Correlation of Exhaust-Valve Temperatures with Engine Operating Conditions and Valve Design in an Air-Cooled Cylinder

A semiempirical equation correlating exhaust-valve temperatures with engine operating conditions and exhaust-valve design has been developed. The correlation is based on the theory correlating engine and cooling variables developed in a previous NACA report. In addition to the parameters ordinarily used in the correlating equation, a term is included in the equation that is a measure of the resistance of the complex heat-flow paths between the crown of the exhaust valve and a point on the outside surface of the cylinder head. A means for comparing exhaust valves of different designs with respect to cooling is consequently provided. The necessary empirical constants included in the equation were determined from engine investigations of a large air-cooled cylinder. Tests of several valve designs showed that the calculated and experimentally determined exhaust-valve temperatures were in good agreement.