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How accurate are advanced computational tools like CFD and FEA? Find out in part II of designing turbomachines with the Myth Busters.

TurboTime Podcast: Designing Turbomachines - Part II

In this episode of the TurboTime podcast, Myth Busters Klaus Brun and Rainer Kurz discuss the design of turbomachines. They describe the typical design process for a turbomachine, outline the required engineering tools, and explain each analytical tool's function: finite element analysis, computational fluid dynamics (CFD), and rotor and blade dynamics. They also discuss how compressors, pumps, and turbomachines were designed before these advanced computational tools existed.

TURBO: Can you describe the typical design process of a turbomachine and what engineering tools are required?

 You begin with what's known as a 1D analysis, then move to a 2D analysis, also called a blade passage flow analysis. After that, you proceed to 3D and conduct some testing before refining your geometry. In essence, that's the aerodynamics part, right? However, there’s an initial step that is often overlooked, which is your own experience. You start your design based on your experience and your existing machinery portfolio. If you’re a turbomachinery manufacturer with 50, 60, or 70 years in the field, you’ve likely worked on various types of machines. Therefore, before designing a new machine, impeller, or expander, you review your existing portfolio; that's usually your starting point. You examine what's closest to your needs within that portfolio to determine if you can build upon it or if you need to start from scratch. Besides the aerodynamic design process, there's also a review of structures and dynamics that runs parallel to your aerodynamic process. You perform aerodynamic design followed by structural checks. Essentially, you assess the solids and dynamics to ensure there’s no risk of failure due to vibration. You conduct these evaluations throughout to avoid potential failures. These are generally well-known considerations. Additionally, a third aspect that often gets overlooked is manufacturability. It’s crucial to ensure that what you're designing can actually be manufactured, as it wouldn’t make sense to design an impeller or a machine that ultimately cannot be produced due to a lack of available technology or machinery. This consideration relates closely to materials, so manufacturability and materials fall into the same category, requiring a review of your materials, coatings, etc., throughout the design process to ensure that your design is feasible for production.

 I’d also like to point out that, as engineers, we don't design these machines out of thin air. There’s usually a use case, a customer, or a market assessment that indicates we need something that fits specific requirements. This could be a gas turbine that produces 20,000 horsepower or a compressor that can deliver more throughput than what my competitors can achieve within a given casing size, and so on. Then, we enter a process where engineering is asked, "Hey, can you guys do that?” Of course, someone also inevitably asks if we can achieve that at a cost that makes the project feasible. Yes, Klaus is absolutely right; this essentially defines the playground we work within. From there, we move from what could be considered a rough draft, using our experience, to increasingly refined concepts. Ultimately, you'll end up with some CFD simulations, and after building the first machine or prototype, there will be some testing to follow.

Do engineers overrely on computational tools? The Myth Busters deep dive into engineering tools, such as CFD and FEA, used to design turbomachines. 

TurboTime Podcast: The Turbomachinery Design Process - Part I

In this episode of the TurboTime podcast, Myth Busters Klaus Burn of Ebara Elliott Energy and Rainer Kurz of RKSBenergy LLC dive into electrification: what it is and debunk the myth that it and machines—such as hermetically sealed compressors and high-speed electric motor drives—hydrogen blending and others are decarbonized.

TURBO: Can you break down the assertion that that machinery electrification and electric-motor drives are a decarbonization myth?

 There are a lot of decarbonization myths that don’t just have to do with electrification and electric motors and hermetically sealed drives and high-speed motors, but they also have to do with hydrogen blending, unburned hydrocarbons and gas turbines, and other types of emissions that are part of the sustainable energy economy. What we set to do, however, is talk about electrification, which is basically when you take a turbomachine, a compressor or pump, and instead of running it with a driver—e.g., a gas or steam turbine, which has been done traditionally at a lot of compressor stations, pipelines, or in refineries, ethylene plants, or other places—you actually replace them with an electric motor. And, obviously, an electric motor does not have any emissions directly; it just shifts the responsibility of the carbon production from where you utilize the electric motor to where the electricity comes from. And the last time I checked, at least in most of the industrialized nations such as North America, 60% of all fossil electricity comes from fossil fuels, a mix of natural gas and coal. China actually has more—I think 70% of the electricity comes from fossil fuels, mostly coal, which is very dirty. Europe is not quite as bad. They now have about 40% alternative energies, but still a substantial part. So, you're really just shifting the carbon emission from one place to another, sometimes in a very, very inefficient way.

 In a way, this discussion is always about where you draw the emissions boundaries. Klaus is right: As soon as you can shift your emissions outside your boundaries, you can claim you are carbon-neutral, whereas, in reality, you just made somebody else deal with your carbon emissions. There are quite a few studies that address that one way or another and very clearly show if you make electricity while creating CO

 or other emissions, you may create more emissions with an electric driver than with a driver that’s driven by fossil-fueled engines.

Klaus Brun and Rainer Kurz break down the myth that electrification and electric-motor drives are decarbonized. 

TurboTime Podcast: Debunking Machinery Decarbonization Myths

In this episode of the TurboTime Podcast, Myth Busters Klaus Burn of Ebara Elliott Energy, and Rainer Kurz of RKSBenergy LLC, discuss root-cause analysis (RCA), including what it is, the philosophy and methodologies behind it, what actions should and should not be taken, and more.

Brun said: “RCA, some folks call it root-cause failure analysis, looks at something that failed: Your machine had a catastrophic failure, or you’re missing performance by a percent or two—something is not as you would expect in a compressor or gas or steam turbine, and you want to figure out what it is. So, you perform an RCA based on certain symptoms. In most cases, RCA starts with a review of the machine’s operation that may have preceded the failure and in some cases a metallurgical investigation, which is one of the best indicators as to what failed. It can indicate it was high-cycle fatigue, sudden overload, corrosion or erosion, for example. Then you figure out what excitation may have caused the high-cycle fatigue or what in your process gas may have caused corrosion or erosion.”

Kurz said: “In a way, this is a bit like a detective story. You find something failed, aka the dead body, and then you gather evidence. One of the key things in root-cause failure analysis is that you not only gather evidence, but you also document it. One of the key problems when these reports are written is you have a failure in 2015, for example, and you conduct an RCA, and the next similar failure isn’t for another 10 years. (These events don’t happen that often.) And if you haven't documented what you did for the first one, you can’t use it as a starting point.”

Klaus Brun and Rainer Kurz discuss root-cause analysis—what it is, its methodologies, and why it’s so important to managing turbomachines.

TurboTime Podcast: Root Cause Analysis with the Myth Busters 

This episode of the TurboTime podcast features an onsite interview from our Turbo Tour of EthosEnergy’s Light Gas Turbine and Performance Center Facility in Houston. Assistant Editor James Cook talks with Daniel Tegtmeier, Director of EthosEnergy's Performance Center, about remote monitoring and operations, the changing energy landscape, and the benefits of remote start/stop and virtual capabilities.

Q: How does remote monitoring keep simple-cycle assets viable in a market focused on renewable energy?

 If you think about a machine built 20+ years ago and its efficiency, it still has a place in the market when competing with renewables. It’s not like it used to be though—these units used to run wide-open, 24/7. They’re now intermittent assets competing with renewables and zero-cost fuels, but once the wind stops blowing and the sun stops shining, that load is gone.

These are simple-cycle configurations, so they can come online quickly and be at 100 - 120 MW in less than an hour. So, you’re going to staff a facility 8,000 hours per year in case they call you up? That’s part of what we do and the justification for remote operations—you need the intermittent load from simple-cycle assets in rapid fashion, but you can’t afford to staff these places full-time.

Q: In addition to that justification, are there any safety improvements delivered through remote start/stop and control capabilities?

 Economics seems to drive most decision processes behind whether you’re remotely operating a facility or not; however, there’s a huge safety aspect. You don’t need people there 24 hours a day around equipment with a lot of pent-up energy, so exposure levels drop dramatically. For the most part, these machines are designed so well and over-engineered from day one that they’re conducive to [remote monitoring].

In this episode of the TurboTime podcast, Daniel Tegtmeier, Director of EthosEnergy’s Performance Center, talks about remote operations and monitoring. 

TurboTime Podcast: Remote Monitoring with EthosEnergy

In this episode of the TurboTime podcast, Klaus Brun and Rainer Kurz talk about turbine degradation. They define terms such as fouling, corrosion, erosion, and rubbing and dig a little bit into what causes degradation, how it can be measured and minimized, and the difference between recoverable and non-recoverable degradation.

Burn explained: “A gas turbine system consists of a compressor, combustor, and one or several turbines, so degradation at its highest level is simply measured by what power output and efficiency to expect under certain operating conditions from a new machine and how much less power and less efficiency do you get after that machine has been running for thousands or tens of thousands of hours. The primary measurement is really on a macro level.”

During this episode, the Myth Busters break down the many terms associated with degradation, what components degrade, how it can be measured and minimized, and more. 

TurboTime Podcast: Turbomachine Degradation with the Myth Busters

Myth Busters Klaus Brun and Rainer Kurz join the TurboTime podcast to chat about additive manufacturing. They dive into its history in the industry, its advantages as a viable technology, its limitations, and new advancements that could drive the technology further.

Brun explained: “About 40 years ago, additive manufacturing technology started coming out based on using materials such as polymers and resins that were heated up and layered on top of each other using some kind of robotic arm or plotter that in the 3D space. It wasn’t all that relative from a turbomachinery perspective at the time because yes, you could use that to make a mold for a cast, but other than that, it wasn’t realistic. About 20 years ago, we started seeing additive manufacturing using metals. There are a number of techniques, but the most popular ones are direct metal sintering or selective metal-laser sintering—these techniques are when you have a layer of metal and a heat source, and you put the heat source on the powder-metal layer to create a 3D geometry in 3D space. That technique has developed over the last 20 years—it came out with lots and lots of promises, some of which held up while other promises didn't hold up."

“From a turbomachinery perspective, there are many parts in a compressor, for example, or a gas or steam turbine, that are relatively standard pieces; you would probably not use additive manufacturing for those pieces because they're always the same, so you would cast them or quickly machine them. But then there are certain pieces that are either very intricate in geometry, so they require many smaller pieces to be put together or that are customized like impellers for centrifugal compressors. So here, theoretically, additive manufacturing should have an advantage because additive manufacturing provides you with the potential to build customer parts.” 

What’s the history of additive manufacturing, how is it used to manufacture turbomachines, and does it really have a future in the turbo industry? Find out more from the Myth Busters in this episode of the TurboTime Podcast. 

TurboTime Podcast: Additive Manufacturing with the Myth Busters 

In this episode of the TurboTime podcast, we talk about geothermal power generation with Joseph Bonafin, sales and business development manager at Turboden, a part of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Group. We dive into the history of geothermal power, how it’s grown over the past 20 - 25 years, and how it fits into the decarbonization journey. We also look at what’s next for geothermal power generation.

Bonafin said there are several innovations in the pipeline for Turboden and geothermal power: “The integration of organic Rankine cycle (ORC) technology with other innovative geothermal technologies, such as enhanced geothermal systems (EGS), closed-loop geothermal systems, and lithium extraction from geothermal brine, can improve efficiency, sustainability, and economic viability.

“EGS generates electricity from hot dry rock locations, enhancing the heat exchange by circulating clean water through artificially engineered fractures. This efficiently converts moderate temperature into electricity, expanding the geographic applicability of ORC projects to previously inaccessible heat sources, especially for large-scale projects.

“Closed-loop geothermal systems provide environmentally friendly alternatives by creating a thermosyphon effect by drilling multiple lateral wells underground. Integrating ORC with closed-loop systems minimizes the environmental impact and reduces water consumption,” he continued.

“Lithium extraction from geothermal brine, crucial for electric batteries, is a sustainable source. ORC technology works as a cooler for the lithium extraction process in the shared infrastructure, contributing to a more economically viable and environmentally friendly process. Sale of electricity is added on top to the additional revenue stream coming from lithium extraction, promoting a cleaner and more profitable energy supply chain.

“In summary, the amalgamation of ORC technology with EGS, closed-loop systems, and lithium extraction from geothermal brine creates a holistic approach to geothermal energy production. This synergy enhances diverse resource utilization, promotes environmental sustainability, and contributes to the production of rare materials required for emerging technologies. This integrated approach underscores geothermal energy's potential in a sustainable and diversified global energy portfolio.”

Joseph Bonafin, sales and business development manager at Turboden, a part of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Group, joins the TurboTime podcast to discuss geothermal power generation.  

TurboTime Podcast: Geothermal Power Generation with Turboden

In this episode of the TurboTime podcast, the Myth Busters, Klaus Brun, the Director of R&D at Elliott Group, and Rainer Kurz, a recent retiree from Manager of Gas Compressor Engineering at Solar Turbines, discuss turbomachinery codes and standards. The two differentiate codes versus standards, which are important for turbomachinery, and what to do if an operator or manufacturer disagrees with a standard.

Brun broke down the four components: standards, codes, specifications, and guidelines. “A standard is somewhat of a generic requirement; you can almost call it the minimum requirement that industry associations agree on for a piece of equipment,” he said. “There's a lot of gray area between here. Next are specifications—they are often related to a specific customer—one of the major oil companies may have its own specifications, and they often tie in standards. For example, let's say Shell or Chevron has their own machinery specification, and they may refer to standards, such as American Petroleum Institute (API) 616 or the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) standards, material standards, etc. And then you get into things like codes, where the gray area becomes even bigger. But codes traditionally refer to something a little stricter. These can be test codes, where there is a process that you have to follow, and you don't deviate from this process. There are codes related to OSHA requirements or legal requirements. Codes tend to be a little more rigid, more relevant, and more richly followed. Finally, there are industry guidelines from the API and other professional societies. They give advice and guidance on how to handle testing processes, design, etc.”

Kurz stressed that standards are not legally enforceable unless included in a purchasing agreement: “What makes a standard enforceable is if a customer in the purchase specifications says ‘Thou shalt follow such and such API requirement or these ASME standards.’ And then it becomes part of the contract and enforceable” he said.

Kurz also pointed out that one purpose of codes and standards is for system integration. “If you build a refinery, there's one manufacturer who builds the compressor, then there are people who build the pressure vessels, others who build the piping, and maybe the steam turbines. So, there are a lot of different parties involved that have to come together. And one thing that these codes and standards do is create a reasonable definition of the interfaces. At the end of the day, somebody needs to integrate all that equipment.”

The Myth Busters, Klaus Brun and Rainer Kurz, discuss turbomachinery codes and standards on the TurboTime podcast. 

TurboTime Podcast: Turbomachinery Codes and Standards with Myth Busters

In this episode of the TurboTime podcast, Klaus Brun and Rainer Kurz talk about methane leakage in the oil and gas industry, which is only one of the many sectors that contribute to methane emissions in the United States. The biogas sector, including landfills and agriculture, contributes to methane leakage as do coal mines. That said, our industry still accounts for a percentage of methane emissions. The Myth Busters discuss where and how it occurs in the oil and gas industry, how different types of compressors compare in terms of leakage, the role of dry gas seals, and more.

“Methane leakage, in our industry, is primarily from natural gas; and natural gas is called natural gas because it is natural—it is naturally occurring and naturally created,” Brun said. “So, if you talk about methane leakage in the oil and gas industry—really what we should be talking about is natural gas leakage—it is a relatively small part overall of the total natural gas leakage in the world. It is roughly three times smaller than natural gas that is created by natural sources being wetlands and swamps and whatever. The oil and gas industry contributes about three times less than what natural sources do. Also, agriculture contributes about twice as much natural gas. The actual amount of leakage of natural gas into the environment due to the oil and gas industry is somewhat debated and a lot of numbers are floating around, but typically you're talking somewhere between 10 - 20% of the total natural gas that is emitted into the environment comes from oil and gas. The rest is, as I mentioned before, from natural-occurring sources, such as wetlands and agriculture.

“When you look at the oil and gas process, which basically means you're getting oil and gas out of the ground at a well, and then that oil and gas is transmitted to pipelines, and then it goes to either a consumer, you and me, or it goes to industrial places, or it goes to power plants,” Brun continued. “And so, there are many places in that process where it can leak. For very basic economic reasons, nobody wants this gas to leak, right? It costs a lot of money to get it out of the ground, and it costs a lot of money to transport it, and it costs a lot of money to do something with it. So, nobody really wants it to leak, so there is a natural desire by our industry to keep this gas from leaking, but it does.”

In this episode of the TurboTime podcast, Myth Busters Klaus Brun and Rainer Kurz talk about methane leakage. 

TurboTime Podcast: Methane Leakage with Myth Busters 

Meyer Werft selected TMC’s marine compressed air system to supply instrument and service air to the two new 180,000-ton cruise vessels.

TMC Compressors Selected to Supply LNG-Powered Cruise Vessels

Honeywell acquired Sundyne from Warburg Pincus in an all-cash deal for $2.16 billion. 

Honeywell Completes Acquisition of Sundyne, Expands Pumps, Gas Compressors Portfolio 

GE Vernova’s water-to-wire solution includes hydropower generating equipment and power electronics and controls. 

GE Vernova Boost Tehri Hydropower Plant to 1GW with Variable Speed Pumped Storage Unit

CEO Uwe Lauber of the former MAN Energy Solutions announced the company’s new name, Everllence, to support its “Moving big things to zero” strategy. 

MAN Energy Solutions is Now Everllence

The two companies are teaming up again to develop and manufacture the GEK800 engine for collaborative combat aircraft and unmanned systems. 

GE Aerospace, Kratos Advance Affordable Turbofan Engines

Welcome to the ninth edition of the Turbomachinery News Network. I’m James Cook, assistant editor at 

The Turbomachinery News Network, for the week of May 5, 2025, covers news from GE Vernova Hitachi/GE Vernova, Ansaldo Energia, EthosEnergy, and Baker Hughes.

GE Hitachi Builds SMR, GE Vernova Invests in Saudi Arabia, Ansaldo Forms Nuclitalia, EthosEnergy Signs O&M Contract, Baker Hughes Unveils Flame Tracker

The Province of Ontario and Ontario Power Generation approved the construction phase for GE Vernova Hitachi Nuclear Energy’s 

 at OPG’s Darlington site. Completion is expected by 2030, with three additional SMRs planned for future installation at this location. GE Vernova also announced an up to 

 in Saudi Arabia’s energy transition, partnering with Saudi Electricity Co., ACWA Power, Aramco, and Principal Buyer.

Ansaldo Energia, Enel, and Leonardo founded 

 to study advanced nuclear technologies and market opportunities in Italy’s emerging nuclear industry. The company evaluates mature, environmentally sustainable nuclear power designs for water-cooled small modular reactors. It will conduct technical-economic analyses and outline specific system requirements to select the best possible options and integrate nuclear within Italy.

 for the 850-MW Maisan combined-cycle power plant located near Basra, Iraq. EthosEnergy will oversee plant operations, conduct routine inspections, and perform regular and preventive maintenance on all plant equipment.

Baker Hughes launched an advanced flame-detection technology to prevent damage, hazards, or explosions within gas turbines: 

. It uses improved electronics to enable flame detection in low-light thresholds, so it detects flames accurately in less than 0.025 seconds. This includes low-light conditions like obscured sight tubes, condensation, fouled lenses, and other light-inhibiting factors.

Welcome to the eighth edition of the Turbomachinery News Network. I’m James Cook, assistant editor at 

The Turbomachinery News Network, for the week of May 5, 2025, covers news from Rotating Machinery Services, Rolls-Royce, Ansaldo Energia, and Bosowa Energy Group.

RMS Acquires Fusion, Rolls-Royce Builds MRO Facility, Ansaldo Energia Installs MXL3, Bosowa Energy Integrates Indonesian LNG

Rotating Machinery Services acquired Fusion

, a Houston-based grinding, manufacturing, and coating company that manufactures custom-machined turbomachinery components. This acquisition supports RMS’s overhaul and repair of steam turbines, expanders, compressors, and additional rotating machinery. It will manage operations in Houston, TX, under RMS’s broader U.S.-based repair network.

 are building an independent maintenance, repair, and overhaul facility at the Istanbul Airport, which is scheduled to open by year-end 2027. Once operational, Turkish Technic will perform MRO services for the Trent XWB-97, Trent XWB-84, and Trent 7000 aero engines used by the Airbus A350 and Airbus A330neo. The facility will handle approximately 200 shop visits annually.

Ansaldo Energia installed its MXL3 upgrade at 

 in France. The upgrade included a redesigned compressor with high-pressure-capable parts, an improved combustion chamber for Ansaldo’s GT26 gas turbine, H-class features to enhance performance in challenging conditions, and refined insulation.

 and BK LNG Solution are modernizing Indonesia’s energy infrastructure by transitioning diesel-powered plants on remote Indonesian islands to LNG-fired operation. The two signed an MoU that includes LNG supply chain integration, building floating storage units, natural gas-fired power generation, downstream energy applications, and small-scale LNG distribution with ISO tank containers.

Welcome to the seventh edition of the Turbomachinery News Network. I’m James Cook, assistant editor at 

The Turbomachinery News Network, for the week of April 28, 2025, covers news from GE Vernova, ExxonMobil, Ansaldo Energia, and Woodside Energy.

GE Vernova Upgrades AGP XPAND, Supplies Gas Turbines to Duke Energy, ExxonMobil Stores CO2, Ansaldo Energia Builds Plant, Woodside Energy Approves LNG Facility

GE Vernova launched an upgrade for its advanced gas path technology, the 

, designed to improve the power output and incremental efficiency of its 9E.03 gas turbine fleet. The first installation will occur at Taurus Energy’s 1,250-MW Bazyan Power Plant in Iraq. GE Vernova also agreed to deliver 11 7HA gas turbines and related equipment to 

 to accelerate the company’s unspecified power projects across six states.

ExxonMobil will transfer and permanently store up to 2 MTPA of CO

 near Houston, TX. From the cogeneration facility, the carbon will be transported through ExxonMobil’s CO

 pipeline system to support oil recovery applications and deliver a continuous supply of low-carbon electricity and steam along the U.S. Gulf Coast.

Ansaldo Energia signed a contract to design, develop, and construct a combined-cycle gas turbine (CCGT) power plant at the 

 in eastern Hungary. Once commercial operation starts, the 1,000-MW CCGT power plant will use its two-block construction to generate 7,500 GWh of electricity per year for Hungary’s power grid.

Woodside Energy submitted the final investment decision to develop its $17.5 billion 

, with first LNG scheduled for 2029. The facility will initially feature three LNG liquefaction trains with 16.5 MTPA total capacity. bp will be the Louisiana LNG project’s integrated 

. Louisiana LNG Gas Management will purchase up to 640 Bcf of natural gas from bp, with deliveries starting in 2029.

Welcome to the fifth edition of the Turbomachinery News Network. I’m James Cook, assistant editor at 

The Turbomachinery News Network, for the week of April 14, 2025, covers news from EnBW, the Port of Rotterdam, Venture Global, MAN Energy Solutions, and GE Vernova.

EnBW Commissions Plant, Rotterdam Conducts Pilot, Calcasieu Pass Enters Operation, MAN Supplies Propulsion, GE Vernova Equips Plant

EnBW commissioned a power plant equipped with hydrogen-ready gas turbines, one of Germany’s first, at the 

 waste incineration site. EnBW modernized the site with a 62-MW turbine construction featuring waste-heat boilers and hot-water boilers. The new plant will generate 124 MW of electrical energy and 370 MW of thermal energy for Stuttgart.

 between two vessels that transferred 800 cubic meters of liquefied ammonia at -33 ºC. It took approximately 2.5 hours alongside a newly constructed concrete quay. The demonstration validated the Port of Rotterdam Authority’s safety system for ammonia bunkering, with the first ammonia-bunker-fueled ships arriving in 2026 - 2027.

 export facility into commercial operation, allowing long-term customers to offtake low-cost LNG just 68 months after reaching final investment decision. The facility, among the fastest greenfield LNG projects completed to date, holds numerous multi-billion-dollar contracts with key European trade allies. These customers will receive North American LNG for 20-year terms.

In the maritime sector,MAN Energy Solutions will deliver 10 

 to Hindustan Shipyard in India, which will build five fleet support ships for the Indian Navy.

 in Japan kicked off operation using three GE Vernova 9HA.02 gas turbines, three heat recovery steam generators, and steam turbines and generators from Toshiba. The HRSGs were manufactured as pressure part modules in GE Vernova’s factory in South Korea and assembled into prefabricated supermodules in Tongyeong before maritime shipment to Japan. The Goi Thermal Power Station may reduce CO

 emissions by 16% compared to the original plant.

Welcome to the fourth edition of the Turbomachinery News Network. I’m James Cook, assistant editor at 

The Turbomachinery News Network, for the week of April 7, 2025, covers news from Baker Hughes, Concepts NREC, GE Aerospace/MTU, Shell, and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries.

Baker Hughes Installs Software, Concepts NREC Updates AEDS, MTU’s Fort Worth Expansion, Shell Produces Oil, MHI Completes Refurbishment

 to install its Cordant Asset Health digital solution at 10 chemical production facilities in China. This provides Sinochem’s diagnostics teams with centralized data to minimize unplanned downtime, identify failures proactively, and reduce production losses across the portfolio. Also, Sinochem will develop and scale best practices, apply operational learnings, enhance asset performance, and establish efficiencies at the highest organizational level.

 for its Agile Engineering Design System. The update includes multiple software modules tailored to computer-aided engineering and computer-aided manufacturing; advanced rotating machinery dynamics software, which can be launched in real-time from within AxCent to analyze rotordynamics during the design phase; CYCAL thermodynamic cycle analysis software; and Code LEO, a new computational fluid dynamics code powered by a graphics processing unit that operates 15 - 120x faster than current CFD solvers.

GE Aerospace and MTU Maintenance Dallas agreed to continue GEnx aviation engine maintenance at the new 

. The agreement supports MTU Maintenance Dallas in expanding maintenance variety and Fort Worth shop capacity for customers using GE Aerospace engines. In 2023, MTU Maintenance transferred its maintenance work to the Fort Worth location: a 43,000-square-meter facility with engine testing capable of up to 100,000 lbs. of thrust.

Shell Offshore started oil production at the 

 tieback, located 170 miles offshore of New Orleans, LA, in the Mississippi Canyon in approximately 7,500 feet of water. Expected to produce up to 20,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day, Dover is the second tieback to the Appomattox production hub. The subsea development’s two production wells will be connected to Appomattox via a 17.5-mile flowline and riser.Shell’s current Dover estimates claim approximately 44.5 million barrels of recoverable oil equivalent.

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Environmental & Chemical Engineering successfully finished the refurbishment of several facilities at its 

: a waste-to-energy plant in Kyushu, Japan. Following refurbishment, the plant attained a 31.86% CO

 reduction rate compared to the lower 17.25% targeted rate. This was achieved by replacing a feeder and boiler piping, allowing higher durability when exposed to lower air ratios. Additionally, the increased power generation made efficient use of waste steam through a denitration catalyst.

Baker Hughes Installs Software, Concepts NREC Updates AEDS, MTU’s Fort Worth Expansion, Shell Produces Oil, MHI Completes Refurbishment 

During our tour of Texas A&M’s Turbomachinery Laboratory, 

, Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering, explained his lab’s latest research initiative and how it may impact component scalability industry wide. Delgado also shared his perspective on how the Turbo Lab benefits graduates and undergraduates via immersive education and hands-on experience.

Turbomachinery Laboratory graduates are engaged with classes and real-life operating experience before entering the OEM and end-user workforce, says Dr. Delgado.

Dr. Delgado Shares Turbo Lab’s Research Updates, Path for Texas A&M Grads

TURBO: What research is the Delgado Lab currently working on?

Right now, we are working on several initiatives. One of them is the development of oil-free bearings for MW-range machines. Currently gas bearings can be used in small machines and are commercially available; however, the technology is not scalable. For example, if you have a methane compressor, we’d like to have methane bearings lubricating or supporting that compressor.

TURBO: How does the Turbo Lab work for graduates? What’s next for them?

The moment that a graduate or undergraduate student gets involved with the Turbo Lab, their journey in turbomachinery starts. At this point, they get immersed in classes, real experience at the Lab, and everything related to rotating equipment. After this, [students] will always seek jobs in the rotating equipment field, which can include OEMs and end users. At the end of the day, they will become the technical experts in the field of rotating equipment.

B roll video credit: Texas A&M University Division of Marketing & Communications

Dr. Delgado says Turbo Lab graduates are engaged with classes and real-life operating experience before entering the OEM and end-user workforce.

Welcome to the second edition of the Turbomachinery News Network. I’m James Cook, assistant editor at 

The Turbomachinery News Network, for the week of March 24, 2025, covers news from GE Vernova, GE Aerospace, Baker Hughes, Kawasaki Heavy Industries, and LNGameChanger.

GE Conducts Outage, Inaugurates XEOS, Baker Hughes Executes Drilling, KHI Builds Demo Facility, LNGameChanger Develops Powertrain

 completed gas turbine outage and maintenance operations at the Riyadh 8 power plant. The outage was led by GE Vernova’s Gas Power One Field Services Team and supported the reliability and efficiency of the plant’s power generation assets.Saudi engineers and specialists conducted detailed planning and execution, established strict safety protocols, and delivered the project on schedule with GE Vernova’s Live Outage digital tool.

GE Aerospace and Lufthansa Technik recently inaugurated the 

 engine maintenance, repair, and overhaul facility—a 35,000-square-meter facility that leverages GE Aerospace’s lean operating system, FLIGHT DECK, to deploy best practices in design and operation.XEOS is currently conducting LEAP-1B shop visits and LEAP-1A module work and engine testing, with plans to increase overhaul capacity and repair capability in the coming months.

Baker Hughes, under a multi-year contract with the Dubai Petroleum Establishment and Dubai Supply Authority, will execute 

 work at the Margham Gas Storage Project. The company will leverage its CoilTrak coiled-tubing bottomhole assembly system and under-balanced drilling expertise.

Kawasaki Heavy Industries (KHI) started building a 

hydrogen compressor demonstration facility

 at its Harima Works in Hyogo Prefecture, Japan. The facility will test the company’s new, world-first centrifugal hydrogen compressor for hydrogen liquefaction plants, the KM Comp-H

. KHI expects to complete construction in November 2025, followed by one year of operational testing. The new machine achieves high-boosting performance through ultra-high-speed rotating technology, including KHI’s newly developed impeller, which optimizes a small molecular weight gas like hydrogen.

The HAV Group, Havila Voyages, Molgas Norway, and SINTEF established a consortium to decarbonize the maritime transport industry: 

. Their main objective is to design, manufacture, test, and commercialize an LNG-fired power train that uses solid-oxide fuel cells and onboard CO

Auxiliaries & Components

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