USA: GE Marine Engines’ LM Gas Turbines For US Navy’s Next Generation Destroyers

GE Marine Engines discussed how its full line of proven aeroderivative gas turbines are the best solution for the U.S. Navy’s next generation DD 21 destroyers. The LM gas turbines range in power from 6,000 shaft horsepower (shp) to 57,300 shp, GE reported today at the Sea-Air-Space 2000.

“Because GE’s LM product line covers the full spectrum of power ranges, we have a fuel-efficient system solution to meet the needs of the DD 21 destroyer program regardless of the configuration,” said Bill Millhaem, General Manager for GE Marine Engines. “What makes our gas turbines the definitive choice for this program are years of proven reliability. The demonstrated low life cycle costs, reduced manning requirement and high ship availability are enabled by GE’s commitment to ongoing advanced technology improvements. Simply put: By using GE’s LM gas turbines, risks are low and there will be no surprises now or in ten years when DD 21 goes to sea,” Millhaem stated.GE’s LM product line includes:

GE’s LM fleet record speaks for itself: Twenty-seven navies use 968 engines on 388 ships. In the commercial marine arena, 82 GE LM gas turbines can be found on 45 ships, in various hull configurations and in both mechanical and electric drive propulsion systems. Reliability/Maintainability
A gas turbine that is readily available for service is crucial in all marine environments. That is why GE insists on superior reliability and maintainability for its LM gas turbines. GE Marine Engines’ distinct advantage is that the parent aircraft engines from which the LM gas turbines were developed have more than 216 million reliable operating hours on various aircraft.For instance, through more than 300 GE Component Improvement Program initiatives, extensive reliability and maintainability advancements (RMA) have been made to GE’s LM2500 gas turbine. This program includes the infusion of advanced materials, coatings, improved bearings and electronic fuel control. Many of these advancements have been shared across the LM family of engines.As a result, there has been a marked improvement in mean time between engine removal for this gas turbine. When the LM2500 was introduced almost 25 years ago, the incidence of engine removal was estimated at 5,000 hours. U.S. Navy data shows that the removal interval for earlier versions of the LM2500 exceeds 18,000 hours and the most recent versions exceed 23,000 hours.The benefits of GE’s RMA program for its LM gas turbines means that there are longer intervals between engine removals (greater than 12 years), low maintenance costs and high ship availability.Engine Combinations
GE’s entire LM line of simple cycle gas turbines can be engineered in an optimal power system using various size engine combinations to meet DD 21 operating requirements (see attached diagram examples).By applying different GE engine combinations, a simple system can be configured to use fewer auxiliaries. These systems can be more cost effective by being able to match the exact power requirements of the DD 21 rather than having excess power due to only one engine size available for this application.GE’s fleet of experienced LM gas turbines provide the reliability and ease of maintenance needed to support the reduced manning and life cycle cost objectives of the DD 21 program, without the risks of unproven complex cycle engines.Other benefits of the LM gas turbines for the DD 21 program include:

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Source: GEAviation, April 19, 2011;