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Giant engines are essential for industries and maritime transport, requiring robust and high-strength components. The largest crankshaft ever built belongs to a 107.390 horsepower diesel engine, impressive for its size and ability to withstand colossal forces.
On social media, an image of a huge crankshaft is often shared. So we decided to look for more information to better understand this marvel of engineering. It is the engine crankshaft Wartsilä-Sulzer RTA96-C.
With 13,5 meters high, 26,59 meters long and weighing over 2.300 tons, Wartsilä-Sulzer RTA96-C is one of the greatest achievements of modern engineering. It produces impressive 80,1 megawatts (107.390 horsepower) and powers some of the largest container ships ever built.
A Wärtsilä-Sulzer manufactures several models in this series, all in line, ranging from six to 14 cylinders. However, the most famous image of this engine circulating on the internet is actually of the smaller version of six cylinder, and not the full version of 14 cylinder.
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Impressive technical specifications
The dimensions and capacity of this engine defy any comparison with conventional engines. See the main figures:
- Configuration: 14 cylinder two stroke turbocharged straight diesel engine
- Cylinder diameter: 960 mm (38 in.)
- Piston stroke: 2500 mm (8,2 ft)
- Displacement: 25.592 liters (1.556.002 cu in)
- Velocity: 15–102RPM
- Power per cylinder: 5.720 kW
- Total power: 80.080 kW (107.390 hp)
- Torque: 7.603.850 Nm at 102 RPM
- Fuel consumption: 250 tons per day
- Crankshaft weight: 300 tons
- Weight of each piston: 5,5 tons
- Height of each piston: 6 meters
- Fuel Type: Heavy fuel oil
With a torque of almost 8 million newton meters, this engine is equivalent to more than 11.000 Toyota LandCruiser 300 Series operating simultaneously.
Structural and functional differences
Despite following similar principles to common diesel engines, the Wartsilä-Sulzer RTA96-C has notable differences:
- The piston is not connected directly to the connecting rod, but rather to a sliding crosspiece, which reduces lateral wear and improves cylinder durability.
- Conventional diesel engines often experience cylinder ovalization over time due to lateral movement of the connecting rod. The crosshead solution avoids this problem.
- This is an engine two-stroke diesel, with exhaust uniflow, similar to Detroit Diesel engines.
- The intake system is done through ports in the cylinders, while the exhaust gases exit through valves at the top of the cylinder head, hydraulically actuated.
Efficiency and economy
One of the most impressive features of this engine is its thermal efficiency above 50%. This means that more than half of the energy contained in the fuel is converted directly into movement.
For comparison purposes, engines of automobiles common have maximum efficiency of approximately 25%.
Its fuel consumption is an essential factor for its operation. A merchant ship can spend millions of dollars in fuel per trip, making high engine efficiency essential.
The engine behind the Emma Maersk
O Emma Maersk, once the largest container ship in the world, is one of the giants of the seas powered by Wartsilä-Sulzer RTA96-C.
With 397 meters in length and a gross tonnage of more than 170.000 tons, this ship carries up to 15.000 containers in a single trip.
At full speed, the engine can propel the ship to 25,5 knots (approximately 50 km/h), an impressive number for a vessel of this size.
The engineering behind this engine revolutionized marine propulsion, ensuring that modern ships can operate with greater efficiency and less environmental impact.
