Hyundai Heavy Industries has developed the most powerful engine for power generation inside ships, a new model of Himsen Engine (H54DF) capable of generating 36,000 horse power, which is far bigger than the company’s previous Himsen Engine (H35DF)’s 10,000 horse power.

The new model can utilize diesel or LNG alternatively, thus able to reduce nitrogen oxide and sulfuric acid oxide, and is capable of generating power three times more than the engines burning two fuels.

HHI developed the Himsen Engine, a four-stoke engine, 10 years ago thru its own research and thus far exported 12,000 of them to some 60 countries, taking up around 25 percent of the mid-sized engine market in the world. The company is working to boost its exports to around 1 trillion won annually by 2025.

In the meantime, HHI has been boosting its investments in environmentally friendly technologies and in R&D activities under its strategy to overcome the current slowdown with new technologies.

HHI launched the development of LNG-powered ships in 2009, and successfully developed the main propulsion engine fueled by LNG (ME-GI engine) in 2014 in partnerships with global engine makers such as MAN Diesel and Wartsila Engine.

Along with it, the FGSS (Fuel Gas Supply System) feeding evaporated LNG which was in liquid state into the engine at high or low pressure will be developed and applied mainly to large-scale LNG carriers along with the main engine.

As for advantages and features of the system, an official revealed that “if the LNG-powered system is applied to LNG carriers, not only GHG reducing, better energy efficiency but also utilizing evaporated LNG as a fuel for the propulsion of ships become possible, so we can minimize the amount of LNG discarded.”

In spite of those advantages, due to relatively high prices of the core equipment of LNG propulsion system, it is considered that the system has a weakness of lower economic feasibility in the era of low oil prices. (News World)

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