Building The Largest Common-Rail Engines*

Kaspar Aeberli
Director, Marketing & Sales Support, Ship Power
Wärtsilä Switzerland Ltd, Winterthur

Summary
Common-rail fuel injection, made possible by fully-integrated electronic control, is a major milestone in the development of modern,
large marine diesel engines. The combination of common rail and electronic control offers unprecedented flexibility of operation
which opens up further avenues in engine development to meet market requirements for ship propulsion now and in the future.
The first series-built low-speed engine with electronically-controlled common-rail fuel injection has been in service for more
than two and a half years with excellent results. By the beginning of this year, the range of these Sulzer RT-flex engines had been
extended to six engine types covering a power range of 5650 to 80,080 kW. By May, the order book for Sulzer RT-flex engines
stood at 100 engines with an aggregate output of 4.16 million kW (5.66 million bhp).
The paper reports on the application of common-rail fuel injection to the largest Sulzer low-speed engines from Wärtsilä
Corporation. The first Sulzer RT-flex96C engine has already been tested in Korea, and the first Japanese-built RT-flex96C
engine will be tested soon. The Sulzer RT-flex96C is also being developed as a 14-cylinder version to give 80,080 kW for the
‘jumbo’ container liners currently being planned.

Introduction built today.

Common-rail fuel injection is now a practical proposition
for large, low-speed marine diesel engines. The first such
Sulzer RT-flex engine has been at sea for more than two
and a half years with excellent service experience, further
RT-flex engines have since entered service and the system
is already running in the most powerful marine engines
* This is a revised version of the paper presented at
The Motor Ship Marine Propulsion Conference,
Amsterdam, April 2004.
Although common-rail fuel injection is certainly not a
new idea, it has only become truly practical now through
the use of fully-integrated electronic control which
allows full use to be made of the flexibility possible with
common-rail injection.
The traditional camshaft has the considerable
limitation of fixed timing given mechanically by the cams.
Although Sulzer low-speed engines have long had the
benefits of double valve-controlled fuel injection pumps
with variable injection timing (VIT), and a degree of

Fig. 1: The first Sulzer

RT-flex96C engine during
its official shop test at HSD
Engine Co Ltd, Korea.
Eight-cylinder engine of
45,760 kW at 102 rev/min.
[04#054]

—1— © Wärtsilä Corporation, May 2004

 MW 5 10 15 20 30 40 60 80 Speed RT-flex Size
rpm
RTA48T-B 102–127

RT-flex50 Sulzer RT-flex 99–124 Size 0

RTA50
RTA52U-B 110–137

RT-flex58T-B
RTA58T-B
84–105 Size I Fig. 2:
RT-flex60C 91–114 Size I
Sulzer low-speed marine engine
programme, with the RT-flex
RTA62U-B 92–115
engines highlighted and the
RT-flex68T-B
RTA68T-B
76–95 Size II corresponding RT-flex Sizes noted
RTA72U-B 79–99 to the right. The six RT-flex engine
RT-flex84T-D 61–76 Size IV
types cover a power range of 5650 to
RTA84T-D
80,080 kW (7700–108,920 bhp).
RTA84C 82–102
[04#055]
RT-flex96C 92–102 Size IV
RTA96C

variable exhaust valve timing being achieved hydraulically
in the VEC system, the variation in timing so obtained has
been very limited.
The change to electronically-controlled common-rail
systems has been made to ensure that the timing, rate and
pressure of fuel injection and the exhaust valve operation
are fully controllable, allowing patterns of operation which
cannot be achieved by purely mechanical systems.
The common-rail concept was adopted because it has
the advantage that the functions of pumping and injection
control are separated. This allows a straightforward
approach to the mechanical and hydraulic aspects of
the design, with a steady generation of fuel oil supply at
the desired pressure ready for injection. The common-
rail concept also has the unique advantage that it allows
the fuel injection valves to be individually controlled.
Usually there are three fuel injection valves in each
cylinder cover, and in the Sulzer RT-flex engines they are
operated mostly in unison but under certain circumstances
they are operated separately for optimum combustion
performance.
The common-rail concept thus provides an ideal basis
for the application of a fully-integrated electronic control.
The combined flexibilities of common rail and electronic
control provide improved low-speed operation, engine
acceleration, balance between cylinders, load control,
and longer times between overhauls. They also ensure
better combustion at all operating speeds and loads,
giving benefits in lower fuel consumption and lower
exhaust emissions in terms of both smokeless operation
at all operating speeds and less NOX emissions. Engine
diagnostics are built into the system, improving engine

Fig. 3: Side elevation of the 12-cylinder Sulzer RT-flex96C engine showing the supply unit in the middle and the rail units near the
cylinder tops. The engine is some 22.6m long and develops 68,640 kW.
[03#085]

—2— © Wärtsilä Corporation, May 2004

monitoring and reliability. Table 1: Numbers of Sulzer RT-flex engines delivered or on
As the common-rail system is built specifically for order by May 2004
reliable operation on heavy fuel oil, it detracts nothing
from the well-established economy of low-speed marine Type Cylinder No. No. Engines
diesel engines but rather opens up new possibilities for RT-flex96C 12 31
even better economy, ease of operation, reliability, times 10 10
between overhauls and lower exhaust emissions. 8 14
It is ten years since development of the Sulzer RT-flex 7 4
common-rail system began, and more than 20 years since sub-total 59
the first tests were made with electronically-controlled fuel
injection in Winterthur, Switzerland. RT-flex84T-D 7 3
The early camshaftless systems developed for Sulzer sub-total 3
engines used individual, hydraulically-operated fuel RT-flex68T-B 6 2
injection pumps. However the change in injection concept sub-total 2
from the individual, hydraulically-operated fuel injection
pumps to a common-rail system in 1993 was made RT-flex60C 9 3
because the system with individual pumps did not offer 7 14
potential for further technological development despite sub-total 17
it having integral electronic control. Electronic control RT-flex58T-B 7 10
was found to be insufficient by itself, a new fuel injection 6 3
concept was recognised as essential. Common rail was 5 2
seen as the road ahead and it is applied in Sulzer RT-flex sub-total 15
engines.
To summarise, common rail is seen to qualify as the RT-flex50 6 4
way ahead for the further development of low-speed sub-total 4
marine engines because:
• The technical concept is well founded Total 100
• Reliability is becoming well proven – first engine
exceeding 15,000 running hours the RT-flex68T-B is also included. The smallest RT-flex
• More engines are already in service engine is the new RT-flex50 currently under development
• Sulzer RT-flex engines are available for your projects which extends the range down to 5650 kW (7700 bhp).
today – with powers of 5650–80,080 kW With the increasing numbers of RT-flex engines being
• Market demand is clear – already confirmed orders for ordered, their manufacture is also being extended to more
100 engines factories. So far, they have been, or will be manufactured
• Benefits available today are worthwhile with the current in seven factories in four countries; namely Wärtsilä’s own
execution factory at Trieste, Italy, and six licensees in Korea, Japan
• Future potential exists for continuing development. and China PRC.
Of the 59 RT-flex96C engines ordered (Table 1), ten
Market Success are due to be tested in 2004 of which three will enter
service in ships also in this year.
Sulzer RT-flex engines have been extremely well received
by shipowners. The research engine and the first series-
built engine attracted their interest right from the outset. Common Rail for the RT-flex96C
The good service experience with the first series-built The Sulzer RT-flex common-rail system has already been
engine was closely followed by orders for RT-flex engines. described in previous technical papers and articles [1, 2,
Ordering, however, took off with the recent order boom 3]. Thus the emphasis here is on the system as developed
for very large container liners. The announcement of the for the Sulzer RT-flex96C engines with a maximum
RT-flex version of the successful RTA96C engine in this continuous output of 5720 kW/cylinder at 102 rev/min.
market was most timely. The hardware in the RT-flex system is being developed
By May 2004, a total of 100 Sulzer RT-flex engines had in four principal sizes (Table 1). The engines already in
been built or were on order, aggregating 4.16 million kW service, of the RT-flex58T-B and RT-flex60C types, are
(5.66 million bhp), see Table 1. equipped with RT-flex Size I systems. The next developed
The concept has been extended to other Sulzer low- is the RT-flex Size IV system which is suitable for engines
speed engine types (Fig. 2). The Sulzer RT-flex58T-B with cylinder bores of 84–96 cm.
and RT-flex60C are now in service. The first RT-flex96C In the Sulzer RT-flex engine, various mechanical parts,
engine was recently tested. This is the largest engine ever the camshaft and its gear drive, the complete fuel injection
built with common-rail injection. The RT-flex96C is also pump units including the exhaust valve actuator pumps
being developed in a 14-cylinder version to give 80,080 and reversing servomotors, and all their related mechanical
kW (108,920 bhp) for ‘jumbo’ container liners. The control gear, are replaced by four principal elements: the
RT-flex84T-D is specifically for ULCCs and VLCCs, and rail unit along the side of the cylinders, the supply unit on

—3— © Wärtsilä Corporation, May 2004

 Fig. 4:
Cylinder tops of the first Sulzer
8RT-flex96C during erection
showing the piping from the rail
unit on the left to the fuel injection
valves and exhaust valve actuators.
[04#029]

Fig. 5: Three-dimensional drawing of the inside of the Size Fig. 6: The Size IV rail unit on the first 8RT-flex96C engine,
IV rail unit, with the servo oil rail in blue and the fuel rail with the microprocessor units mounted vertically beneath the
in orange. Note the control units for injection and valve rail unit.
actuation on top of the respective rails. [04#030]
[04#023]
Fig. 7: Injection control unit for three fuel injection valves of the side of the engine, a filter unit for the servo oil, and
one cylinder. The dashed line marks the separation between the integrated electronic control system (Fig. 3).
the control oil and fuel oil sides.
[04#015] Rail unit
The rail unit (Figs. 4, 5 and 6) houses three common-rail
Volumetric systems for heated fuel oil at pressures up to 1000 bar,
Injection Control servo oil and control oil, both at a pressure of 200 bar.
Piston
It is located at the engine’s top platform level, and has
Control oil side good maintenance access. The starting air is effectively a
fourth common rail but it is outside the rail unit for better
HFO side
accessibility.
The Size IV rail unit comprises two sections according
to the position of the mid gear drive in the engine. The
size of the rail unit enables the electronic units to be
mounted on the front for easy access from the engine’s top
gallery.
Whereas the RT-flex Size I has a modular high-pressure
pipe for the fuel rail, the Size IV has a single-piece rail pipe
Rail Valves to shorten assembly time and to simplify manufacture. A

—4— © Wärtsilä Corporation, May 2004

Fig. 8: Supply unit for a Sulzer 12RT-flex96C engine. The two banks of fuel pumps on the
right deliver into the the collector above. On the left are the servo oil pumps. The gear drive
is in the middle.
[04#016]
single length of rail pipe is installed in each section of the
rail unit. The only high-pressure pipe flanges on the Size
IV pipe are the end covers.
The timing and quantity of fuel oil delivered to the
fuel injectors are regulated by an injection control unit
(ICU) for each cylinder (Fig. 7). The actions of the ICU
are controlled through Sulzer electro-hydraulic rail valves.
The ICU provides for independent control of each fuel
injector in the respective engine cylinder. For Size IV, the
individual ICU are mounted directly on the rail pipe. The
ICU for Size IV is adapted from that in the Size I with the
same function principles for integral injection volume flow
but to suit the greater flow volumes involved.
The simplification of the fuel rail, without intermediate
flanges, has allowed the trace heating piping also to be
simplified in the Size IV. The trace heating piping and the
insulation are both slimmer, allowing easier service access
inside the rail unit.
The exhaust valves are operated by a hydraulic ‘push
rod’ as in the Sulzer RTA engines with mechanical
camshafts. The exhaust valve drive in the RT-flex system,
however, is powered by fine-filtered servo oil on the
underside of a free-moving actuator piston, with normal
system oil above the actuator piston for valve actuation.
Thus there is a clear separation of the clean servo oil and
the normal system oil, and the exhaust valve hydraulics
can therefore be serviced without touching the clean servo
—5—
Fig. 9: RT-flex Size IV fuel supply
pump.
[04#017]
oil circuit. The exhaust valve drive is controlled with the
same Sulzer rail valves as are used for the ICU.
Supply unit
Fuel, servo oil and control oil are supplied to the
common-rail system from the supply unit (Figs. 8, 10
and 11) which, for the RT-flex 96C engine, is arranged at
about mid height of the engine on the same side as the rail
unit. The supply unit is driven through gearing from the
engine crankshaft. It has a rigid housing of GGG-grade
nodular cast iron. It is equipped with between four and
eight fuel supply pumps arranged in Vee-form on one
side of the drive gear and between four and six hydraulic
pumps on the other side.
Instead of the sudden jerk action of the usual fuel
injection pumps, the RT-flex fuel supply pumps (Fig. 9)
have a steady reciprocating motion. As the fuel supply
pumps are driven by three-lobe cams and a speed-
increasing gear, each fuel supply pump makes several
strokes during each crankshaft revolution. The Vee-form
arrangement of the fuel pumps allows a very short,
compact supply unit with reasonable service access.
The fuel delivery volume and rail pressure are regulated
according to engine requirements through suction control
of the fuel supply pumps. The fuel pumps deliver the
pressurised fuel to an adjacent collector from which two
independent, double-walled delivery pipes lead upwards to
© Wärtsilä Corporation, May 2004
Fig. 10: Supply unit on the Sulzer 8RT-flex96C engine
during the course of erection, with the fuel pumps on the
upper side and the servo oil pumps on the near side
[04#060]
the fuel rail.
Servo oil for injection control and exhaust valve
actuation is supplied by the above-mentioned swashplate-
type hydraulic pumps also on the supply unit. They are
of standard proprietary design and are driven through a
step-up gear. The servo oil pressure is controllable. The
servo oil is delivered to the hydraulic pumps through a
six-micron automatic fine filter to minimise wear and to
prolong component life in the common-rail system.
The Size IV collector for the servo oil is mounted on
the supply unit and is connected to the servo oil rail by
two independent, double-walled pipes.
Control oil is supplied at a constant, 200 bar pressure
by two electrically-driven oil pumps. It involves only a
small quantity and uses the same fine filtered oil as for
the servo oil system. The control oil serves as the working
medium for all rail valves of the injection control units
and the exhaust valve drives. It is also used to prime the
servo oil rail at standstill thereby enabling a rapid starting
of the engine.
Electronic control
All RT-flex functions are governed by the WECS (Wärtsilä
Engine Control System) which triggers the corresponding
electro-hydraulic rail valves for the respective hydraulic
functions. The master input comes from the crank angle
sensor which delivers the absolute crank position.
WECS communicates with the ship’s machinery
control system by an adapted version of DENIS (the
Sulzer Diesel Engine Interface System).
Redundancy and safety considerations
Reliability and safety have had the utmost priority
throughout the development and design of the Sulzer
RT-flex system. Although close attention was given to the
reliability of individual items of equipment in the RT-flex
system, it has to be noted that the common-rail concept
affords good reliability and safety because there is inherent
—6—
Fig. 11: Supply unit on the Sulzer 8RT-flex96C engine
during the course of erection. View from above showing the six
fuel pumps connected to the collector.
[04#061]
redundancy built into the system.
High-pressure fuel and servo-oil delivery pipes, the
electrically-driven control oil pumps, and essential parts
of the electronic systems such as crank angle sensors,
main controllers, all essential communication interfaces
(e.g. CAN-bus cabling) are duplicated for redundancy.
The duplicated high-pressure pipes, which are each
dimensioned for full fuel flow, have stop cocks at both
ends to isolate any failed pipe.
The multiple fuel and servo oil supply pumps have
adequate redundancy for the engine to deliver full power
with one fuel pump and one servo oil pump out of
action, and a strictly proportional reduction in power
should further pumps be out of action. When pumps in a
common-rail system are out of service, the engine output
can remain at the maximum possible with the remaining
pumps as the available fuel delivery is distributed
among all cylinders. This is in contrast to a traditional
arrangement of individual pumps for each cylinder, in
which any pump failure leads to an imbalance of engine
torque which requires a drastic power cut.
Separate control of individual fuel injection nozzles also
contributes to safety. In the case of a leaking high-pressure
fuel pipe or a malfunctioning injector, only the affected
injector needs to be shut off without losing the entire
cylinder.
The injection control unit (ICU) prevents the injection
of an uncontrolled volume of fuel. Throughout its cycle of
operation, there is never any direct hydraulic connection
in the ICU between the fuel rail and the injectors. The
maximum volume of fuel which can be injected is limited
to the contents of the metering cylinder in the ICU.
The travel of the metering piston is monitored and if it
is excessive, subsequent injections through that ICU are
reduced and an engine slow-down activated. If the stroke-
measuring sensor fails, the control system switches that
ICU to pure time control based on timing of adjacent
engine cylinders.
© Wärtsilä Corporation, May 2004
Fig. 12: Test rig for a Size IV fuel supply pump. Behind the
vertical pump is the fuel collector. The pump delivers fuel to
the common-rail test rig shown in figure 13.
[04#019]
Component testing
An important contribution to reliability comes from the
endurance testing of RT-flex components before, and in
parallel with, engine testing. The endurance testing of
Size I components began in 1996. Special test rigs were
employed to put all the components through millions of
cycles before the first engine tests began in June 1998.
A similar test programme with RT-flex Size IV
components began in Summer 2003 in the Wärtsilä Diesel
Technology Center in Winterthur. One test rig features
the fuel supply pump, with a single pump being motor
driven at its normal speed (Fig. 12). It delivers high-
pressure fuel to an actual collector and thence to another
test rig for the fuel rail and injection.
This injection test rig (Fig. 13) consists of an original
fuel rail and one injection control unit (ICU) with three
injectors. The fuel rail is of the length for half of a 12-
cylinder RT-flex96C engine.
A third test rig is employed for the entire exhaust valve
drive. It is equipped with a device providing the cylinder
gas counter pressure to give a realistic simulation of valve
movement and damping.
All three test rigs are extensively instrumented for the
recording of detailed measurements.
14 Cylinders In-Line
The 14-cylinder Sulzer RTA96C engine was added to the
portfolio in March 2001 to provide an engine of sufficient
power for the largest container liners currently expected.
It was thus naturally included in the development
programme for the RT-flex96C engine type.
The 14-cylinder engine offers a maximum continuous
power of 80,080 kW which is suitable for container ships
—7—
Fig. 13: Test rig for the common-rail system of the RT-flex96C
engine. An injection control unit (ICU) is mounted on a
common rail pipe which is the length for six cylinders. To the
left of the ICU are three fuel injection valves for one engine
cylinder.
[03#120]
in the size range of 10,000 TEU or larger, running at a
service speed of 25 knots.
Propulsion for even larger ships up to an equivalent
maximum continuous power of 89,000 kW is possible by
combining a 14RT-flex96C with a Total Heat Recovery
Plant [6]. Steam can be supplied to a turbogenerator
from a dual-pressure exhaust gas economiser, and the
turbogenerator would also incorporate a power turbine
operating on exhaust gas branched from the engine’s
exhaust manifold. The generated electricity would then
be applied through a shaft motor/generator as additional
propulsion power. This concept would not only provide
additional power but would also reduce overall fuel
consumption, reduce maintenance requirements, and
reduce exhaust gas emissions.
As low-speed two-stroke marine engines have not
before been built with more than 12 cylinders in-line,
particular consideration was given to the practicality of
the increased numbers of cylinders. Thorough studies have
been made into the engine design to ensure that it matches
everyone’s expectations in terms of safety, reliability and
durability.
For example, although there are very many possibilities
of firing orders for 14-cylinder engines, a firing order
could be found with good vibration characteristics. The
engine’s structural strength and rigidity were carefully
© Wärtsilä Corporation, May 2004
Fig. 14: Aframax tanker Sea Lady powered by a Sulzer
6RT-flex58T-B engine.
[03#105]
checked and found to be more than adequate without
modification.
Although the crankshaft of the RT-flex96C has
sufficient torque capacity for 14 cylinders, the material
has been upgraded to enable an increased shrink fit for a
greater design margin. The thrust bearing structure was
adapted slightly to cater for the increased thrust.
Adoption of the RT-flex common-rail system brings
clear benefits for the 14-cylinder engine. It avoids any
need to consider the design of the longer camshaft and
its gear drive. The RT-flex system can be neatly arranged
with two identical rail units, each for seven cylinders
with a central gear drive for the supply unit. Even with a
14-cylinder RT-flex96C, the supply unit is still compact
compared with the overall size of the engine.
Service Experience
The service experience with Sulzer RT-flex engines has
been very satisfactory. By May 2004, seven RT-flex engines
had entered service, namely:
• The bulk carrier Gypsum Centennial from Korea in
September 2001 with a 6RT-flex58T-B engine
• The Aframax tanker Sea Lady in Japan entered service
in August 2003 with a 6RT-flex58T-B engine (Fig. 14)
• The multi-purpose carrier Wladyslaw Orkan built in
China was delivered in November 2003 with a
7RT-flex60C engine (Fig. 15)
• The reefer Carmel Ecofresh, also with a 7RT-flex60C,
was delivered from Portugal also in November 2003
(Fig. 16)
• The multi-purpose carrier Chipolbrok Sun built in
China was delivered in February 2004, also with a
7RT-flex60C engine
• The reefer Carmel Bio-Top was delivered from Portugal
in February 2004, also with a 7RT-flex60C engine
• The multi-purpose carrier Chipolbrok Moon built in
China was delivered in May 2004, also with a
7RT-flex60C engine.
The Gypsum Centennial is equipped with the first
series-built RT-flex engine and when she entered service in
September 2001, it operated using only the electronically-
—8—
Fig. 15: Multi-purpose carrier Wladyslaw Orkan propelled
by a Sulzer 7RT-flex60C engine.
[03#115]
controlled common-rail system with no alternative. It
went to sea as a fully industrialised product, ready for
continuous heavy-duty commercial operation. It achieved
this performance with very good success. By May 2004,
the engine had accumulated more than 15,000 running
hours. The service experience of this engine has already
been reported [3, 4, 5].
One key point from the operation of the first RT-flex
engine has been that the ships’ engineers quickly became
comfortable operating the engine. A Wärtsilä engineer,
however, accompanied the ship up to the end of May
2002 to monitor the performance of the new engine
concept for feedback to the designers.
Throughout its operation, the service experience
has been very good. Although there were a number of
‘teething’ problems during the first few months, they
have been remedied or new components are under
development.
Even when there were problems, in most cases they
did not interfere with normal ship operation as they
caused either just an alarm signal or the engine to slow
down. Some faults were rectified during normal scheduled
engine halts while the majority, concerning common-
rail and electronic components, could be rectified by
briefly slowing the engine and replacing components.
Six unplanned shutdowns occurred in the first couple of
Fig. 16: Reefer Carmel Ecofresh propelled by a Sulzer
7RT-flex60C engine.
[04#002]
© Wärtsilä Corporation, May 2004
 Fig. 17: The first Sulzer
RT-flex96C engine in the
course of erection at HSD
Engine Co Ltd, Korea.
Eight-cylinder engine
of 45,760 kW at 102
rev/min.
[04#027]
months’ operation, but since then there have been very
few, isolated stoppages. The fact that the whole design
of the common-rail system was made ‘in-house’ proved
invaluable when troubleshooting problems. In-house
knowledge allows quick diagnosis of problems and prompt
identification of suitable remedies.
Testing of the First RT-flex96C
The first RT-flex96C engine is an eight-cylinder engine
built at HSD Engine Co Ltd in Korea. It was first started
on 24 March 2004 and completed testing on 9 April when
it successfully passed its official shop test.
The engine has a maximum continuous output of
45,760 kW at 102 rev/min. It will be installed in the first
of four 3700 TEU L-class container ships contracted at
Odense Steel Shipyard A/S in Lindø, Denmark, by the
Danish group A.P. Møller-Maersk (three vessels) and
Deutsche Afrika Line GmbH & Co (one vessel).
After being run-in, the engine was subjected to an
intensive eight-day test programme to check, adjust and
confirm the engine control system and all aspects of
engine performance. Throughout the tests, the engine ran
very satisfactorily. All the tests were completed without
difficulties.
Measured fuel consumptions were completely in
accordance with expectations at both full load and right
across the part-load range. The measured NOX emissions
were sufficiently below the limit set in Annex VI of the
MARPOL 73/78 convention. Smokeless operation was
also clearly confirmed.
The official shop test was witnessed by representatives
of the shipowner, shipbuilder and classification society. All
parties were extremely satisfied with how the engine ran
—9—
during the test.
The next size of RT-flex96C engine built is a 12-
cylinder engine at Diesel United Ltd in Korea. It began
testing in May 2004.
Benefits and Developments
The principal benefits of Sulzer RT-flex engines with their
electronically-controlled common-rail systems are:
• Reduced part-load fuel consumption
• Smokeless operation at all running speeds
• Very low, stable running speeds at 10% nominal speed
• Easy engine setting for less maintenance
• Longer times between overhauls (TBO) expected,
primarily through better load balance between
cylinders and cleaner combustion at all loads.
Comments below are made on just the first three of the
above points.
Fuel consumption flexibility
A key feature of the electronically-controlled common-rail
system is the complete flexibility allowed in the timing,
rate and pressure of fuel injection and in exhaust valve
operation.
At the first stage of development of RT-flex engines, the
main objective has been to achieve the same performance
standards as are achieved in the mechanical-camshaft
engines, particularly with respect to power, speed, fuel
consumption, exhaust emissions, cylinder pressures, etc.
Thus the curve of brake specific fuel consumption (BSFC)
of the first RT-flex engines has been the same as with
corresponding RTA engines, or perhaps slightly lower in
the part-load region. As the fuel injection pressure at part-
© Wärtsilä Corporation, May 2004
 ∆BSFC, g/kWh
4
2 RTA engines
0 RT-flex engines:
-2
-4
-6
-8
-10
50% 75%
Load
load is kept higher with the common-rail injection system,
combustion is sufficiently better to have a beneficial effect
on fuel consumption.
Recently an alternative fuel consumption curve was
introduced with Delta Tuning to provide even lower
BSFC at loads less than 90% full load. For both the
original and Delta Tuning curves, the RT-flex engines
comply with the NOX regulation of Annex VI of the
MARPOL 73/78 convention, usually referred to as the
IMO NOX regulation.
Sulzer RTA engines have always been highly
competitive in fuel consumption right across the load
range owing to the use of variable injection timing (VIT).
Variable exhaust valve closing (VEC) was also added in
RTA84T engines to reduce further the part-load BSFC.
These benefits have already been carried over to the
electronically-controlled common-rail systems of the
RT-flex engines.
The question, of course, arises as to why the BSFC
could not be lowered at all engine loads/speeds. It is
technically possible to do so. With RT-flex engines all the
relevant parameters can be continuously varied so that the
engine can follow any specified BSFC curve as engine load
and speed are varied. Yet there is a limitation because of
the need to comply with the IMO NOX regulation and
the inevitable trade-off between lower fuel consumption
and greater NOX emissions.
This explains the shape of the new BSFC curve given
by Delta Tuning. The BSFC is lowered in the mid- and
low-load range, thereby increasing the NOX emission
levels at those load points, but then has to be increased
at high engine loads (90–100% load) for a compensating
reduction in NOX levels.
Very slow running
Sulzer RT-flex engines have demonstrated their ability
to run stably at very low speeds, lower than engines with
mechanically-controlled injection. They can run without
smoking at 10–12 per cent nominal speed. This makes
for easy ship handling when manoeuvring or in canal
passages.
— 10 —
Fig. 18: The new alternative
BSFC curve for RT-flex
Basic tuning engines given by Delta Tuning
compared with the original
Delta Tuning
BSFC curves of Sulzer RTA
and RT-flex engines. All
curves shown are for engines
complying with the IMO NOX
regulation.
100% [04#008]
The very slow running is made possible by precise
control of injection, together with the higher injection
pressures achieved at low speed, and shutting off injectors
at low speeds. Reducing the number of injection valves in
service makes injection of the reduced fuel quantities more
efficient, especially as the injection pressure is kept up to a
higher value than in a mechanically-injected engine at low
speeds.
Shutting off injectors is enabled by the separate control
of individual fuel injection valves. This feature is unique
to the Sulzer RT-flex system. Usually the injection valves
operate in unison but, as the engine speed is reduced
one injection valve can be shut off and at a lower speed a
second injection valve can be cut out. Thus at minimum
speed, the engine runs on all cylinders but with just one
injection valve in each cylinder.
Low exhaust emissions
A clearly visible benefit of RT-flex engines is their
smokeless operation at all ship speeds. It helps give a
‘green’ image.
The superior combustion performance with the
common-rail system is achieved by maintaining the fuel
injection pressure at the optimum level right across the
engine speed range. In addition, selective shutting off
single injectors and an optimised exhaust valve timing
help to keep smoke emissions below the visible limit at
very low speeds.
The flexibility of the RT-flex engines will also allow
considerably lower NOX emissions. With common-rail
injection, a wide variety of injection patterns can be
generated. The injected quantity of fuel can be divided,
for pre-injection, triple injection, etc. The Sulzer RT-flex
engine, with its individual fuel valve control, also has the
unique ability to individually vary the injection timing
and sequence between the three fuel injectors in each
cylinder and thus to generate a tailor-made heat release.
In engine tests, this degree of flexibility has proved
useful to reach NOX emissions of 20 per cent below the
IMO NOX limit with a moderate BSFC increase of about
two per cent.
© Wärtsilä Corporation, May 2004
Conclusion
Common rail is now an industrial standard for diesel
engines. In this environment, Sulzer RT-flex engines
have become well accepted by shipowners, particularly
in the largest cylinder size, the RT-flex96C. Shipowners’
confidence is being encouraged by the good service
experience with the growing number of RT-flex engines in
service.
With the successful testing of the Sulzer RT-flex96C
engine, common-rail technology has been proven to be an
excellent step forward for all sizes of diesel engines from
automotive engines up to the largest low-speed two-
stroke engines. For Sulzer RT-flex engines, a key virtue of
common-rail systems has been that they can be modular
with standardised hardware applicable to more than one
engine bore size.
The combination of common-rail concepts and
fully-integrated electronic control applied in RT-flex
engines has the best potential for future development. It
gives the large degree of flexibility in engine setting and
operation, together with reliability and safety, which are
required to meet the challenges in future marine engine
applications in terms of emissions control, optimised fuel
consumption, insensitivity to fuel quality, ease of use,
operational flexibility, etc.
— 11 —
References
1. Stefan Fankhauser and Klaus Heim, ‘The Sulzer
RT-flex: Launching the era of common rail on low-
speed engines’, CIMAC 2001, Hamburg.
2. Stefan Fankhauser, ‘World’s first common-rail low-
speed engine goes to sea’, Wärtsilä, Marine News, No.3-
2001, pp12–15.
3. Kaspar Aeberli and John McMillan, ‘Common Rail
at Sea: The Sulzer RT-flex engine’, The Motor Ship
Marine Propulsion Conference 2002, Copenhagen.
4. Konrad Huber and Beat Güttinger, ‘First year of service
successful for first Sulzer RT-flex’, Wärtsilä, Marine
News, No.1-2003, pp4–8.
5. Kaspar Aeberli, ‘Experience with Sulzer Common-
Rail Engines’, The Motor Ship Marine Propulsion
Conference 2003, Hamburg.
6. Heinrich Schmid, ‘Less emissions through waste heat
recovery’, Green Ship Technology Conference, London,
April 2004.
7. Rudolf Demmerle and Klaus Heim, ‘The evolution of
the Sulzer RT-flex common rail system’, CIMAC 2004,
Kyoto.
© Wärtsilä Corporation, May 2004