Electricity + Control March 2017

ROUND UP

PLANT MAINTENANCE, TEST + MEASUREMENT

Breakthrough with 3D printed gas turbine blades

critical to ensure operational performance of the parts in service.The tests were conducted at the Siemens testing facility in the industrial gas turbine factory in Lincoln, UK. Siemens finished its first full load engine tests for conventional and completely new designed gas turbine blades produced using AM technology. "This is a breakthrough success for the use of AM in the power generation field, which is one of the most challenging applications for this technology," saidWilli Meixner, CEO of the Siemens Power and Gas Division. "AM is one of our main pillars in our digitalization strategy.The successful tests were the result of a dedicated interna- tional project team with contributions from Siemens engineers in Finspång, Lincoln and Berlin together with experts from Materials Solutions. In just 18 months they completed the entire chain from component design and AM material development to new methods for lifing simulations and quality controls. With our combined know-how in 3D printing, we will continue to drive the technological development and application in this field," added Meixner. Enquiries: Email alfons.benzinger​@siemens.com or jennifer.naidoo@siemens.com

Siemens has achieved a breakthrough by finishing its first full load engine tests for gas turbine blades completely produced using Ad- ditive Manufacturing (AM) technology. The company successfully validated multiple AM printed turbine blades with a conventional blade design at full engine conditions.This means the components

were tested at 13 000 revolutions per minute and temperatures beyond 1 250°C. Furthermore, Siemens tested a new blade design with a completely revised and improved internal cool- ing geometry manufactured using the AM technology.The project team used blades manufactured at its 3D printing facility at Materials Solu- tions, the newly acquired company inWorcester, UK. Materials Solutions specialises in high performance parts for high temperature applications in turbomachinery where accuracy, sur- face finish and the materials quality is

High powered searchlights based on LEDs Francis of the United Kingdom has released high powered searchlights based on LEDs. The new Francis LED searchlight range has been developed to offer an efficient and environmentally friendly alternative to traditional lamp sources. Their ad- vantages included their low power consumption and long lamp life of 20 000 hours. Utilising a series of precision made glass lenses to optimise and collimate the light output, which achieves a greater range and output. The new searchlights are constructed frommarine grade aluminiumand stainless steel, resulting in a robust high quality product. Beam angles of 4° Spot, 6° Mid Beam or 10° Flood are available. Available from Denver Technical Products , the 234 W LED provides il- lumination characteristics in excess of a 300 W Xenon lamp or 3 kWHalogen, resulting in a range of 1 Lux at 1 647 m. Enquiries:Tel. +27 (0) 11 626 2023 or email denvertech@pixie.co.za