The Maybach VL I was an

Otto cycle An Otto cycle is an idealized thermodynamic cycle that describes the functioning of a typical spark ignition piston engine. It is the thermodynamic cycle most commonly found in automobile engines. The Otto cycle is a description of what hap ...

V-12 engine, made from 1924 in Germany. The airship LZ 126 was powered by five VL I engines which emphasised reliability and low fuel consumption.

Technical description

The VL I was a V-12 liquid-cooled four-stroke

engine, with individual grey cast iron cylinders, with a cylinder bore of , piston stroke of , and displacement of . The crankshaft was supported in roller-bearings and was fitted with a vibration damper for smooth operation. The

overhead valves An overhead valve (OHV) engine, sometimes called a ''pushrod engine'', is a piston engine whose valves are located in the cylinder head above the combustion chamber. This contrasts with earlier flathead engines, where the valves were located bel ...

, one large inlet valve and two smaller outlet valves per cylinder, were operated by a camshaft running between the cylinder banks, operating the valves with tappets, pushrods and rocker arms. The majority of the ancillary equipment was run by the camshaft to reduce vibration. Fuel was mixed with air by two fireproof Maybach carburetors per cylinder bank, with two header tanks above the carburetors providing fuel. Compressed air was used to start the engine; two tanks with a volume of at supplied compressed air directly to each cylinder to start the engine. To change the direction of rotation of the crankshaft, the camshaft, with lobes for normal or reverse operation, could be moved by compressed air to change over the cams in use. This mechanism, used to decelerate and halt aircraft, was operated by an engineer, accommodated in the engine nacelles, with levers.

Specifications

References

{{reflist Maybach engines Airship engines 1920s aircraft piston engines V12 aircraft engines