MTU Series 4000 to make splash at SMM 2016

With more than 50,000 visitors and 2,200 exhibitors gathering Sept. 6-9 for this year’s SMM trade fair in Hamburg, Germany, a number of new innovative technologies, equipment and services are expected to be unveiled.

One of the companies displaying is Rolls-Royce, which will be displaying its advanced design MTU Series 4000 diesel engines for IMO III and EPA Tier 4 emission regulations at its stand in Hall A. The engines have already successfully completed over 4,000 hours on MTU’s test benches in Friedrichshafen, Germany and Aiken, SC in the U.S.

As of 2018, MTU, a Rolls-Royce brand, will be offering advanced design diesel engines for IMO III and EPA Tier 4 as the main propulsion for tug boats, ferries, crew supply vessels, displacement hull yachts, governmental vessels and as a genset for power supply for ships and offshore platforms. With a variety of technical advances to the turbocharging system, the combustion process and the injection system of the engines combined with MTU’s new SCR system, NOx emissions have been reduced by 75% compared with IMO II and particulate emissions by 65% compared with EPA Tier 3. An additional diesel particulate filter is not required.

Dr. Ulrich Dohle, CEO of Rolls-Royce Power Systems, says, “After completing more than 3,000 hours of operation on a Fairplay harbor tug, we gained valuable experience in 2015 with our first SCR installation and IMO III certification. This has now been fed back into the development of more advanced products, which will not only be more environmentally friendly than current products, but will also be more powerful and more fuel efficient.“

The advanced design Series 4000 diesel engines will be available on the market as 12 and 16-cylinder version and also as a completely new 20-cylinder version. The power range will extend from 1,380 to 3,220 kW and will thus offer 45% increase in output compared with its predecessor. MTU will thus be presenting the only high-speed work boat engine in the engine class < 5l/cyl delivering an output of up to 3,220 kW.

In addition to output and environmental compatibility, life-cycle costs were also a key focus in the development of the new MTU engines in order to provide operators with significant benefits. As a result of the technical advances made to improve the operating efficiency of the turbocharger, fuel consumption has also been reduced by further 5% compared with the preceding model.

With the integrated system for IMO Tier III and EPA Tier 4 consisting of MTU‘s propulsion system and SCR exhaust gas after-treatment system, the customer will benefit from an optimally matched system. It requires a minimum of installation space and features an excellent power-to-weight ratio. The exhaust gas after-treatment system is extremely compact due to the integration of the reactant preparation section in the SCR box. MTU is offering to different formats: the customer can choose between a cubic box and a flat box depending on his specific requirements. MTU development engineers have designed the engine and the exhaust gas after-treatment box so that, depending on the installation space available, they can both be installed either next to each other or apart from each other.

In terms of flexibility, shipyards and ship designers will also benefit from the possibility of being able to switch the SCR system on and off, as required. This can be the case when a vessel travels from one emission controlled area into another. MTU’s SCR system is not preset as is usually the case, but is adjustable. Emissions are measured upstream and downstream of the SCR system and the precise amount of reactant required is then introduced into the system. To simplify maintenance, MTU‘s SCR system is fitted with flaps, which the catalyst elements can be exchanged with ease.

The high-performance Series 4000 engines for yachts and patrol boats will be modified slightly to meet IMO Tier III and launched on the market with MTU’s SCR system as of 2017. The engines will be available as 12, 16 and 20-cylinder versions for a power range extending from 1,920 to 3,900 kW. The turbocharger technology has been technically upgraded and both the engine control system and the engine package are new compared with the preceding models.

MTU has already received its first order for an IMO Tier III yacht propulsion system: Bilgin Yachts shipyard in Istanbul is to equip a new 80.1m long megayacht with two MTU 16V 4000 M73 engines. Construction of the largest yacht ever built in Turkey has already begun. Delivery of the yacht is scheduled for 2019.