keynoters

By Jeffrey Winters, Supplement Editor

The theme of the ASME turbo expo 2004 keynote session, "New Benchmarks for Operating Efficiency," is one that's very much on the minds of speakers Klaus Steffens, Hans-Otto Jeske, and August Henningsen. John Varrasi of ASME's Public Information Office asked for a sneak preview of their remarks.

Klaus Steffens is president and CEO of MTU Aero Engines GmbH. A graduate of RWTH Aachen Technical College in Germany, Steffens spent almost a decade at Ford before joining DaimlerChrysler Aerospace MTU München, as executive vice president of engineering/production in 1996. He assumed his current position in March 2000.

I will provide an overview of the state-of-the-art in the engine business—where we stand today. I will then attempt to describe some future technologies, where they are headed and where they may find their applications.

In the future, I believe we will see a great deal of refinement of existing technologies. Manufacturers naturally want to try to improve existing technologies and see them mature into production. That continuous cycle of improvement will help boost the cost-effectiveness of engines by a few percentage points.

But that doesn't rule out significant breakthroughs. Manufacturers will develop novel propulsion concepts. Two that I have an eye on are the geared turbofan and the recuperated engine. Both are under development and are sure to improve on the economics and environmental impact of present engines.

And those are the two major cost factors in engine operation today and into the future: fuel consumption and the increasingly stiff environmental requirements in most developed nations. There are also tough quality demands that compel the use of highly perfected manufacturing and repair processes.

To contain these costs, we will have to keep optimizing the various engine components. But we must also muster the courage, know-how, and funding to pursue entirely novel approaches. The geared turbofan I mentioned before, with its high-speed, low-pressure turbine, and the recuperated engine appear to be the most likely candidates to meet future requirements. In addition, we need to develop new materials and manufacturing techniques in order to keep costs down.

The gas turbine is still a growth industry. The historical rate of growth in the global market over the past years has seen 4 to 5 percent a year or more in some regions. That's not to say that there won't be bumps along the way. Crises like the present one may delay the trend toward growth, but it will not halt it. MTU is directly tied to market developments and, accordingly, I expect it to share in the long-term profitable market growth ahead. That also goes for the industrial gas segment, even if that market may be subject to other cyclical developments.

In addition to being president of MAN Turbomacchine S.r.l. de Pretto in Schio, Italy, Hans-Otto Jeske is a member of the MAN Turbomaschinen AG executive board responsible for design and development, systems engineering, and other technical matters for the company's products. A graduate of Technical University of Hannover, Jeske has researched the mathematical simulation of the flow in centrifugal compressor vaned diffusers.

Since the last ASME Turbo Expo, a number of new engines have come to the market with very interesting features. And some engines that had been rolled out in previous years have reached important milestones. In particular, the use of process gas turbines in the fertilizer and related industries reached new benchmarks in operating efficiencies. I will try to touch on these changes.

It's also important to look ahead. One breakthrough that could be arriving in the coming years is a further significant step in increasing the turbine inlet temperature. The dominating factor in the total life cycle cost for a gas turbine is the cost of fuel, and this is strongly influenced by efficiency. The efficiency of a gas turbine is governed by turbine inlet temperature and pressure ratio, and these variables can be further increased only by extensive engineering development work.

The industry has made progress in the last few years through use of advances in cooling and material technology. For the next step, material technology must play an important role. I think we'll see the maturity of ceramic vane and bucket technology.

After the burst of the "bubble" in the gas turbine business for power generation in the U.S., we expect to see modest growth in coming years. But there certainly are opportunities at hand. MAN Turbomaschinen AG intends to increase its already significant market share even further because of its broad product range in the turbo compressor business for the refinery, petrochemical, and pipeline industry.

Also scheduled to speak is August Wilhelm Henningsen, the chairman of the executive board of Lufthansa Technik AG.

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