Title 14
SECTION 33.78
33.78 Rain and hail ingestion.
§ 33.78 Rain and hail ingestion.(a) All engines. (1) The ingestion of large hailstones (0.8 to 0.9 specific gravity) at the maximum true air speed, up to 15,000 feet (4,500 meters), associated with a representative aircraft operating in rough air, with the engine at maximum continuous power, may not cause unacceptable mechanical damage or unacceptable power or thrust loss after the ingestion, or require the engine to be shut down. One-half the number of hailstones shall be aimed randomly over the inlet face area and the other half aimed at the critical inlet face area. The hailstones shall be ingested in a rapid sequence to simulate a hailstone encounter and the number and size of the hailstones shall be determined as follows:
(i) One 1-inch (25 millimeters) diameter hailstone for engines with inlet areas of not more than 100 square inches (0.0645 square meters).
(ii) One 1-inch (25 millimeters) diameter and one 2-inch (50 millimeters) diameter hailstone for each 150 square inches (0.0968 square meters) of inlet area, or fraction thereof, for engines with inlet areas of more than 100 square inches (0.0645 square meters).
(2) In addition to complying with paragraph (a)(1) of this section and except as provided in paragraph (b) of this section, it must be shown that each engine is capable of acceptable operation throughout its specified operating envelope when subjected to sudden encounters with the certification standard concentrations of rain and hail, as defined in appendix B to this part. Acceptable engine operation precludes flameout, run down, continued or non-recoverable surge or stall, or loss of acceleration and deceleration capability, during any three minute continuous period in rain and during any 30 second continuous period in hail. It must also be shown after the ingestion that there is no unacceptable mechanical damage, unacceptable power or thrust loss, or other adverse engine anomalies.
(b) Engines for rotorcraft. As an alternative to the requirements specified in paragraph (a)(2) of this section, for rotorcraft turbine engines only, it must be shown that each engine is capable of acceptable operation during and after the ingestion of rain with an overall ratio of water droplet flow to airflow, by weight, with a uniform distribution at the inlet plane, of at least four percent. Acceptable engine operation precludes flameout, run down, continued or non-recoverable surge or stall, or loss of acceleration and deceleration capability. It must also be shown after the ingestion that there is no unacceptable mechanical damage, unacceptable power loss, or other adverse engine anomalies. The rain ingestion must occur under the following static ground level conditions:
(1) A normal stabilization period at take-off power without rain ingestion, followed immediately by the suddenly commencing ingestion of rain for three minutes at takeoff power, then
(2) Continuation of the rain ingestion during subsequent rapid deceleration to minimum idle, then
(3) Continuation of the rain ingestion during three minutes at minimum idle power to be certified for flight operation, then
(4) Continuation of the rain ingestion during subsequent rapid acceleration to takeoff power.
(c) Engines for supersonic airplanes. In addition to complying with paragraphs (a)(1) and (a)(2) of this section, a separate test for supersonic airplane engines only, shall be conducted with three hailstones ingested at supersonic cruise velocity. These hailstones shall be aimed at the engine's critical face area, and their ingestion must not cause unacceptable mechanical damage or unacceptable power or thrust loss after the ingestion or require the engine to be shut down. The size of these hailstones shall be determined from the linear variation in diameter from 1-inch (25 millimeters) at 35,000 feet (10,500 meters) to 1/4-inch (6 millimeters) at 60,000 feet (18,000 meters) using the diameter corresponding to the lowest expected supersonic cruise altitude. Alternatively, three larger hailstones may be ingested at subsonic velocities such that the kinetic energy of these larger hailstones is equivalent to the applicable supersonic ingestion conditions.
(d) For an engine that incorporates or requires the use of a protection device, demonstration of the rain and hail ingestion capabilities of the engine, as required in paragraphs (a), (b), and (c) of this section, may be waived wholly or in part by the Administrator if the applicant shows that:
(1) The subject rain and hail constituents are of a size that will not pass through the protection device;
(2) The protection device will withstand the impact of the subject rain and hail constituents; and
(3) The subject of rain and hail constituents, stopped by the protection device, will not obstruct the flow of induction air into the engine, resulting in damage, power or thrust loss, or other adverse engine anomalies in excess of what would be accepted in paragraphs (a), (b), and (c) of this section.
[Doc. No. 28652, 63 FR 14799, Mar. 26, 1998]