Failure analysis of an aircraft piston engine components

Abstract

In this study, failed parts from the piston engine of TB-20 Trinidad aircraft which declared an emergency landing to Anadolu University Airport, Eskisehir, Turkey due to the over-speed of propeller during a training flight were investigated. Fortunately, landing was successful, however, most of the engine parts were found to be damaged. Some of the failed parts such as propeller governor idler gear and cam followers were examined by using a variable pressure scanning electron microscope (SEM) attached with an energy dispersive X-ray spectrometer (EDX) to identify the cause of failure in the engine