On Track For Pre-Production Flight Testing Later This Year

By Anthony Liberatore

Taking a new, eight-cylinder Diesel engine from blank paper to flying is no small task, but it is the one currently being undertaken by EPS Engineering.

The engine is an eight-cylinder 350+ hp class 4.3L flat-vee liquid-cooled geared engine. At the company's first ever news conference at AirVenture, EPS Engineering co-founder and CEO Michael Fuchs said EPS will be present for a few more days at Oshkosh,but there is no booth or engine to display.

If you think about this effort, starting with a clean sheet of paper, to develop a state-of-the-art Diesel that will be the benchmark of it's class, not having a booth etc. kind of makes sense, as it denotes a seriousness of intent and mission focus. This focus includes facilities in New Richmond, WI, Mojave, CA and Germany that will soon co-locate multiple disciplines to the New Richmond facility as they continue to hire employees and ramp up their engine development with an eye towards their ultimate goal of FAA certification.

This project, currently in round 3 (final round) of funding is on track to have pre-production engines ready for flight test in 2015, FAA flight test in 2016, and move forward to their goal of obtaining their FAA Type Certificate in early 2017. Prior to these pre-production engines the engine development program included 2 concept engines, one used for flight test (on a Cirrus Piloted by Dick Rutan) and the 2nd  test engine that utilized a mobile testing laboratory that included taking this test engine and mobile test lab to Leadville, CO for high altitude testing. Transitioning from the concept engine the overall design architecture has stayed the same, however temporary OEM components  were replaced with EPS designed components.

This engine will be the first Diesel with an electronic engine control certified by the FAA, with Bosch being the supplier of this item. Two other Diesel state of the art items  incorporated into this design includes an engine block casted out of Compacted Graphite Iron (CGI, used by Ferrari as well), and steel pistons. One other design goal that has been met is that the EPS will be the only Diesel aircraft engine available that will be certified to fly with an aluminum propeller. The end result of all these efforts by EPS will be an engine with a 30 to 50% reduction in fuel consumption that is also smooth.

Fuchs said that retrofitting an EPS engine on an existing airframe will be different in that the STC company will have to become a stakeholder since the engines ECU will have to be calibrated to the aircraft's design characteristics. Fuchs was asked about the a price for the EPS engine and noted it is a delicate question ... but consider the price spread you see in the automotive arena between gasoline and diesel, and the higher initial price translates into cost savings down the road.

(Top image from staff. Lower image from EPS Engineering website)

FMI: http://eps.aero/