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The A400M Atlas—thebackbone of military airtransport
2/2013
Customers + Partners Global
Power rather thanthrust
MTU Aero Engines AGDachauer Straße 66580995 Munich • GermanyTel.
+49 89 1489-0Fax +49 89 [email protected]
Technology + Science
Progress never stops
A leading edge throughgeared turbofan technology
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6 – 13
14 - 19
20 - 2324 - 2728 - 33
Technology + ScienceProgress never stopsEfficient and
powerful
34 – 3940 – 43
Products + ServicesEngines under stress
GlobalPower rather than thrust
44 – 47
48 – 53
54 – 57
In Brief Masthead
Contents
58 – 5959
Cover Story A leading edge through geared turbofantechnology
Customers + Partners The A400M Atlas—the backbone of military
air transportInnovation in a remote corner of the globeFrom airmail
carrier to global player A transatlantic tandem
More REPORT in digital formGet the eMagazine and iPadapp for
more multimediafeatures fromwww.mtu.de/report
Bombardier’s CSeries entered the flight test phase in
September.The first PW1500G engines for production jets will be
delivered tothe Canadian airframer before the year is out. MTU Aero
Enginescontributes the high-speed low-pressure turbine and the
forwardfour stages of the high-pressure compressor to the
PW1500G.Pages 6 – 13
A leading edge through geared turbofan technology
The A400M Atlas—the backbone of military air transport
Under the European Clean Sky Joint Technology Initiative (JTI),
whichis approaching the home stretch, the successful geared
turbofantechnology will again be substantially improved. Among the
compa-nies participating in this mammoth project is MTU Aero
Engines, withresponsibility for building a demonstrator
engine.Pages 34 – 39
Progress never stops
New Zealand is a small country geographically remote from
theworld’s major centers. It takes a long flight to get to the
“most beau-tiful corner of the world”. No wonder, then, that Air
New Zealand, asatisfied MTU customer since 2007, plays a crucial
role in connectingthe home country with the rest of the world.
Pages 20 – 23
Innovation in a remote corner of the globe
In early August, the first A400M Atlas arrived at the air force
base ofOrléans-Bricy and was handed over to the French air force.
Now thefirst military pilots will be able to experience the
capabilities of thenew Airbus military transport and its four
TP400-D6 engines first-hand.Pages 14 – 19
GE’s LM6000 industrial gas turbines (IGTs) are reliable, rapidly
rampup to their rated power and withstand repeated start/stop
cycleseven in a single day. MTU has successfully developed enhanced
pro-tective coatings for the LM6000 Growth versions. These efforts
havehelped increase the performance of the 50-megawatt IGT and
reduceits emissions. Pages 48 – 53
Power rather than thrust
2 3
ReportThe end of an era
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Editorial
Dear Readers:
On September 16, at 9:55 a.m. local time, Canadian aircraft
manufacturerBombardier’s CSeries flight test vehicle one (FTV1)
powered by Geared Turbo-fan™ (GTF) engines took to the skies for
the first time. The CSeries maidenflight has heralded in a new era
for MTU: It marked the debut of a generationof engines that has
revolutionized engine construction in next to no time. Withthe
innovative technology of the PurePower® engine family, we,
alongside ourpartners, have demonstrated just how much improvement
in fuel economy andnoise reduction can be achieved.
A few years ago, nobody would have dared to dream that the GTF
would be sucha huge market success. Today, with the Bombardier
CSeries just having madeits inaugural flight, orders have been
received for some 4,700 of the new GTF-family engines. And every
major international air show keeps adding to thatnumber, with the
lion’s share of orders being for engines to power AirbusA320neo
aircraft. This makes the GTF programs MTU’s key drivers of
growth.That said, ramping up production in support of these
programs also brings itsown challenges. We are very well prepared
to fulfill our obligations: Our manu-facturing shops, our processes
and our supply chain management have all beenrevamped, and our
facilities in Munich and Poland’s Rzeszów expanded toaccommodate
the additional workload. For the anticipated growth to
material-ize, we continue to rely on the commitment and dedication
of our highly skilledemployees. Everyone has their part to play in
shaping MTU’s future.
Our engineers’ accomplishments deserve our full respect, not
only because ofthe tremendous technological leap forward that they
have made possible. Intimes of ever scarcer resources, constantly
rising kerosene prices and a steadygrowth in air traffic—at an
average annual rate of five percent—travelers and air-port
neigbors, authorities, organizations and last, but not least the
airlines them-selves have every right to expect that aircraft and
their engines are designedfor low fuel burn and excellent
environmental performance. By contributing itsgeared turbofan
components, MTU is making a sustainable contribution to
ourenvironment and our society.
After six years of service, I will be stepping down as MTU’s CEO
at the end ofthe year. These were six eventful years, which truly
seem to have flown by. I wishmy successor Reiner Winkler and my
fellow members on the Board of Manage-ment every success in the
future, and the same to you, dear readers.
I hope you enjoy exploring and reading about the exciting topics
featured in thisissue.
Sincerely yours,
Egon BehleChief Executive Officer
4 5
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Cover Story
A leading edge throughgeared turbofan technology
Bombardier’s CSeries, a game-changing new family of single-aisle
aircraft, enteredthe flight test phase in September. The first
PW1500G engines for production jetswill be delivered to the
Canadian airframer before the year is out. MTU Aero
Enginescontributes the high-speed low-pressure turbine and the
forward four stages of thehigh-pressure compressor to this
engine.
By Achim Figgen
The successful first flight of CSeries flight test vehicleone
(FTV1), a CS100 jetliner bearing Canadian regis-tration markings
C-FBCS, was conducted by ChiefFlight Test Pilot Chuck Ellis and
First Officer Andy Litavnikson September 16. The aircraft was
greeted enthusiastical-ly by a crowd of spectators as it touched
down and taxiedto Bombardier’s flight test center at
Montreal–MirabelInternational Airport after around two-and-a-half
hours inthe air.
The maiden flight marked the beginning of an approxi-mately
one-year test and certification program involvinga total of five
CS100s. Upon successful completion of the
6 7
program the aircraft is expected to obtain certificationfirst by
Transport Canada and then by other aviationauthorities around the
globe. It is certainly no exaggera-tion to say that with the
CSeries family, which includesthe basic version CS100 with 110
seats in standard single-class configuration and the larger CS300
with 135 seats,likewise in standard single-class configuration,
Bombardieris opening up an entirely new chapter in commercial
avi-ation. Not only because the CSeries is the first
all-newsingle-aisle aircraft since the time the A320 entered
intoservice more than 25 years ago. It also is the first
airlinerpowered by Pratt & Whitney’s highly advanced
PW1000GGeared Turbofan™ engine.
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Powered by the innovative PW1500G geared turbofan, Bombardier’s
new CSeries aircraft successfully completed its first flight in
Mirabel, Quebec, Canada.
With the new aircraft family Bombardier, previously knownmainly
as manufacturer of regional and business jets, isventuring into the
commercial airliner segment, wherethe company is directly competing
with market leadersAirbus and Boeing. In contrast to their smallest
models,the Airbus A318 and A319 and Boeing 737-700, respec-tively,
the CSeries is more than just a shrunk version of a150-seater: It
is an aircraft optimized for the targetedmarket. The jet features a
narrower fuselage for a five-abreast seating configuration in
economy class and ismarkedly lighter than any other aircraft in the
same seatcategory. While passengers will certainly appreciate
thelarger windows and the massive overhead luggage bins
that are big enough to hold oversized carry-on bags,
thecommercial managers of airlines will mainly be interestedin the
aircraft’s cost-effectiveness: The Canadian airframerpromises its
customers a 20-percent reduction in fuelburn as compared with
similar jets currently in service.And maintenance costs will be
down by as much as 25percent. These cost savings are achieved
through theextensive use of highly advanced materials. The
fuselageskin consists of aluminum-lithium alloys, while the
wings,engine nacelle, rear fuselage and empennage are madefrom
fiber composite materials. As a result, the weight ofthe aircraft
was reduced by more than one ton.
Achievement of the desired improvements over present-day
aircraft is owed to a large extent also to the jet’s newpropulsion
system: As the second aircraft manufacturer(after Mitsubishi)
Bombardier in the fall of 2007 opted forPratt & Whitney’s GTF
engine family, which was renamedPurePower® PW1000G in 2008. GTF
stands for GearedTurbofan™. What sets this new propulsion system
apartis that it features a reduction gearbox between the fanand
low-pressure turbine (LPT). In conventional turbofans,the fan is
driven directly by the turbine. Here, the gear-box decouples the
two components, allowing them torotate at their respective optimum
speeds. As a result,the bypass ratio of the PW1000G is higher than
that of
8 9
Cover Story
any other turbofan engine. The markedly increased ef-ficiencies
of the fan and LPT as well as the reduced stagecount of the
low-pressure turbine more than outweigh theadditional weight of the
gearbox. The concept is catchingon with airframers: Airbus is
offering the geared turbofanengine for its A320neo family. Embraer
has picked theGTF engine for its new-generation E-Jets, and Irkut
haschosen it for its MS-21. To date, Pratt & Whitney
hasreceived more than 4,700 firm orders and commitmentsfor the
various models of the PW1000G family.
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For additional information, contactJürgen Eschenbacher+49 89
1489-8663
The maiden flight of the first CS100, initially scheduled totake
place in the second half of 2012, had to be post-poned first to
June 2013 and then ultimately to Septem-ber. But this delay can
certainly not be blamed on theengine. After all, the PW1500G, the
GTF model poweringthe CSeries jets, had obtained certification from
Trans-port Canada as early as on February 20 this year.
The engines are assembled by Pratt & Whitney Canada,
asubsidiary of United Technologies Corporation like its sis-ter
company Pratt & Whitney, at its Mirabel AerospaceCentre, which
is located in the immediate vicinity ofBombardier’s facility. In
Mirabel, a couple of kilometersto the north-west of Montreal, the
airframer is currentlybuilding a 62,000-square-meter shop that will
accommo-date the final assembly line for the CSeries aircraft
pro-gram. The shop is expected to be up and running in
mid-2014.
Another new building went up in Munich. After a con-struction
time of around 20 months MTU Aero Enginesofficially opened its new
blisk center of excellence in earlyApril. In this shop, the company
will produce the forwardfour stages of the high-pressure compressor
for the entirePW1000G engine family, and blisks for other
programs.Germany’s leading engine manufacturer not only hasdesign
and manufacturing responsibility for these com-pressor stages. What
is more important still, MTU isresponsible for the development and
production of thehigh-speed low-pressure turbine—a key component
with-out which the geared turbofan technology would never
have materialized. The company will contribute its tur-bine to
all GTF variants currently on offer.
Of course, work on the development of the first GTF vari-ant—the
PW1500G powering the CSeries family, whichobtained certification
earlier this year—has meanwhilelargely been completed and
preparations for the produc-tion of this model are presently
underway. Apart frommaking sure that the requisite production
capacities areavailable both in-house and at its suppliers’, the
companyhas to incorporate modifications deemed necessary as aresult
of the experience gained during the test phase.“What we’re talking
about here are minor improvementsto detail parts rather than
changes to the basic design,”says Dr. Claus Riegler, Chief
Engineer, NGPF Programs.Important aspects to consider include the
stability of thecomponents under service conditions and their
maintain-ability. The engineers must also be prepared for
potentialproblems in production. “If we find out, for example,
thatparts provided by suppliers need to be modified becausethey
cannot be optimally produced in their original con-figuration, such
modifications will be incorporated in thisphase,” explains Jürgen
Eschenbacher, Vice President,Business Development and GTF Programs
at MTU AeroEngines. But MTU’s specialists are making every effort
tominimize such risks from the outset by selecting suppliersat a
very early stage and involving them in the manufac-ture of the
first test engines. “In addition to our designreview process, we’ve
put a production readiness reviewprocess in place. Throughout the
entire developmentphase, the component designs are reviewed at
regular
Cover Story
Pratt & Whitney Canada's new Mirabel Aerospace Centre,
located in the vicinity of Montreal-Mirabel International Airport
in Quebec, Canada, is a state-of-the-art assembly and test facility
for next-generation engines.
Over 3,000 blisks a year will be produced at the new
10,000-square-meter center of excellence at MTU in Munich.
10 11
intervals together with our suppliers to ensure
manufac-turability,” adds Eschenbacher.
Plans are to deliver the first modules for productionengines to
Pratt & Whitney in late 2013. At about thesame time, a PW1500G
engine will be subjected toendurance testing on one of MTU’s test
stands in Munich.More than one-and-a-half years ago, in early 2012,
thecompany had already conducted a stress and thermalsurvey on a
complete PW1500G at its Munich location.Successful completion of
this survey, which serves tomeasure the thermal and vibrational
stresses acting onthe LPT components, is an essential prerequisite
for cer-tification of the low-pressure turbine.
Preparations for the aircraft’s entry into service are in
fullswing not only at Pratt & Whitney, MTU and the other
pro-gram partners. Bombardier, too, is stepping up produc-tion
activities. If testing and certification continue to goforward as
planned the first CS100 will be delivered inlate 2014. Among the
first European airlines to operateCSeries jets will be Sweden’s
Malmö Aviation, followed, alittle bit later, by Swiss, a subsidiary
of the LufthansaGroup. Lufthansa had become the launch customer
back
in July 2008 when it signed a letter of intent for the pur-chase
of the aircraft. The German carrier is not only acustomer, but also
a partner to Bombardier. Its subsidiaryLufthansa Flight Training
(LFT) will train pilots and cabincrews, and Lufthansa Technical
Training (LTT), a LufthansaTechnik AG subsidiary, will provide
technical training formaintenance specialists for European-based
operators ofBombardier CS100 and CS300 aircraft. So far, the
num-ber of CSeries customers in Europe is rather limited.While
Airbus, Boeing and Embraer were able to win hun-dreds of orders for
their A320neo, 737 MAX and E-Jet E2families developed not least in
response to the launch ofthe CSeries, Bombardier has received a
mere 373 firmorders and options so far. But the Canadian
airframerfirmly believes that further orders will follow now that
themaiden flight has been successfully completed. There isno doubt
that both the aircraft and its propulsion systemhold great promise
of long-term success.
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Cover Story
12 13
Mr. Schreyögg, orders for the PW1000G havereached a record high.
How will this reflect inMTU’s business development?
The PW1000G Geared Turbofan™ family is aresounding success for
MTU, there’s nodoubt about that. Never before has a newengine sold
in such huge numbers evenbefore it entered revenue service. More
thanever, airlines are looking for fuel-thriftier,cleaner and
quieter engines. They opted forthe geared turbofan because they
were quickto see that this new technology fitted the billon every
count. As from the middle of thisdecade, when these engines will
enter intoservice on the Airbus A320neo and on Bom-bardier’s and
Embraer’s regional jets, theywill make a substantial contribution
towardsensuring continued growth in MTU’s rev-enues. The engines
powering these aircrafttypes account for the major part of the
world-wide engine market.
Did anybody expect the GTF to be such asuccess?
We’d never expected the geared turbofan togain such an enormous
market share withinsuch a short period of time. If anyone had
saidfive years ago that orders for geared turbo-fan engines would
stand at 4,700 units in2013 nobody would have believed it. So, tobe
able to comply with our high standards interms of on-time delivery
performance andquality we are now focusing all our efforts onthe
production ramp-up. An important stepto prepare for the high
volumes expectedwas the setting-up of our center of excel-lence for
blisk production, which was inaugu-rated in April this year. About
90 percent ofthe high-tech components to be produced in
the new shop will go into the geared turbofanprograms. As a
result, production volumeswill quintuple over the next few years
ascompared with today’s levels. MTU contrib-utes the high-speed
low-pressure turbine andthe forward four stages of the
high-pressurecompressor to the geared turbofan. In addi-tion, 30
percent of the engines to power theA320neo will be assembled in
Munich anddelivered directly to Airbus. In a first for the
The geared turbofan—a driver of growth
company, MTU has taken on responsibility forthe final assembly
of a commercial engine.
Given this huge order backlog, do you haveany concerns about
MTU’s ability to deliver ontime?
We are very confident that we will be able tofully meet all our
delivery commitments. Forsome years now, we’ve been making
prepa-
rations for revamping our production lines,restructuring our
supply chain managementand streamlining our processes to suit
theneeds of the production ramp-up for the newprograms. We’ve
launched various efficiencyimprovement projects, decided to expand
ourfacility in Poland and taken a number of othermeasures, some of
which have already beenimplemented. To secure a timely supply
ofparts and materials we’ve concluded long-term agreements with our
most importantsuppliers. All these projects required a lot ofhard
work and dedication on the part of ourhighly committed staff during
the last fewyears and will continue to do so. But investingin the
future of our company will pay divi-dends down the road.
Michael Schreyögg, member of the MTU Aero Engines’ Board of
Management, Programs.
Michael Schreyögg, member of MTU Aero Engines’ Board of
Management, Pro-grams, since July 1, 2013, is responsible for
marketing the Geared Turbofan™engines. The PW1000G family has
developed into a real bestseller boosting thecompany’s order books
to the highest level ever.
Final assembly of the PW1100G-JM powering the Airbus A320neo
will be performed by MTU in Munich as from 2015.
MTU’s new center of excellence for blisks boasts highly advanced
production facilities.
What’s your outlook for the future of thegeared turbofan?
For MTU the geared turbofan engines will be amajor driver of
growth, that’s for sure. Withthis game-changing technology jointly
devel-oped by Pratt & Whitney and MTU as its partner,the
company is making a major contributiontowards ensuring ecological
sustainability: Ina first step, our innovative GTF technologywill
reduce fuel burn and CO2 emissions by15 percent each. In addition,
the perceivednoise level will be halved, which is a big relieffor
people living in the vicinity of airports.The three-liter aircraft
has already become areality. With a future generation of
engineswhich combines geared turbofan and other
new technologies, we could make a big stepforward towards the
two-liter aircraft.
The quality of our products not only reflectsin the success they
have in the marketplace.It also earns us prizes and
distinctions:Earlier this year, for example, MTU won theGerman
Industry’s 32nd Innovation Awardand the German Innovation Award. In
bothcases, we received the recognition for ourhigh-speed
low-pressure turbine, a key com-ponent of the geared turbofan. All
this goesto show that we are on the right track.
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Customers + Partners
14 15
The A400M Atlas— the backbone
of military air transport
The A400M Atlas has landed! In early August, shortly after
theEuropean Organisation for Joint Armament Cooperation OCCARhad
granted Initial Operating Clearance, the first production air-craft
arrived at the air force base of Orléans-Bricy and was handedover
to the French air force. Now the first military pilots will be
ableto experience the capabilities of the new Airbus military
transportand its four TP400-D6 engines first-hand. In the meantime,
produc-tion at MTU continues at full speed.
By Patrick Hoeveler
Weeks before the arrival of the A400M, the mili-tary air base
approximately 120 kilometerssouth-west of Paris was bustling with
activity asthe personnel set about preparing the site for the
newairlifter. Transport squadron 1/61 “Touraine” is replacingits
Transall C-160s with the A400M. In all, some 171 mil-lion euros
have been spent on the modernization of theinfrastructure and the
construction of a new mainte-nance hangar and a new control tower.
The number ofparking spots on the apron has been doubled to
accom-modate the new military transport, of which France hasordered
a total of 50 units. And two flight simulators arebeing installed
in a new, purpose-built simulation center,the first of which is
expected to be up and running thisfall.
Full civil type certification for the aircraft in the spring
of2013 marked the temporary end of the test program forthe basic
version of the A400M; further developmentefforts will focus
primarily on the military systems.Before, in December 2012, the
functional and reliability(F&R) flight test campaign was
successfully completed.
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Assembly of a TP400-D6 engine at MTU in Munich.
Customers + Partners
16 17
“The aircraft was in the air for up to 20 hours per day.
Intotal, it clocked up 300 flight hours in a little less thanfive
weeks,” reported former EPI President Simon Henleywho passed the
helm to his successor, Ian Crawford, inJuly 2013. “The engine
performed perfectly and eventurned out better on fuel burn than
predicted.” The testpilots were impressed by the engine’s
responsivenessand performance.
In mid-2012, the functional and reliability flight tests hadto
be interrupted by Airbus after the discovery of cracksin a cover
plate of the TP400-D6 gearbox. All enginesbuilt to this standard
had to be returned to the finalassembly line at MTU Aero Engines in
Munich, wherethey were dismantled to install a redesigned version
toreplace the defective component. The engines were thenshipped to
MTU Maintenance Berlin-Brandenburg inLudwigsfelde for reassembly
and acceptance testing. “Wesolved the gearbox problem and
retrofitted all engineswith the redesigned parts. This incident
permitted MTUto demonstrate the capacity of its assembly lines
muchearlier than originally planned,” commented Henley. Andindeed,
the company had delivered the first four produc-tion engines on
April 17, 2012.
Gerhard Bähr, Director, TP400-D6 Program at MTU, de-scribes the
next steps to be taken: “The TP400-D6 pro-
gram now enters its crucial phase as we make the transi-tion
from development to production and service.” Thiswill require huge
efforts on the part of the EPI partnersITP, MTU, Rolls-Royce, and
Snecma, who must rapidlyramp up production to be able to meet the
agreed deliv-ery schedule. Plans are to assemble 40 units of the
turbo-prop engine this year, and twice as many in 2014.
TP400-D6 engine on the wing of an A400M.
Testing of all TP400-D6 production engines is exclusively
performed atMTU Maintenance Berlin-Brandenburg.
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Customers + Partners
18 19
MTU delivered the engine control software required foraircraft
certification in December 2012. “The first flight-worthy engine
control software, which was used for themaiden flight in 2009 and
ensured that flight testingcould be carried out safely, did not yet
include the fullrange of functionalities. The latest version
features addi-tional maintenance functions that make it easier
forpilots and flight engineers to diagnose faults and tracetheir
origin,” says Dr. Frank Grauer, Senior Manager,Control System
Definition and Validation, TP400-D6 atMTU.
The work of the software engineers is by no means overnow that
the A400M has entered into service. As Bährexplains: “Many of the
problems encountered during thein-service phase can be resolved
with the aid of softwaremodifications, and we expect to see further
upgrades inthe years to come.” Since the beginning of 2013,
softwaredevelopment has been the responsibility of
AerospaceEmbedded Solutions (AES), a joint venture between MTUand
Safran, set up with the aim of consolidating the twocompanies’
control system expertise in the long term.
The hardware developed by MTU performed flawlessly inthe A400M
engine. “The intermediate-pressure compres-sor is an extremely
highly engineered component and itsdevelopment involved high risks.
Our team did an excellentjob implementing the requirements, and the
compressormeets the specification in full,” concludes Dr.
WolfgangGärtner, Director, Engineering, Military Programs at
MTU.“All modules of the TP400-D6 are functioning without ahiccup,
including the intermediate-pressure compressorand
intermediate-pressure turbine supplied by MTU,” con-firms EPI
Technical Director Dr. Michael Göing.
Although the first engines have only just left the finalassembly
line, preparations are already underway fortheir maintenance. For
sooner or later all powerplantsreturn to the respective national
manufacturer. Here theyare disassembled into their constituent
modules, whichare in turn sent to the partner companies in charge
ofthem for the necessary work. MTU will be responsible for
Civil aviation standards
maintaining the engines operated in Germany. In the firstfew
years, the traditional model of military maintenancewill apply: “In
the event of damage, the engine is returnedto the manufacturer,
which takes care of troubleshootingand repairs and invoices the
work done on the basis of atime-and-materials contract,” explains
Bähr. He believesthat at a later date, it is conceivable to change
over to anapproach that resembles that followed in the
commercialaviation business. He is referring to fly-by-hour
contracts,under which the customer pays a fixed amount per hourof
flying time in return for a guarantee of full engine avail-ability.
“This will, however, only be possible once we havesufficient
operating data to establish realistic failurerates, which will not
be the case before 2020,” as Bährpoints out.
Now that the A400M is in operation, the experiencegained may
help boost export sales. “The TP400-D6 isone of our most important
military programs at present,The specialists at AES have chalked up
lots of experience working to develop the control systems for the
TP400-D6 engine powering the A400M military airlifter.
The Airbus A400M Atlas will be the back-bone of future military
transport inEurope. With a power output of 8,200kilowatts, the
TP400-D6 built by EPIEuroprop International (EPI) is the
mostpowerful turboprop engine in the Westernworld. And it is the
first military aircraftengine program based on a commercialapproach
in which the developmentphase is financed by industry and
thenecessary capital expenditure has to berecovered by revenues
generated duringthe in-service phase.
“This approach ensures a clearly definedframework for
cooperation between thenations and industry, which
simplifiesproject management. EPI has no directcontractual
relationship with any of thebuyer nations,” explains Gerhard
Bähr,Director, TP400-D6 Program at MTU. Eachcustomer signs a
contract for the entireaircraft, including its engines.
“In addition, the TP400-D6 is the firstmilitary engine that was
designed withcivil aviation approval in mind from the
and exports are of vital importance to the program,” saysBähr.
“Airbus estimates the total demand worldwide at300 aircraft. Among
interested potential buyers arecountries in the Middle East,
South-East Asia, Australia,and South Africa. No doubt the most
attractive exportmarket would be the United States, where there is
abasic need for airlifters with the A400M’s capabilities.” Inany
case, the program partners cannot complain aboutlack of work: “With
more than 750 engines on order, wehave enough work to keep us busy
for several years,”said EPI President Henley.
outset,” adds Dr. Wolfgang Gärtner,Director, Engineering,
Military Programsat MTU. “Since the seven nations eachhave their
own approval procedures, theproject partners and the OCCAR
pro-curement agency opted for the only com-mon standard, that of
the EuropeanAviation Safety Agency (EASA),” said EPIPresident Simon
Henley. As a result, theTP400-D6 is also the first turbopropengine
approved by EASA for use inheavy-lift transport applications.
Four TP400-D6 engines, the most powerful turboprops in the
Westernworld, take the A400M to the skies.
For additional information, contactGerhard Bähr+49 89
1489-8542
For interesting multimedia services associated with this
article, go towww.mtu.de/report
-
otearoa, the native Mãori name for New Zealand—which literally
means “the land of the long whitecloud”—is home to some four and a
half million people
and over 60 million sheep. This population swells by over twoand
a half million people that come to visit the country everyyear,
tourism being the largest export industry of this smallcountry in
the Pacific. Almost all tourists arrive by airplane,many choosing
to fly with Air New Zealand. The country’snational airline started
out as Tasman Empire Airways Limited(TEAL) in 1940, operating
flying boats on trans-Tasman routes.The carrier was renamed Air New
Zealand in 1965 and hasbeen flying with the koru symbol adorning
the tail of its air-craft since 1973. This symbol is a stylized
representation ofan unfurling silver fern frond that signifies new
life and growth.Air New Zealand joined the Star Alliance network
back in1999 and operates a dense route network of flights
especiallyto destinations in the South Pacific and Asia. It also
offers upto 20 flights per week from Los Angeles and San Francisco
toAuckland. Europe is served by means of daily flights toLondon
Heathrow via Los Angeles. Air New Zealand used tobe the only
airline to offer a round-the-world service, however
Customers + Partners
Innovation in a remotecorner of the globe
New Zealand is a small country and geographically remote from
the world’s major centers. It takes along flight to get to this
destination known as the “most beautiful corner of the world”. No
wonder thatits national flag carrier, Air New Zealand, plays a
crucial role in connecting its home country with therest of the
world. Few other airlines have come up with more ideas to improve
the customer experienceand make air travel more convenient and
passengers happy—its innovations, which range from ground-breaking
seating design to cheeky safety videos, have become a rage on the
web. The airline has beena satisfied MTU customer since 2007.
By Andreas Spaeth
A
20 21
it recently axed its Hong Kong-to-London route as it was
nolonger profitable.
Carrying 13 million passengers last year with a fleet of
104aircraft, Air New Zealand is not a large airline. But despite
itsmodest size, the airline certainly masters the art of
drawingpublic attention, for example by developing its own
productsthat it is now selling profitably to other airlines, too.
Theseinnovations include the “Skycouch”, a row of three
Economyseats which can be turned into a flat bed, and the
PremiumEconomy Class “Spaceseat”.
Air New Zealand caused a stir with its promotion for the
mostrecent part of the Hobbit trilogy, which saw the airline
pres-ent itself as “the airline from Middle-earth” including
aBoeing 777-300ER covered by a huge decal inspired by themovie.
Equally popular are the airline’s hilarious inflight safe-ty
videos, which have had millions of clicks on the Internet.Former
CEO Rob Fyfe even appeared in an advertising cam-paign as a baggage
handler wearing only body paint—a clipthat also proved massively
popular online.
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Customers + Partners
“We can’t afford advertising campaigns in our big markets, sowe
need leverage to create a bigger personality of ourselvesthan we
deserve with our size,” explained Fyfe about the philo-sophy behind
the campaigns. His successor Christopher Luxonstates: “We are an
airline that is successful, we can be veryproud about the journey
we have been on in the last tenyears, but we are not going to be
complacent.” Air New Zea-land may have required a government
bailout in 2002, but inthe meantime the airline has seen profits
soar, and since2008 has even returned profits on long-haul routes
for thefirst time.
Air New Zealand has been relying on MTU Maintenance’sexpertise
for the maintenance, repair and overhaul of itslong-haul aircraft
engines since 2007. The first MRO contractwas signed for the
CF6-80C2 engines powering Air NewZealand’s Boeing 767-300s (of
which five are still part of thefleet) and 747-400s (with two still
in operation). Recently theagreements were extended until these
aircraft are retiredfrom service, which is expected until 2016. MTU
MaintenanceHannover has so far carried out maintenance work on
47CF6-80C2 engines from New Zealand, including 40 shop visitswith
major overhauls. “Air New Zealand is an innovative andsuccessful
airline, and an important partner for us,” empha-sizes Holger
Sindemann, Managing Director of MTU Mainte-nance Hannover, MTU’s
center of excellence for the repairand overhaul of large and
medium-sized engines. “This makesus all the more happy about the
excellent working relation-ship we’ve always enjoyed with the
customer.”
In August 2013 the first GE90-115B was delivered toMTU
Maintenance in Hannover for full performance res-toration. The
customer is Virgin Australia, a partner to AirNew Zealand. “We
completely disassemble the modules,focusing on the hot section in
particular,” explainsThomas Michaelis, Senior Manager, Engine
Testing at theHannover-based shop. This time-consuming
proceduretakes 4,000 to 5,000 man-hours. “We manage that in
85days,” says Michaelis, compared to an industry standardof around
120 to 140 days. MTU Maintenance plans to re-duce the turnaround
time to only 80 days by 2014.
22 23
Air New Zealand is currently undergoing a renewal process.“The
complexity of our fleet will diminish tremendously, Ithink we will
end up with Boeing 777s and 787s in widebodyaircraft and Airbus
A320s for short-haul,” explains Luxon.The airline has placed an
order for ten Boeing 787-9s, des-tined for use on its Shanghai,
Tokyo, Perth, Honolulu andPapeete routes. After a series of
delivery delays, Air NewZealand is supposed to receive the aircraft
as launch cus-tomer between July 2014 and 2017.
2014 will also see two more 777-300ERs join the carrier’s
cur-rent fleet of eight Boeing 777-200ERs and five 777-300ERs.MTU
Maintenance will also be responsible for maintainingthe GE90-115B
engines powering these new aircraft; the cor-responding contract
was signed in 2011 and runs until 2023.“The deal covers 16
engines,” explains Oliver Skop, CustomerAccount Manager at MTU
Maintenance Hannover. MTUobtained the license to maintain the
higher-thrust GE90 vari-ants in 2010. “These new engines are
expected to have anaverage on-wing time of 25,000 hours, equivalent
to five tosix years in service,” according to Skop. “So we’re not
ex-pecting to see the first engine from Auckland in Hannoverbefore
2015.”
A GE90 engine due to undergo overhaul will then be sent asair
freight via Singapore to Amsterdam or Brussels, fromwhere it will
be transported by road to Hannover. Cost eachway: 90,000 U.S.
dollars. “We are in all practical terms ‘halfa world’ apart, but
the overhaul services we receive fromMTU are truly world-class,”
says Mick Burdon, Fleet Power-plant Manager at Air New Zealand.
“MTU’s commitment toquality, engineering excellence and support of
our operationcounters the time zone and physical distance.” MTU
holds itscustomer in equally high regard, as Wim van Beers,
VicePresident Marketing & Sales, Asia, confirms: “Air New
Zea-land has strong engineering capabilities, we have a great
dealof confidence in one another and working together is a lot
offun.” And with such a close partnership—as both sidesagree—it’s
possible to bridge even the greatest distanceswith ease.
The Airbus A320 will increasingly be used on short-haul
routes.
The last preparations on a GE90 engine in the test cell at MTU
Maintenance Hannover.
A GE90 engine in the shop at MTU Maintenance Hannover.
GE90 at MTU Maintenance
For additional information, contactWim van Beers+49 5114
7806-2390
For interesting multimedia services associated with this
article, go towww.mtu.de/report
-
Customers + Partners
From airmail carrier
to global player
The beginnings of US Airways were humble: The company, thenknown
as All American Aviation, started operations back in1939,
delivering airmail to small western Pennsylvania and OhioValley
communities. Ten years later, the airline was renamed AllAmerican
Airways and made the transition from airmail to pas-senger service,
operating a Douglas DC-3. All American Airwaysthen started to boom
and quickly grew into Allegheny Airways,US Air and finally US
Airways after several buyouts and merg-ers. For 20 years now, US
Airways has been relying on the ex-pertise of MTU Maintenance.
By Nicole Geffert
rofessional, trusting and dependable—ChristophHeck, Vice
President, Marketing and Sales, theAmericas at MTU Maintenance
Hannover does not
have to think twice when asked to describe the collabo-ration
with US Airways. The airline has been a customerof MTU Maintenance
since 1993. At that time, it placeda contract for the maintenance
of its V2500 engines—anagreement which will continue to run for
some time. In2011, MTU Maintenance won another contract from
USAirways, covering MRO services for the airline’s GeneralElectric
CF6-80s. “To date, we have repaired over 300 USAirways engines in
our shop,” says Heck.
P
24 25
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The world’s biggestAirbus fleetSince its merger with America
West Airlines in September 2005, US Airways hasbeen the fifth
biggest airline in the United States. Along with US Airways
Shuttleand US Airways Express, two wholly-owned subsidiaries, the
airline operatesover 3,200 flights a day to 203 destinations in the
U.S., Canada, Mexico, Europe,the Middle East, the Caribbean and
Central and South America (as of summer2013). It employs a staff of
around 33,000 aviation professionals worldwide andoperates the
world’s largest fleet of Airbus aircraft.
Together with its US Airways Express partners, US Airways
carries some 80 mil-lion passengers each year and operates hubs in
Charlotte, North Carolina,Philadelphia, Phoenix und Washington D.C.
The fleet serving its main routesconsists of Airbus A319, A320,
A321 and A330 as well as Boeing 737, 757 and767 aircraft. US
Airways Express operates 285 regional jets and turboprop
air-craft.
And the company is well on track for further growth, the next
milestone beingthe merger with American Airlines.
US Airways operates the largest Airbus fleet in the world.
This summer, MTU Maintenance Hannovercompleted the 1,500th
overhaul of a CF6-80,an engine sent in by US Airways. Since
thisshop visit also marked the 20th anniversaryof the business
partnership between USAirways and MTU Maintenance, a delegationof
high-level US Airways executives was morethan happy to accept MTU’s
invitation to visitthe Hannover location and celebrate thisevent
together. “We are very pleased to besharing this special moment
with one of ourlongest-standing and closest customers,”said Dr.
Stefan Weingartner, President, Com-mercial Maintenance at MTU Aero
Engines.“Maintenance of the CF6-80 is one of themainstays of our
business. The engine hasbeen overhauled in Hannover, MTU’s
firstmaintenance location and center of excel-lence for the repair
of large and medium-sized engines, for almost 25 years. We arevery
confident that we will continue our suc-cess with this engine over
the next years.”
“We have an excellent and very trusting co-operation with MTU
Maintenance,” stressedDavid Seymour, Senior Vice President,
Tech-
A CF6-80 engine on the flowline at MTU Maintenance Hannover.
US Airways sends the CF34-10E6 engines that power its fleet of
Embraer E190s to MTU Maintenance Berlin-Brandenburg for
overhaul.
Customers + Partners
26 27
nical Operations at US Airways. “I am lookingforward to further
extending our partnershipunder the flag of the new American
Airlines,after the merger has been realized betweenUS Airways and
American Airlines.” The com-bined airline has placed firm orders
for 600new aircraft, which it claims will lead it tohave one of the
most modern and efficientfleets in the industry and is a good basis
forfurther investments in technologies, productsand services. The
new American Airlines willoffer more than 6,700 flights a day to
336destinations in 56 countries, and will main-tain all hubs
currently served by AmericanAirlines and US Airways to be able to
providecustomers with an even more extensive rangeof travel
options.
“The visit from US Airways is a clear indica-tion that both
parties are interested in con-tinuing the collaboration,” says
Heck. Thelong-term partnership was given furtherimpetus by a
five-year contract for the main-tenance of US Airways’ CF34-10E6
engines.This contract was signed by the two compa-nies this summer
and marks a new chapter ina story of successful cooperation. Up to
44engines powering the airline’s Embraer E190fleet will be
maintained and repaired at MTUMaintenance Berlin-Brandenburg, which
in2002 was the first independent provider ofmaintenance services in
the world to obtaina license for the repair and overhaul ofGeneral
Electric’s CF34 series. The Ludwigs-felde facility is an authorized
GE-CF34™service provider and the first maintenanceorganization
within this worldwide networkto support and maintain all three
models ofthe engine: the CF34-3, CF34-8 and CF34-10.“US Airways is
a long-standing, loyal MTUMaintenance customer,” affirms
AndréSinanian, MTU Maintenance Berlin-Branden-burg’s Managing
Director & Senior Vice Pres-ident. “With this new CF34-10
contract we’velaid the foundations for a successful contin-uation
of our business relationship.”
The high-tech repair techniques “made byMTU” guarantee
first-class performance ofthe repaired parts, extending the service
lifeof engines while keeping costs at an afford-able level. “Our
high-tech repair processesare also used in the maintenance of
V2500and CF6-80 engines,” says Norbert Möck,Director, Engine
Programs at MTU Mainte-nance Hannover. “For our customer US
Air-ways we have developed special, flexiblesolutions to make sure
that maintenancework is carried out as cost-effectively as pos-
For additional information, contactChristoph Heck+49 511
7806-2621
For interesting multimedia services associated with this
article, go towww.mtu.de/report
sible. Such maintenance packages are avail-able, for instance
for the V2500-A1 enginepowering the A320, which over many yearshas
served as a faithful workhorse but is nowaging and will gradually
be retired over thecoming years,” says Jay Aiken,
Director,Marketing & Sales Americas at MTU Mainte-nance
Hannover. During this outphasing peri-od, airlines want to make
best use of theirengines’ residual service life. Möck com-ments:
“In this phase, the low cost of repairsas compared with the prices
of new parts
and MTU’s expertise in procuring suitableengine-run parts help
airlines optimize theirmaintenance costs until to the
plannedphase-out date is finally reached.”
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28 29
A transatlantic tandem
It seems like a relationship that’s here to stay: For many years
now, MTU Aero Engines has beenpartnering with Pratt & Whitney
Canada to build business and regional jet engines. Many suc-cesses
have come out of this long-term collaboration, cases in point being
the PW300 andPW500 engine families. The propulsion systems are
continously being improved and upgraded,not least also thanks to
MTU’s expertise. The PW300 family’s latest member is the
PW306D,which features a low-pressure turbine developed by MTU.
By Silke Hansen
Martin Wiedra, Director, P&WC Programs at MTU,explains: “At
25 percent, our share in thePW306D program is higher than in any
otherprogram in MTU’s commercial engine business.” For thePW306D
program, too, Pratt & Whitney Canada (P&WC)bets on
Germany’s leading engine manufacturer to pro-vide the low-pressure
turbine, this technology being anMTU core competency. Moreover, MTU
will contributethe turbine exit case and mixer. Transport Canada
CivilAviation, the Canadian regulatory authority, gave theengine
its stamp of approval in June of this year. ThePW306D builds on the
PW306C and has been selected topower Cessna’s New Citation
Sovereign business jet,which is now being added to its successful
line of Citationbusiness jets. The upgraded aircraft made its
maiden
flight in April, and is slated to enter into service in
2013.Since 2004, 349 copies of its predecessor model, theCitation
Sovereign powered by the PW306C, have beensold. The engine, too,
features a low-pressure turbinemade by MTU.
The PW306D incorporates enhanced aerodynamics, ad-vanced
materials and a modified engine control system.This gives the
engine more thrust, cuts fuel burn andboosts the New Citation
Sovereign’s range to 5,500 kilo-meters—convincing arguments in
favor of this variant.Cessna has also selected the PW306 engine to
power itsnew Citation Latitude mid-size business jet, which
isexpected to enter into service in 2015.
Customers + Partners
-
Extended range: Cessna’s New Citation Sovereign is powered by
two Pratt & Whitney Canada PW306D engines.
30 31
MTU also contributes components to the new BombardierLearjet 85,
which is due to go into service in 2014. The Germanengine company
has a 15-percent share in the aircraft’sPW307B engine and is once
again responsible for the rearpart of the engine: the low-pressure
turbine, turbine exit caseand mixer. The lighter low-pressure
turbine rotor helps in-crease the engine’s efficiency. “New
engineering analysistools allowed our structural analysis experts
to optimize thedesign and achieve a reduction in weight with no
need foradditional testing,” says Klaus Pirker, MTU
EngineeringRepresentative at P&WC in Canada.
“After Dassault’s Falcon 7X, the Learjet is the second
aircraftapplication for the PW307,” Wiedra is pleased to report.
Thebiggest Learjet ever will be the first in the Learjet family
tofeature a composite structure. The all-composite aircraft
isexpected to make its first flight sometime before the end ofthe
year. “Manufacturers are currently working on a numberof new
business jet models that will come onto the marketover the next few
years,” observes Wiedra, adding that whilethe market has stabilized
again following the slump in 2009,delivery volumes are still way
below pre-crisis levels.
MTU has shares in three PW300-series engines—the PW305,PW306 and
PW307—for a total of nine aircraft applications.The successful
partnership between P&WC and MTU began
Powered by Pratt & Whitney Canada PW307B engines,
Bombardier’s Learjet 85 isthe largest and fastest Learjet and the
first to have an all-composite airframe.
MTU contributes the low-pressure turbine to the PW300 family, as
well as the exit case and mixer.
almost 30 years ago, when the two companies signed thefirst
collaboration agreement for the PW305 in 1985. “We’vebuilt up a
very close relationship over the years, one that isbased on mutual
trust and appreciation of our technical ex-pertise. This has earned
us a strong position as senior partnerin the programs,” says
Pirker. In addition to its PW300 partici-pations, MTU shares in the
PW530 and PW545 programs forCessna Citation jets, again with a 25
percent stake in each ofthese engines, the work shares being the
same. To date, MTUhas delivered more than 5,800 PW300 and PW500
turbinemodules. “The PW300 and PW500 have an excellent reputa-tion
for their outstanding reliability, and that is in no smallpart also
thanks to the MTU low-pressure turbine driving thefan,” he adds.
P&WC appreciates being able to rely on MTU,and this year
awarded the company the Supplier Gold Awardfor the sixth
consecutive year in recognition of the outstand-ing quality of its
products, its on-time delivery performanceand a high level of
customer satisfaction. MTU is renownedworldwide for its engineering
expertise, particularly when itcomes to low-pressure turbines, its
key product.
In return, the strategic partnership with P&WC has openedthe
door to the business jet market for MTU. According toPirker,
P&WC introduced a strong culture of teamwork andintegrated
product development back in the early1990s. “Weopenly discuss
technical issues and challenges in our joint
meetings, and this ultimately reflects in the quality and
tech-nical maturity of our products,” he says. Pirker has beenMTU’s
low-pressure turbine contact at P&WC headquartersin Longueuil,
Quebec, for three years. “I spend most of mytime facilitating the
collaboration between P&WC and MTUby working to bridge the
5,600-kilometer gap and six-hourtime difference separating their
two engineering teams.”
This works exceptionally well, with the partners continuing
toimprove the “old” PW300. “As a technology leader, we neverrest.
We’re always striving to improve our core competencies,these being
our low-pressure turbines, high-pressure com-pressors,
manufacturing processes and repair procedures.We do so by
incorporating new design features to increaseefficiency and by
developing innovative materials for our high-tech components,”
Wiedra says. Both partners pull togetherto achieve these aims.
Customers + Partners
For additional information, contactMartin Wiedra+49 89
1489-3354
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32 33
On-wing inspection of a PW300 engine.
A PW305 engine is being assembled at MTU Maintenance
Berlin-Brandenburg in Ludwigsfelde.
“We never forget that your engine has our name on it,”is the
promise that Pratt & Whitney Canada, as the orig-inal equipment
manufacturer (OEM), makes to its cus-tomers. That’s why it offers a
comprehensive customerservice network. MTU Maintenance is a
reliable partnerin this global network. “We act as representatives
forPratt & Whitney Canada as the OEM, which is proof of
itsconfidence in our expertise and the quality of our serv-ices,”
explains Carsten Behrens, General Manager of theP&WC Customer
Service Centre Europe (CSC), a 50/50joint venture between MTU and
Pratt & Whitney Canada.Founded in 1992, the CSC is based at MTU
MaintenanceBerlin-Brandenburg in Ludwigsfelde, near Berlin, and
isresponsible for marketing, sales and customer service inEurope,
Africa and the Middle East. “We look after over
Like Swiss clockwork1,200 customers in these regions; they
appreciate usbeing so close and in a similar time zone,” says
Behrens.
PW300 and PW500 series engines are sent to MTUMaintenance
Berlin-Brandenburg, the MTU Group’s spe-cialist for engines made by
the Canadian company, fortheir shop visits. The portfolio includes
the PT6A,PW200, PW300 and PW500, and MTU also has a mobilerepair
team to provide on-site maintenance support.“This strong team
offers a gamut of services, from repairssuch as blending of defects
on blades, borescope in-spections and work on the gearbox to hot
sectioninspections on wing,” explains Jan Bierkamp,
Director,P&WC Programs at MTU Maintenance. Hot
sectioninspections involve the replacement of high-pressure
turbine and combustion chamber components that aresubject to
severe thermal stresses. The mobile repairteam is called out some
50 times a year, and is availableon stand-by 24 hours a day, seven
days a week. “Weadapt to perfectly suit our customers’
requirements. Toget the aircraft back in service quickly, we might
onlyswap parts kits on site and then repair the parts in
ourshop.”
40 to 50 PW300 and PW500 engines are sent to MTUMaintenance
Berlin-Brandenburg for shop visits eachyear. “We fulfill the OEM’s
every specification. The jointventure gives us direct access to
technical data or up-dates, and allows us to resolve any technical
questionsthat may pop up quickly,” explains Bierkamp. For him,
the small engines from Canada are truly big powerpacks. “They
have a high power density and in terms ofthe utmost precision they
require, they are almost com-parable to Swiss clockwork. Even the
slightest change,say in the clearance, has a huge impact.” At MTU,
thesesophisticated high-performance engines are in the bestpossible
hands. Just as the PW306D will be in a fewyears’ time, when MTU
maintenance specialists carryout the first on-site maintenance work
to get it flyingagain, or when it comes in to Ludwigsfelde for its
firstshop visit.
Customers + Partners
For additional information, contactJan Bierkamp+49 3378
824-796
-
Progressneverstops
Thanks to its efficiency and markedly reduced noise emis-sions
the geared turbofan will make an important contribu-tion towards
climate protection in the years to come. Butthere is still great
potential for improvement: Under theEuropean Clean Sky Joint
Technology Initiative (JTI), which isapproaching the home stretch,
the successful technologywill again be substantially enhanced.
Among the companiesparticipating in this mammoth project is MTU
Aero Engines.Germany’s leading engine manufacturer is responsible
forbuilding a demonstrator engine.
By Denis Dilba
he targets to be met by the year 2020 are clearlydefined:
Aircraft are expected to emit 50 percentless carbon dioxides (CO2)
and 80 percent less
oxides of nitrogen (NOx) as compared with year 2000levels.
Moreover, the perceived noise level is to behalved. These are the
ambitious goals laid down by theAdvisory Council for Aeronautics
Research in Europe (orACARE for short) in its Strategic Research
Agenda. Dr.Joachim Wulf, Chief Engineer, Technology Demonstra-tors
at MTU in Munich, is well aware of the big chal-lenges ahead. After
all, he is already working on thetechnologies for the
next-generation Geared Turbofan(GTF), while his colleagues are
still celebrating the bigsuccess of the current generation of this
engine type:The GTF burns an impressive 15 percent less fuel and
isonly half as loud as conventional engines.
T
Technology + Science
34 35
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Technology + Science
“Of course, we’re more than pleased that the GTF has become
sopopular in the marketplace. In a few years’ time, it will be
flying inhundreds of new narrow-body airliners, demonstrating its
superiorenvironmental performance,” says Wulf. “But if we want to
achieve theACARE targets we must continue working at full speed.”
The develop-ment of the requisite technologies is currently being
pursued withinthe framework of Clean Sky. With an overall budget of
1.6 billion euros,this joint technology initiative is the biggest
research program everundertaken by the European Union. Clean Sky is
aimed at developingmore efficient aviation technologies to reduce
the environmentalimpact of flying. As part of the program’s
“Sustainable and GreenEngines” (SAGE) platform six demonstrator
engines will be built. MTUhas taken on responsibility for the SAGE
4 sub-project. Plans are tohave the demonstrator assembled and
ready for testing in the firstquarter of 2015.
“We don’t have too much time left, but we are confident that
we’llmeet the ambitious schedule,” explains Wulf. To this end, the
teammembers put their heads together at the end of the concept
phase inOctober 2012 to define the technologies actually to be
developed.Since then, the specialists have been focusing on the
detail design ofthe entire demonstrator engine. And the team is
well on track,according to the Clean Sky chief engineer: “On July
12, the SAGE 4team passed design review 4 with flying colors and is
now mid-waythrough the SAGE 4 sub-project.” But, as Wulf goes on to
point out,there is no reason for the team to sit back and rest on
its laurels. Thedesign of the demonstrator engine must be completed
before theyear is out. In other words, all components must be
released for pro-duction by that time. Comments Wulf: “We’re having
rather busytimes ahead of us.”
The first component prototypes have already arrived in Munich.
Justlike many of the modified engine parts that will follow in the
first quar-ter of 2014, these prototypes “will be put through their
paces in com-ponents tests,” explains Module Team Manager Dr.
Stefan Busam.Testing serves to demonstrate that the new components
performexactly as predicted. For the purpose, the modified engine
parts areprovided with a variety of sensors that measure, for
instance, thetemperature and pressure distribution under simulated
load condi-tions. They also permit the engineers to analyze the
behavior of theparts when subjected to vibrations at different
frequencies. “By mid-2014, component testing will be completed,”
says Busam.
If all tests are successfully passed the components can be
installed.The experts in Munich will assemble and instrument MTU’s
high-speed low-pressure turbine and the turbine exit casing
developed byBritish-Swedish GKN Aerospace, another partner in the
Clean Sky ini-
tiative. Then the test engine can be fully assembled and
installed inthe test cell. “Testing is slated to begin in April
2015,” according toBusam.
One thing is for certain already at this stage: The engine built
for theSAGE 4 sub-project is lighter than any of its predecessors.
In the high-pressure compressor, for example, new seals made from
carbon-fiberreinforced plastic (CFRP) will replace the previously
used titaniumparts. Wulf: “These CFRP seals weigh less than their
counterparts inthe rare metal titanium and are less expensive.”
Further savings in weight will be achieved by the use of
componentsmade by additive manufacturing processes, such as inner
rings withintegrated honeycomb seals for the high-pressure
compressor. These
New materials: Insulation segments made of ceramic matrix
composites (CMC).
Rub-in test: A seal carrier is subjected to abrasive
testing.
36 37
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parts are built up from a metal powder bed using the selective
lasermelting (SLM) technique. “Additive manufacturing makes
productionmuch easier and provides engineers with substantially
greater free-dom of design. We no longer need to mill parts from
the solid, whichsaves a considerable amount of material. What’s
more, the compo-nents weigh much less,” explains MTU engineer Wulf.
In addition,these new manufacturing processes are much faster.
Previously, threeto four suppliers used to be involved in the
production of the innerrings: One of them produced the inner rings
and another the honey-combs. A third supplier did the brazing of
the two constituent parts.Much time was also lost on transportation
between the individual pro-duction sites. “Additive manufacturing
involves but a single work stepand production proper is completed
virtually overnight,” says Wulf.
Another innovative technology, which likewise helps reduce the
weightof the geared turbofan, will make its debut in the
low-pressure turbineof the SAGE 4 demonstrator. Normally, the
airfoils of the individualturbine stages must be of a particularly
rigid design to prevent themfrom vibrating as they are exposed to
the hot gases flowing betweenthem at high velocities. But the good
vibration-resistance propertiescome at a price: The airfoils weigh
more. The newly developed airfoilswith integrated vibration damping
are capable of withstanding thecritical frequencies occurring in
operation without suffering damage.“The airfoils are lighter and
leaner. This affords aerodynamic advan-tages that have a positive
effect on the overall efficiency of theengine,” explains Wulf.
To further increase the efficiency of the next-generation geared
turbo-fans MTU’s air system specialists and design engineers are
currently
working to optimize the use of cooling air in the low-pressure
turbine.“We can reduce the amount of cooling air required by
routing the airprecisely to those areas where it is actually
needed,“ says the CleanSky Chief Engineer. And since the cooling
air is part of total air flowto be compressed further upstream in
the engine, less cooling airsaves energy, and the engine can
produce more thrust as a result.The reduction of noise continues to
be a topic featuring high on theengineers’ agenda. In a first,
acoustic damping liners will be used onthe turbine exit casing
built by SAGE 4 partner GKN Aerospace. Suchliners, which attenuate
the propagation of certain frequencies, havealready proved their
worth in the bypass duct upstream and down-stream of the fan. For
use in the hot engine section they had to bemodified to make them
resistant to elevated temperatures.
“With the technologies we are developing for SAGE 4 we want
toreduce the engine’s fuel burn by around three percent as
comparedwith current geared turbofans. Our long-term goal is a
five- to eight-percent reduction,” explains Wulf. Such a reduction
would be a majorstep forward: “Although today’s engines achieve
extremely high effi-ciencies each additional tenth of a percent
makes a whole lot of a dif-ference, helping cut down on fuel burn
and hence reduce CO2 emis-sions.” According to Wulf, the new SAGE 4
technologies might bemature for use in production engines by
2020.
“Under Clean Sky we’re not only facing challenges of a
technicalnature. What’s equally important is the smooth
organization of a proj-ect of this order of magnitude,” explains
Peter Taferner, Clean SkyProgram Manager at MTU. The Clean Sky JTI
is a unique public-privatepartnership, its 1.6-billion-euro budget
being equally shared betweenindustry and research on the one hand
and the European Commis-sion on the other. The various project
activities, which span the whole
gamut of game-changing aircraft, engine, system and eco-design
con-cepts, are coordinated by the Clean Sky Joint Undertaking
(CSJU)especially set up for the purpose.
“Our associates in the SAGE 4 sub-project with a total volume
ofaround 68 million euros are the British-Swedish GKN Aerospace
groupand Italian engine manufacturer Avio Aero. Other partners
include anumber of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs),
researchinstitutions as well as universities,” explains Taferner.
These partnershad been invited to participate in SAGE 4 via open
Calls for Proposals(CfP). They work on specific, directly funded
SAGE 4 developmenttasks defined by MTU and its associates for a
limited period of time.The European Commission encourages the
participation of SMEs andresearch institutions in the development
of aviation technologies, theaim being to strengthen their
international competitiveness. “Thepartners develop their own
technologies, thus gaining a competitiveedge for the future, and
SAGE 4 benefits from the highly advancedcomponents provided by the
partners,” according to Taferner.
A budget of around 15 million euros has been allocated to the
SAGE4 sub-project for such development orders. “Our CfP budget has
beenfully exhausted by now. We were looking for development
partnerswho are ready to also invest their own money in tasks
defined byMTU, GKN Aerospace or Avio Aero, the aim being a
technical solutionthat creates a win-win situation for MTU and the
partners alike,” says
Technology + Science
Taferner. Contracts for MTU’s last three CfP projects are
currentlybeing drawn up. They cover the maturing of a stable
production pro-cess for a new turbine casing material, the
development of a lessexpensive alloy for engine rotors and the
improvement of the manu-facturing process for single-crystal blades
in nickel-base alloys.
“By next year, important technologies developed for the
demonstratorunder CfP arrangements must have achieved an
appropriate level ofmaturity, and integration into the demonstrator
must have been com-pleted to a large extent to allow them to be
successfully validated inthe SAGE 4 engine tests,” explains
Taferner. “We’re now approachingthe home stretch of Clean Sky and
as far as we can tell today theoverall Clean Sky program and our
SAGE 4 sub-project will be a bigsuccess.” The European aviation
industry, therefore, would definitelywelcome a Clean Sky successor
program. Preparations are currentlyunderway for Clean Sky 2, which
might be integrated in Horizon2020, the EU’s upcoming Framework
Program for Research andInnovation. Taferner believes that a
decision will be made before thenext year is out. “If the project
goes forward we’ll of course be inagain.”
For additional information, contactDr. Joachim Wulf+49 89
1489-3381
New manufacturing method: SLM seal carrier.
38 39
Four-point bending test: An SLM seal carrier is subjected to
vibration resistance testing.
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Technology + Science
Efficient andpowerful
Tomorrow’s engines will need innovative control systems and
in-creased electric power, to name but two of the requirements to
bemet by next-generation propulsion systems. In the development of
therequisite technologies, MTU is relying on a tried and tested
approach:The company has been maintaining a close cooperation with
theUniversität der Bundeswehr München (University of the Federal
ArmedForces in Munich) for several decades. The most recent success
tocome out of this collaboration is MexJET, an engine test vehicle
basedon the EJ200 engine powering the Eurofighter Typhoon and used
tovalidate an entirely new control concept.
By Christiane Rodenbücher/Martina Vollmuth
hen Dr. Jörg Henne, Senior Vice President, En-gineering and
Technology at MTU, attended a cele-bratory event held by the
Universität der Bundes-
wehr München (UniBw) in Neubiberg, south-east of Munich,he
explained: “The MexJET test vehicle, which has
meanwhilesuccessfully entered into operation, provides an
outstandingbasis for highly promising technology developments in
thefields of More Electric Engine and innovative control
concepts.It is the only experimental platform of its kind in
Germany.”He expressed his belief that “the technological
developmentsunderway will lead to significant increases in
operationalsafety and cost efficiency, and a reduction in life
cycle costs.”On the occasion of the official commissioning of
MexJET(More electric experimental Jet Engine Test vehicle) in
spring2013, Professor Dr. Reinhard Niehuis, Head of the Institute
ofJet Propulsion (ISA) at UniBw, lauded the joint project
as“particularly efficient and powerful”, referring not only to
thetechnologies involved, but also to the cooperative partner-ship
between MTU and UniBw.
W
40 41
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Technology + Science
Universität der Bundeswehr München in Neubiberg.
Engine testing facility of the Universität der Bundeswehr
München’s Institute of Jet Propulsion.
The close-knit research alliance between UniBw and Germany’s
lead-ing engine manufacturer has existed for decades. Construction
of anengine test facility for educational purposes began just a
year afterUniBw was founded in 1973. Joint research and teaching
commencedfollowing the setting up of the Institute of Jet
Propulsion in 1980, withthe activities focused on the future
requirements of aircraft enginesystems from the outset. Flight
systems of the future will requiremore electric power, which in
turn places higher demands on aircraftoperating behavior and
generator efficiency. This is why MTU andUniBw decided to launch a
joint More Electric Engine (MEE) center ofcompetence in 2007, aimed
at pooling their activities and at promot-ing research into various
aspects of electrical and electronic systems.Front and center in
the cooperative effort is the integration of new,more efficient
electrical system components, such as the starter gen-erator, and
components of the oil and fuel systems.
The development and integration of new control systems is also
play-ing an increasingly central role. Under the Advanced Control
Systemand Model-based Control projects, next-generation control
conceptswere defined and validated using the MexJET test vehicle.
For the firsttime, a direct thrust control system was developed
that will allowengine performance and fuel consumption to be
further optimized.The new control concept offers a number of
additional advantages: Itimproves continuous on-board monitoring of
engine operating condi-tions and facilitates fault detection and
isolation checks, which in-creases engine reliability. As the
control system reduces the engine’sfuel burn it also helps bring
down life cycle costs. All these improve-ments are made possible
thanks to a modification of the engine con-trol software. “Test
results already confirm the potential benefitsafforded by this new
control concept,” sums up Dr. Gerhard Kahl,Senior Manager,
Compressor Technology at MTU in Munich.
To validate these research concepts, UniBw and MTU are using
theMexJET test vehicle, which bases on the EJ200 engine for
theEurofighter Typhoon, one of the most advanced jet engines in
theworld, and features special equipment for the tests to be
carried outin Neubiberg. The test vehicle’s first run at UniBw took
place in lateNovember 2011 and was followed by a comprehensive
series of tests
that were successfully completed in time for the official
commission-ing in March this year. “It was indeed a big challenge
for the entireteam to install the EJ200 engine in the test stand.
After all, the testvehicle’s thrust and flow rate are significantly
higher than on all pre-ceding models,” explains Kahl. But the
outcome of the first tests wasworth all the effort.
MexJET also is a fine example of the benefit that can be derived
fromclose collaboration between MTU and various departments of
theGerman Ministry of Defense. “Funding of defense technology
devel-opments is very important to MTU,” explains Dr. Gerhard
Ebenhoch,Director, Technology Management at MTU. “We use it for
pre-compet-itive technology development, which also benefits the
commercialarea. Through our work in this field, we are able to
identify potentialsfor improvement in engines currently in service.
What’s more, usingour military customer’s existing facilities and
infrastructure allows usto increase the leverage of defense
development programs.” The var-ious activities underway in this
field at present go to show that mili-tary development funding is
an indispensable and efficient way togreatly help strengthen
Germany’s position as a high-tech country.
“The collaboration with MTU is something we value very
highly,”states Niehuis and enumerates a series of cooperation
projects thatinclude the MexDemo project funded by the state of
Bavaria, and inparticular the varied joint research activities at
the high-speed cas-cade wind tunnel in Neubiberg. “This alliance,
which is the only of itskind in Germany, provides us with an
excellent opportunity to con-duct research work into cutting-edge
technologies and to launch newinitiatives,” Niehuis says. “A major
project we’re currently working onis the joint development of novel
airfoils for low-pressure turbinesintended for geared turbofan
applications.”
For additional information, contactDr. Gerhard Kahl+49 89
1489--6149
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Products + Services
44 45
Engines under stressMTU Aero Engines has great expectations of
the PurePower®
PW1000G engine, and rightfully so: The highly efficient Geared
Turbo-fan™ engine sold extremely well at this year’s Paris Air
Show. It hasbeen selected to power the Airbus A320neo, the
Bombardier CSeries,the MRJ Mitsubishi Regional Jet, the Irkut
MS-21, and the new gener-ation of Embraer E-Jets in future. To
ensure safe flight operations oncethe engine has entered into
service, it is put through its paces in acomprehensive test
program. Some of the testing is conducted atMTU’s test facilities
in Munich.
By Bernd Bundschu
Kurt Scheidt, Senior Manager, Engine and Flight Test atMTU,
explains: “Before an engine can go into produc-tion, it has to
undergo between 3,000 and 5,000 hoursof testing. The PW1000G has
now been in this test phase fora year and a half.” MTU’s stake in
Pratt & Whitney’s gearedturbofan program varies between 15 and
18 percent, depend-ing on the engine version. The workshare of
Germany’s lead-ing engine manufacturer includes the high-speed
low-pressureturbine, one of the key components of this engine. In
thespring of this year, the company received two German inno-vation
awards for its highly advanced turbine. MTU is the onlymanufacturer
worldwide to offer this technology. “We havealready conducted two
series of stress tests on the low-pres-sure turbine for the
PW1100G-JM, the version destined forthe A320neo, at our facility in
Munich,” reports ChristianSteffen, who heads up the test activities
for commercial andmilitary programs at MTU. “Further tests in our
large devel-opment test cell III are planned for the end of this
year;preparations are already underway.”
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Products + Services
46 47
Stress tests are highly complex and a majorelement of the flight
certification process.Their purpose is to ensure that an
enginemodule or entire engine is capable of with-standing the
stresses it must sustain to meetthe certification requirements,
such as highspeeds and temperatures, or meeting contin-uous
operation requirements, without diffi-culty. “Measurements of the
stresses andtemperatures acting on the components pro-vide us with
vital information that allows usto determine their stress limits,”
says Steffen.To obtain this data, it is necessary to fit sen-
MTU Aero Engines in Munich for the first time performed
lightning strike tests on a V2500 engine.
Power turbine stress tests on the GE38 test engine took place in
the turboshafttest cell at MTU in Munich.
sors at as many as 2,000 measuring points.Steffen: “Given the
limited space inside theengine and the minute size of the
sensors,this is a task that requires utmost precision.The most
challenging tests are those involv-ing remote measurements on
rotating parts.”
Remote measurement or telemetry is a tech-nique in which
measurement data is cap-tured by a sensor and transmitted to a
distantrecording point. MTU has developed its ownsystems for this
highly sophisticated measur-ing method. Miniature strain gages are
at-tached to specific areas of blades and disks.They consist of
thin strips of metal connected
to a power source. As the component ex-pands during engine
operation as a result ofheat or centrifugal forces, the strain
gageexpands as well, causing its electrical resist-ance to
change—even if the deformation is assmall as a thousandth of a
millimeter. The re-corded data is then transmitted via a
wirelessconnection to the computer and evaluated.
MTU has many years of experience in thetesting of commercial and
military aircraftengines. As Scheidt points out, stress testsare
not the only type of tests that can beconducted at MTU’s test
facilities: “We’re alsoable to carry out any type of test required
for
MTU Aero Engines has various high-performance ground test
facilities config-ured for different purposes. At its Munich
headquarters, the company oper-ates four test cells for turbojet
engines and one for turboshaft engines, pluscomponent test rigs.
Additional test facilities for turbojet and turboshaftengines are
operated by MTU Maintenance at its various locations in Germanyand
abroad. For high-altitude tests, MTU has access to Stuttgart
University’shigh-altitude test facility.
The engineers use these facilities to test turbojets with a
thrust of up to 400kilonewtons, such as the GP7000 for the Airbus
A380 and the EJ200 engine
MTU’s high-tech test facilities
For additional information, contactKurt Scheidt+49 89
1489-3963
For interesting multimedia services associated with this
article, go towww.mtu.de/report
engine certification, including performanceand system testing,
endurance testing, vibra-tion tests, emission measurements,
simula-tion of hot-day conditions, bird-strike tests,destructive
testing, ice, water and sandingestion tests to simulate extreme
weatherconditions, and high-altitude testing.” Sandingestion tests
are currently underway inMunich on a GE38 turboshaft engine for
theSikorsky CH-53K heavy-lift transport heli-copter. The purpose of
these tests is to dem-onstrate the engine’s enhanced resistance
toerosion by airborne sand particles.
In a first for MTU’s test facilities in Munich,lightning strike
tests on a V2500 engine forthe Embraer KC-390 military transport
arebeing conducted by a specialized U.S. com-pany. The tests began
in August. “The enginecasing is exposed to defined
high-voltagespikes and their effect on the engine controlsystem is
analyzed,” explains TechnicalProgram Manager Werner Striegl, who
atMTU is responsible for the V2500 and otherengine programs.
Another V2500 is currentlybeing used by the MTU test engineers as
aplatform for trials on behalf of a customer:“We are testing a
next-generation lubricantunder extreme operating conditions such
aselevated oil temperature or reduced oil pres-sure,” says Striegl.
“If all components of theengine are still in perfect working order
atthe end of the tests, the new lubricant can beapproved for
use.”
As engine performance requirements contin-ue to increase, so do
the demands on testequipment and methods. “For example, as aresult
of the trend toward ever-largerengines, most of the tests we
previously car-ried out at the high-altitude test facility arenow
conducted during flight tests,” saysScheidt. “At the same time, we
are continu-ally investing in measures to enhance theperformance
and measurement capabilitiesof our test facilities and improve
their noiseinsulation. By constantly updating our facili-ties in
this way, we keep abreast of the latesttechnological
developments.”
for the Eurofighter Typhoon, and for testing turboshaft engines
with an outputof up to 15 megawatts powering helicopters and
propeller aircraft, such as theSikorsky CH-53K (GE38) or the Airbus
A400M military transport (TP400-D6).The full range of tests
required for engine certification can be carried out atthese
facilities, including structural, load, and reliability tests,
ingestion tests,and destructive testing. Tests are conducted on
individual components, as-semblies and modules, as well as on
complete engines for commercial andmilitary applications.
The majority of these tests form part of contractual agreements
with MTU’sOEM partners, including Pratt & Whitney, General
Electric and Rolls-Royce, orthe International Aero Engines (IAE)
consortium. Other tests are performed onbehalf of external
customers.
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Global
Power ratherthan thrust
Industrial gas turbines (IGTs) are rugged and reliable,
rapidlyramp up to their rated power and withstand repeated
start/stop cycles even in a single day. One such IGT is the
GeneralElectric LM6000, of which more than1,000 copies have
beensold worldwide. To ensure that this success story continues,MTU
Aero Engines’ specialists have been developing en-hanced protective
coatings. In the program, MTU has workedon the René 104 alloy for
the first time. These efforts havehelped increase the performance
of the 50-megawatt IGTand reduce its emissions.
By Daniel Hautmann
Many industrial gas turbines are aeroderivativesdesigned for
stationary applications. They areused in a multitude of ways.
Combined with apower generator, they produce power for land-based
elec-tricity consumption and off-shore use on oil rigs. They
alsosupply the mechanical energy needed to operate pumpsand
compressors to transport petroleum and natural gasthrough
pipelines. One of the most popular IGTs is theGeneral Electric
LM6000, a derivative of the CF6-80 en-gine. The first LM6000 began
commercial operation 20years ago. To date, the LM6000 has achieved
more than26 million operating hours, with more than 1,000
unitsshipped to customers globally; four times more experi-ence has
been gained with this IGT than with all othercompeting gas turbines
in the 60-megawatt class com-bined.
48 49
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Global
Germany’s leading engine manufacturer is a
risk-and-rev-enue-sharing partner in the LM6000 program. “MTU’s
mainline of business are aircraft engines,” says Uwe
Kaltwasser,Director, Sales and Customer Support, Industrial Gas
Turbinesat MTU Maintenance Berlin-Brandenburg in
Ludwigsfelde.“Aeroderivative gas turbines are often subjected to
higherloads than their aero engine cousins, because they
arerequired to operate continuously at full load,” Kaltwasserpoints
out. Florian Brecht, Senior Manager, Operations,CF6/LM explains:
“GE wanted to leverage its existing CF6technology and use it for a
wider range of applications, justlike its competitors.” MTU
essentially contributes componentsfor the high-pressure turbine,
such as internally-cooled rotorblades and stator vanes, seal rings
and disks.
The stationary gas turbines differ from aeronautical designsin
several respects: “Aircraft engines are provided with alarge fan at
the front that generates much of the thrust,”explains Kai
Philippeit, Configuration Management, CF6/LMPrograms. “By contrast
industrial gas turbines don’t have afan and rely primarily on the
rotational energy. The thrust pro-duced is negligible, but the
exhaust energy can be used foradditional purposes. Otherwise they
work in the same way asa jet engine.” One of the most significant
and immediatelyobvious differences is that IGTs have large flanges
on theunderside allowing them to be securely fixed to a base
plate.The customer market structures for the two types of
productare fundamentally different: Whereas airlines often
orderhundreds of engines of the same configuration, individual
IGTcustomers tend to buy only one unit. “In this respect, the
IGTand aero-engine markets are worlds apart,” commentsBrecht.
The highly successful LM6000 aeroderivative gas turbine isnow
available in two new versions: the LM6000-PG with sin-gle annular
combustor (SAC) and its dry low emissions (DLE)equivalent, the
LM6000-PH. In the PH version, the injectionnozzles are optimally
arranged in multiple levels to providefor more efficient
combustion. GE markets both products asGrowth versions, in
reference to their enhanced perform-ance. Steve Carey, Director
Revenue Sharing Programs at GE:“The LM6000-PG/PH program is now in
full production, in-cluding delivery of the first LM6000-PH gas
turbines for ourlaunch customer. MTU is a significant participant
in the pro-gram, and has successfully manufactured their
componentsto specification, given their complex geometry, with new
alloysand coatings, compared with previous LM6000 components.”
Compared with their predecessors, the two enhanced ver-sions
offer a simple-cycle power increase of up to 25 percentand an
18-percent boost in exhaust energy for combined-cycle and
cogeneration applications, with efficiency rangingup to 54 percent.
Among the outstanding operational fea-tures are fast starts: The
gas turbines reach full power in justfive minutes, operate at 80
percent of their full load withinten minutes and at full load
within 40 minutes. To achievethis level of performance, GE partner
MTU had to meet some
exacting requirements. The stage 2 high-pressure turbineblades
and vanes, which are manufactured by MTU in Munich,are provided
with a new coating that increases their thermalresistance by up to
80 degrees Celsius. This extends theirservice life, or allows them
to operate at higher loads.So how do these improvements come about?
“Basically we’re
LM6000-PH
Ceramic Coating Center in France specializes in ceramic
coatings.
50 51
using techniques that we adopted in the manufacture of air-craft
engines some time ago,” says Philippeit. “In this case,we apply a
zirconium oxide coating by vapor deposition.” Thefull name of the
technique is Electron Beam Physical VaporDeposition (EBPVD). The
process is carried out at CeramicCoating Center (CCC), a joint
venture of MTU and Snecma,and has been used to coat stage 1
high-pressure turbineblades and vanes for some time. Over a period
of roughlyeighteen months, the process has been adapted to suit
thedemands of the more complex geometry of stage 2 bladesand vanes.
“The trickiest thing were the motion parameters inthe coating
chamber,” explains Philippeit. “It’s essential thatthe
translational and rotational movements of the part areprecisely
controlled, to ensure that the vaporized particlesare deposited to
form a ceramic film of the desired thicknesson all areas of the
part,” says Brecht, explaining the details ofthis particular
challenge.
Another challenge for the production engineers in Munich
waslearning how to machine René 104, an innovative powdermetal used
in the production of the disks and seals. “We hadnever had to deal
with a material that was so difficult tomachine,” reports
Philippeit. “René 104 is a GE material. Wedon’t know its precise
composition—in a sense, it’s a black
For additional information, contactFlorian Brecht+49 89
1489-2409
box for us.” Nonetheless, the MTU experts successfully
devel-oped manufacturing processes and tools that met GE’s
de-manding requirements, in particular lathes and broaches
forproducing the inner splines. Philippeit: “We are the produc-tion
responsible partner and so it’s our job to check whichparts are to
be produced using which processes. And thatcan sometimes be a real
brain-teaser.”
“GE was quite impressed by the quality of our solutions
andprocesses,” says Brecht proudly. MTU was ably assisted byexperts
from RWTH Aachen University, who helped establishsuitable tool
parameters. Brecht is aware, though, that it willbe difficult to
enhance performance further, because the lim-its have already been
reached for the majority of geometriesand materials. But then
again, the experts on either side ofthe Atlantic no doubt still
have a few new ideas up theirsleeves that will allow efficiency to
be be boosted beyondtoday’s limits.
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Global
In the LM6000 program MTU is responsible for manufac-turing key
components and for providing maintenanceand package services for
this industrial gas turbine (IGT).
Maintenance of the heavyweights is handled by MTUMaintenance
Berlin-Brandenburg in Ludwigsfelde, MTU’scenter of excellence for
industrial gas turbines. Since1995, the company, a GE-authorized
service provider forLM2500, LM5000 and LM6000 gas turbines, manages
allof MTU’s IGT activities. The MTU