I am an industrial worker during the War of Resistance

Chapter 81 The First Aviation Gasoline Engine
On the very day the first batch of molten steel from the new steel plant was produced, several headquarters leaders who came to witness the ceremony brought him some good news.

The Ordnance Department at headquarters, which was responsible for finalizing weapon designs, was very satisfied with the lightweight infantry gun that Chen Changzai had developed.

Especially the veteran gunners who were responsible for testing the cannons.

Based on Chen Changzai's calculations and verifications during the factory's test firings, they compiled a simplified ballistic firing table for infantry guns after summarizing the artillery shell trajectory data.

All targets were hit.

From the closest distance of 100 meters to the maximum range of about 2800 meters.

The target area was hit completely.

And the shells that veteran gunners loved the most.

It was a high-carbon steel-based molybdenum alloy armor-piercing projectile designed by Chen Changzai based on the characteristics of this cannon.

This armor-piercing projectile can penetrate 30 to 35 millimeters of armor steel at a range of 100 meters.

It can penetrate 25 to 30 millimeters of armor steel within 500 meters.

It can penetrate 20mm of armor steel at a range of one kilometer.

Such armor penetration depth would be nothing on the European battlefield.

Its performance is roughly equivalent to that of the German 37mm anti-tank gun, when using standard armor-piercing rounds.

However, it is far less effective than the hard tungsten alloy armor-piercing projectiles used as "stepping stones".

However, such armor-piercing effect was sufficient on the Eastern battlefield.

With this cannon at least, infantry would be more than capable of dealing with the Japanese in the early stages, especially against medium and light tanks.

With those few millimeters of armor protection, this cannon is absolutely guaranteed to penetrate it within 500 meters.

As for those bunkers and pillboxes, that goes without saying, even if they are reinforced concrete pillboxes.

If one shot doesn't penetrate, fire a few more shots and it'll be dismantled.

In fact, Chen Changzai also wanted to use the hard-core armor-piercing shells that the Germans equipped the Type 88 gun with in 1943.

Or perhaps the British developed it in 1944 as a sub-caliber discarding sabot armor-piercing projectile for the 17-pounder gun.

However, after considering the quantity of tungsten alloy required for these shells, the technical requirements, and the manufacturing difficulties, he decided to give up.

Let's wait until we truly improve our material quantity, alloy processing, and manufacturing technology before making any decisions.

Although for the countries in the world that could manufacture armor-piercing projectiles in later generations.

Armor-piercing fin-stabilized discarding sabot rounds are basic munitions, and their technical difficulty is relatively low.

But that is relative to the level of basic industrial technology in the world in later generations.

This is still very difficult for Chen Changzai.

Since the headquarters has already accepted the infantry gun and named it the "Type 1 Infantry Gun".

The remaining matters were no longer Chen Changzai's responsibility.

The remaining issue of mass production is a matter for the headquarters ordnance factory.

His task was to begin the design and development of the next artillery piece.

Over the past year.

The headquarters ammunition factory and ordnance factory are also constantly expanding.

The ammunition factory.

From initially only being able to reload bullets, it can now mass-produce 7.92mm rifle/machine gun dual-purpose pointed bullets and 7.62mm Mauser pistol/submachine gun dual-purpose bullets.

12.7mm dual-purpose heavy machine gun bullets and 37mm dual-purpose anti-aircraft artillery shells.

And grenades for grenade launchers.

Now they have another task: 70mm infantry shells.

Meanwhile, at the headquarters ordnance factory...

They could only repair rifles.

It has developed to the point of manufacturing the "Type 1" rifle, the "Type 1" general-purpose machine gun, the "Type 1" submachine gun, the "Type 1" 12.7mm heavy machine gun, the "Type 1" 37mm anti-aircraft gun, and the "Type 1" grenade launcher.

Today, this infantry gun, named "Type 1 Infantry Gun," also has to be produced by them.

The military factory under Chen Changzai was only responsible for producing gunpowder, explosives, grenades, and landmines.

The quality of workers in these factories is getting higher and higher.

This includes not only the technical workers trained by the team itself at the school.

There are also a large number of students who come to northern Shaanxi from other places.

These are students who are already knowledgeable, passionate, and full of youthful vigor.

After arriving in northern Shaanxi, he not only injected strength into the troops.

It also injected new vitality into the industrial development of northern Shaanxi.

Chen Changzai now has many students under his command, all of whom have undergone organizational review.

He was considered reliable, and students from other places learned and practiced under his tutelage.

Chen Changzai really couldn't remember how many students he had now.

However, from the initial thirty-odd people to now, more than a year later...

He felt that he had at least seven or eight hundred students who had studied under him, if not a thousand.

And this is far from the end.

This is just the beginning.

Having more students is definitely an advantage.

For example, on the third day after the first batch of molten steel was produced at the steel plant, his students brought him a surprise.

Chen Changzai looked at the small creature in his hand, which was covered with a ceramic insulating layer.

He was laughing so hard he could hardly close his mouth.

The spark plug, a core component of gasoline engines, has finally been successfully prototyped.

Don't be fooled by this little thing that's not much bigger than a thumb.

It took Chen Changzai and his electrical engineering students a lot of brainpower to come up with it.

The electric spark tester, a tiny thing that no one would even glance at if dropped on the street in later generations, looks very inconspicuous.

But I want to get it done.

It involves six or seven disciplines, eight or nine types of materials, and more than twenty processes.

This involves disciplines such as materials science, mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, engineering thermophysics, chemistry, and electromagnetism.

The materials involved also include nickel alloys, copper, iron, alumina ceramics, glass seals, and other materials.

The processing technology involves more than 20 steps, including sintering of insulating ceramics, processing of metal shells, electrode manufacturing and welding.

The main reason Chen Chang was able to obtain the spark plug was because of the successful generator.

Only with generators could the industrial production of electrolytic aluminum begin.

Alumina ceramics can only be made with electrolytic aluminum.

Alumina ceramics are the only truly qualified high-voltage insulating material for manufacturing spark plugs.

Chen Changzai had long wanted to develop a gasoline engine, but he didn't want to work on gasoline engines used in automobiles.

What he wanted to develop was an aviation gasoline piston engine for use on airplanes.

Chen Changzai believes that diesel engines are still a better common power source for vehicles on the ground.

What's needed most right now is a truck engine with low RPM and high torque.

Now, Chen Changzai's engine factory has a very good foundation in the diesel engine field, so he has not let them be distracted by gasoline engines.

He simply instructed his students in the engine lab to conduct preliminary sample production.

This is why Chen Changzai was so happy to see the spark plug in his hand.

That's because the spark plug is made of alumina ceramic as the insulating material.

The spark plugs used in engine laboratories today are made of ordinary ceramic insulating material.

Spark plugs made of this material are barely usable in low-powered car engines.

However, their lifespan is also extremely short.

However, using it on an aircraft piston gasoline engine would be irresponsible to the pilot. Although during World War I, the spark plugs used on aircraft in various countries were all of this type, made of ordinary ceramic.

But that was twenty years ago.

Compared to modern fighter jets, those fighter jets were like clumsy, fat guys.

The same applies to engines.

Using technology from twenty years ago to manufacture engines and airplanes is tantamount to sending your pilots to their deaths.

In the engine laboratory, Chen Changzai looked at the inline six-cylinder engine in front of him, with a bore of 150 millimeters.

Aluminum-magnesium-nickel alloy cylinder block, cylinder head, and piston.

Medium carbon steel-based molybdenum alloy cylinder liners and chrome-plated piston rings.

It employs a mechanical single-nozzle intake manifold fuel injection system that is even simpler and more practical than carburetor manufacturing.

When using naturally aspirated aviation gasoline engines.

Chen Changzai was quite satisfied.

This engine.

It was designed for him to use the first aviation gasoline engine in a light trainer aircraft.

The goal is to enable pilots to fight in the air.

You can't just hand over the fighter jet to the pilot.

You must ensure that the pilots have undergone training on a trainer aircraft.

Otherwise, that wouldn't be sending pilots to the squadron; that would be murder.

Even in the most desperate situations.

You also need to make the pilots fly in training aircraft for more than ten hours to let them get a feel for being in the air.

Otherwise, the fighter jets you give him will crash on their own without the enemy even having to shoot them down.

This is an inline six-cylinder aviation gasoline engine.

It was also the model that he used to lay the foundation for his students' future technological accumulation and development in aero-engines.

In aviation gasoline piston engines.

The simplest type is this inline six-cylinder liquid-cooled engine.

Like the V-type engines, radial engines, and V-type inverted engines currently used by those Western powers.

Those things weren't done in a day; they were achieved step by step.

What Chen Changzai needs most now is to enable his students to lay a solid foundation in this inline six-cylinder engine and summarize their experience.

Only then can we move forward step by step in the future.

If you set your sights too high now, you will definitely stumble in the future.

Even if Chen Changzai is incredibly skilled, he can't hammer out more than a few nails.

Even if he rubs hard all by himself, he can't make a fighter jet.

"Zhihong, how did this engine feel during the test run? Was it running smoothly?"

Is the power output stable?

How many hours of testing were conducted on the swing platform?

What is the failure rate?

Su Zhihong was one of Chen Changzai's students.

He led the work of the engine laboratory, specifically the aviation gasoline engine and trainer aircraft project team.

He had been working under Chen Changzai for more than half a year.

He himself did not come from snow-capped mountains and grasslands.

Instead, they were members who were secretly sent by the team to study at Jianqiao Aviation School back then.

He should be continuing his studies at Jianqiao Flight School now.

However, because his identity was discovered, the Special Branch comrades urgently escorted him back to northern Shaanxi.

Technical talents like Su Zhihong, who are specially trained by the team, are of great concern to leaders at all levels.

When he returned last year, the headquarters leaders told him to report directly to Chen Chang.

Chen Changzai once sent three reports to headquarters.

This included a report on the aviation industry.

Su Zhihong, who studied in the mechanical department of Jianqiao Aviation School for three years, is one of the future aviation talents that the team focuses on cultivating.

So when Su Zhihong had to interrupt his studies early and return home, he joined Chen Changzai's trainer aircraft research and development team.

After Su Zhihong joined, he could be said to be the person who knew the most about airplanes besides Chen Changzai.

When he first met Chen Changzai.

To be honest, he really didn't think that this young man in front of him, who was not even twenty years old, knew more about airplanes than he did.

Although this young man has already built a very large industrial system.

However, he was still not entirely convinced when it came to airplanes.

However, after he and Chen Changzai had a day of technical exchanges about aircraft.

Su Zhihong was completely convinced.

Chen Changzai was able to readily produce various theoretical arguments about piston-engine aircraft.

They can also tell him who these theories came from, and which person made these arguments in which book.

If we apply this argument in practice, how can we better integrate it with the current reality?

Which arguments are outdated in this day and age?

Those will be more helpful for future development.

Finally, Chen Changzai would find these books in his book box, all of which were original foreign language editions.

These books were obtained by comrades from the Special Branch, who managed to acquire them from all over the country and even from abroad.

This is also one of the most important tasks assigned to the Special Branch by the leadership.

Chen Changzai not only understood these books, but he also made annotations in them.

After Su Zhihong finally left Chen Chang here.

All he could think about was how to understand and master the notes Chen Changzai had given him in the shortest amount of time.

These are all things that Chen Changzai combined with his current theoretical knowledge, his knowledge from later generations, and the actual conditions of the present.

This summary outlines the initial technological planning and roadmap for the future development of the aviation industry, along with an analysis of key technological points.

When Su Zhihong received Chen Changzai's notes, he knew he was truly lucky.

He could no longer study at Jianqiao Flight School, but at home he met someone even more capable than the teachers at Jianqiao Flight School.

His future dream of becoming an aviation expert is definitely achievable.

So Chen Changzai gained another student.

The Wujiabao military factory also gained a leader for its aviation team.

"Teacher, when we were using the old-fashioned spark plugs, this engine ran relatively smoothly when it was on the swing test bench."

However, the power output will always decrease or be interrupted because the insulating ceramic of the spark plug is broken down by high voltage.

On the swing test bench, in the shortest time, less than two hours, one out of twelve spark plugs will fail.

The longest they lasted was only twenty-seven hours.

Although we are using a dual spark plug design.

However, a blown spark plug can also seriously affect the operation of the combustion chamber.

However, we now have alumina ceramics that can withstand such high voltage and harsh working conditions, so this problem should be solved.

As long as this problem can be solved.

"Then our trainer aircraft can really take to the skies," Su Zhihong said.

Chen Changzai nodded and said, "Yes, we will soon be able to see our figures in this sky."

(End of this chapter)