New MHI Turbocharger Makes Best of Slow Steaming
Electro-assist MET turbocharger: Image courtesy of the manufacturers
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Marine Machinery & Engine Co., Ltd., has unveiled at MHI's Nagasaki Shipyard & Machinery Works an electro-assist MET turbocharger saving approximately 30% electric power consumption compared to existing auxiliary blowers.
The electro-assist MET turbocharger is a turbocharger that incorporates a compact electric motor limited to power functions that assists the driving of the hybrid turbocharger*. This provides optimization of plant efficiency when a ship is operating under slow steaming, improving the fuel combustion efficiency of the main engine, and enabling the same or better performance than an auxiliary blower while consuming little power.
The turbocharger was developed using a high-speed motor supplied by its partner, Calnetix Technologies (Calnetix), and is the result of collaboration between the two companies.
The unveiling ceremony held at the Nagasaki Shipyard & Machinery Works was attended by around 70 customers from various fields, including domestic shipping companies, ship owners and shipyards.
"Like the hybrid MET turbocharger, the electro-assist MET turbocharger was created through collaboration between companies possessing advanced technologies. By combining the technologies of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Marine Machinery & Engine and Calnetix, we completed a product that provides high energy efficiency and a reduced burden on the environment," Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Marine Machinery & Engine President Kazuo Soma said, highlighting the fact that the product utilizes the strengths of both companies.
