Rotary Engine wrote:

Paul Lamar wrote:
> The big problem with liquid cooling is instability of the cooling
> system.

"The" big problem? Ha!  There are numerous large problems with water
cooling engines: non-linear response to increasing delta T (what Paul
mentioned), material compatibility issues (galvanic & corrosive), fluid
containment issues (hot water expands, and systems have joints), weight
issues (water is denser than air), heat exchangers (radiators) need
particular airflow characteristics, and on and on.

I started this flame, and I'll take the opportunity to quench it.

My original point is that the "air cooled submarine" comment only
reveals the shallowness of thought of the speaker.  Cooling systems are
complex beasts, with factors both for and against them in every
installation.  Every system in an aircraft has a non-zero probability of
killing you if it goes awry.  Cooling systems are more towards the 1.0
than the 0.0 end of the range.

Russell Kent

Thanks Russell! ..... I think :)

Paul Lamar

Yes, Russell. In this context air cooling should be somewhat below water
cooling and a bit closer to 0.0.
Rolf Pfeiffer

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