline. The company has been testing it with diesel only since Monday and it has put in just a couple of hours, but "we haven't seen any knocks yet," Scivier said. "Two or three hours isn't a lot, but it's certainly proof of principle."
Ultra has been tether-flying the rotary-valve, four-stroke engine in an Aesir Embla vertical takeoff and landing vehicle, built by UK-based Aesir, and Scivier said the DF 70 is at technology readiness level 6. "We're going to keep plugging away," he said.
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Source: Flight Daily News