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Why Choose Centrisep EAPS?
The Centrisep engine advanced protection system (EAPS) offers the ultimate in helicopter engine protection.
For decades, the Centrisep EAPS, also known as a ‘sand filter,’ has proven very effective in extreme sand and dust conditions.
Benefits
- Increased Operational Availability and Reduced Downtime
- Improved Helicopter Flight Safety
- State-of-the-Art Removal Efficiency
- Protection Against Engine Erosion
- Reduced Maintenance and Operational Costs
Designing helicopter engine protection systems is a complex process that requires considerable expertise. Pall engineers provide design and testing services to deliver cost-effective engine protection for a wide range of helicopter applications on thousands of helicopters around the globe.
Increased Operational Availability and Reduced Downtime
The Centrisep EAPS, also known as an inertial particle separator, is a self-cleaning system. Contaminants are continuously scavenged overboard which means that the system has an 'unlimited' dirt-holding capacity, unlike barrier filters, where service life is determined by dirt-holding capacity.
The system is extremely effective in sand, dust and brownout conditions. In a laboratory test at MTU Aero Engines, a Centrisep EAPS was challenged with 156Kg of dust. This is equivalent to 10 (ten) hours in brownout conditions. The Centrisep EAPS stopped virtually all of the contamination from entering the engine, and operated continuously throughout the duration of the test. In contrast, an oil-wetted inlet barrier filter (IBF) would have required cleaning 300 times and replacement at least 20 times during the equivalent test period. This means the test would have stopped every two minutes for barrier filter maintenance.
For decades, the Centrisep EAPS has proved invaluable to commercial and military operators around the world flying in severe operating environments.
Improved Helicopter Flight Safety
The Centrisep EAPS is located in front of the engine air intake and offers excellent protection against airborne sand and dust, foreign object damage, heavy rain, snow, and ice. The system prevents catastrophic engine failure, engine flame-out, and blockage of the air intakes.Each design can be certified for inadvertent entry into icing conditions. Some models have undergone winter trials and have subsequently been qualified for all-weather operation.
The Centrisep EAPS does not become blocked and therefore has no requirement for a bypass system and warning lights. In contrast, oil-wetted IBFs require bypass systems. This increases the complexity of the design, adds additional inspection and maintenance costs, and can increase the pilot’s workload. A bypass door can also collect foreign objects, sand, ice, etc., which may go straight into the engine intake when the door is opened.
State-of-the-Art Removal Efficiency
Pall’s latest Centrisep EAPS designs have excellent sand and dust removal efficiency. A particulate removal efficiency of greater than 96% (ISO Coarse Test Dust) by mass will provide an increase in engine erosion life of over 20 times.
Field experience, including trials in the Paris-Dakar rally, has shown that this level of removal efficiency is more than adequate to protect the engine from erosion damage and to meet the required time between overhaul (TBO.)
Protection Against Helicopter Engine Erosion
The Centrisep EAPS is very effective at removing fine sand and dust. It can increase the erosion life of critical turbine components by up to 20 to 30 times compared to an unprotected engine, without introducing any additional maintenance burden on the operator.Reduced Maintenance and Operational Costs
The Centrisep EAPS is a ‘fit and forget,’ environmentally-friendly system. There are no barrier filters to clean and replace. It is virtually maintenance-free and there is no need for any oil-based cleaning solutions that are difficult and expensive to dispose of.
