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Aviation History
1989
1989 - 3224.PDF
TECHNICAL: PROPULSION IAE considers breaking 30,0001b thrust barrier BY GUY NORRIS International Aero Engines is considering developing its V2500 turbofan beyond the 29,0001b-thrust version for the McDonnell Douglas MD-90 air liner. The consortium has started an engineering study and will decide within the next month whether to develop a signifi cantly different engine with capacity for 31,0001b thrust, taking it beyond the 30,0001b thrust limit set by the signatories of the 1983 IAE agreement— Pratt & Whitney, Rolls-Royce, MTU, Fiat, and Japan Aero Engines. The study's launch comes just days after the completion of IAE's formal business and manu facturing proposals for the V2500-A/D5 version which is intended to power the Airbus A321 and McDonnell Douglas MD-90-10 and -30. IAE had almost finalised its plans to generate an extra 4,0001b thrust from the existing engine when West German airline Lufthansa revealed a 31,0001b thrust requirement for its A321. Lufthansa has not yet formally announced its A321 engine choice. The CFM56-5 is believed to be the favourite, to maintain commonality with the airline's A320 fleet, but the five-nation V2500 is apparently still in the running. "Lufthansa is well respected for its technical judge ments," says a source close to the V2500 programme. Lufthansa believes that it needs the extra thrust to improve climb-out performance and reduce specific fuel consumption (six.) on short European routes. IAE says that the engineering study does not affect the position of McDonnell Douglas and the choice of powerplant for the MD-90-10/30. McDonnell Douglas sources confirm this, and add that a memorandum of understanding involving the MD-90/V2500 combination is likely to be signed with IAE within the next three weeks. UK space centre wins ion thruster contract The Space Applications Centre at the UK Atomic Energy Authority's Culham Laboratory has won a three-year Royal Aero space Establishment contract to test a final flight version of spacecraft station-keeping ion thruster. The UK-10 ion thruster is designed to keep spacecraft in geostationary orbit at 36,000km using a beam of xenon ions 10cm in diameter. Xenon is a heavy inert gas extracted from air, and enough can be carried to allow the spacecraft to operate for ten years. The longer lifetime is also possible because electrical propulsion generates higher exhaust velocities, with lower propellant consumption, than traditional chemical combustion systems. The contract covers the next phase of ground qualification in which the flight-model ion thruster will be integrated with flight-type power and propellant supplies to form the ion propulsion system. Prolonged cyclical testing will involve switching the system on and off for up to 1-5 hours over an extended period of several thou sand hours. Tests will be conducted at a specially built vacuum chamber at the Culham Laboratory. • V2500—will Airbus soon have a V3100 engine to offer customers Development of a 29,0001b- thrust V2500 is possible by making minor changes to the high-pressure compressor and generally "tweaking" the engine. "Getting it to 29,0001b is as far as you can go without making more major changes," the source says. A move to 31,0001b would entail development of a re-cambered fan, new low-pressure turbine, and upflowed HP turbine, as well as the certification costs of what is effectively a new engine. IAE sources say that the decision will also be affected by acknowledgement of CFM International's stated intention to push the CFM56 family to 31,0001b thrust, and is balancing the cost of developing a new engine against the market ing advantage it might bring. V2500-D5 certification for the MD-90 series is scheduled for "late in 1993", acording to IAE. An IAE spokesman denies that major changes will be required to achieve 31,0001b, saying that the extra thrust might be obtained without significant engine alterations. • PW2000 turbofan poised for 120min EROPS clearance Pratt & Whitney expects PW2000-powered Boeing 757s to gain US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) 120min extended range operations (EROPS) clearance "sometime within the next two months", the company says. The new limit will provide a welcome fillip to P&W's sales drive against the Rolls-Royce RB.211-535, which until now has enjoyed a virtually unchallenged lead in EROPS 757 operations. The engine has achieved shut down rates far below the 0 05/1,000 flight-hours mini mum dictated by the FAA over the last 12 months, and P&W confirms that it is applying to the FAA with Boeing for 180min EROPS clearance. The move for 120min was led by Boeing, "but we were pushing as hard as anybody," says P&W. The 270 PW2000-series engines in service have built up 1-54 million flight hours and achieved a shutdown rate of 0 03/l,000h over the past two years. The larger-thrust PW4000, which has accumulated 300,000 engine-hours in service on around 150 engines, is achieving shutdown rates of between 0-02 and 0 03/l,000h. The company, meanwhile, has secured orders potentially worth $329 million for'PW2000 and PW4000 turbofans for Boeing 757s and Airbus Industrie A310-300s. Lufthansa Leasing, the newly founded leasing company of Lufthansa airlines, and subsidiary Condor Flug- dienst, have ordered PW2040 engines and spares for 20 Boeing 757s on order or option. Lufthansa Leasing will take deliv ery of 24 PW2040s, plus spares for ten aircraft on firm order from November 1991. An additional 23 engines will be supplied if options are exercised, taking the potential value of the order to $253 million. • 20 FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL 21 October 1989
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