The Dynacool System-

All helicopters and many fixed wing aircraft are powered by turbine engines. These engines differ from the thrust jet engines seen on commercial aircraft in that they power a rotating output shaft that ultimately drives a rotor or propeller. Turbo-shaft engines are extremely powerful for their size. Power outputs of 1,000 to 15,000 hp are common.

During manufacture and after overhauls, these engines must be tested under simulated flight conditions. The tests are performed in cells where the engines are connected to dynamometers that provide a variable load that consumes the power output.

During testing, all of the engine's vital statistics are recorded. This data usually includes fuel consumption, exhaust temperature, torque and horsepower, power takeoff (PTO) shaft speed, and compressor and power turbine speeds. If an engine fails to perform as specified, it is re-worked and re-tested before being installed in the aircraft.

The load on the engine's PTO shaft is usually provided by a device called a water brake. These comparatively small machines utilize a rotating element, apposed by a stationary element, to convert the engine's torque and speed into heat in a stream of flowing water. Early installations used water on a once through basis to consume the engines power. They soon evolved into complex recirculating systems that included primary pumps, secondary pumps, hot wells, and evaporative cooling towers.

Then late in the 1980's Futuretech Design developed a simple, but large, recirculating system to consume the huge amounts of heat produced by the turbine and water brake. These systems bear the trade name "Dynacool". They are completely closed. There is no direct contact with the environment. The Dynacool system includes a reservoir, pump, and cooling coils as its functional elements. They conserve our precious supply of water. They are quiet. And, they provide the water brake with a clean predictable water supply to do its work.

The two original units have been in continuous use at Petroleum Helicopters' Evangeline Air-motive Division in Lafayette, Louisiana for nearly a decade. And still others found their way to the Persian Gulf area to help in Operation Desert Storm.

Although Dynacool systems have been used with water brakes from several different manufacturers, they are used most extensively with Honeywell brakes (formerly Lycoming brakes). Today, these viscous shear water brakes are manufactured by the Aerospace Support Equipment, Technologies Services group (ASETS) within Honeywell Aerospace.

The Dynacool dynamometer heat rejection system is an excellent example of the commitment to solution simplicity at Futuretech Design.