Initiative Targets Improved Fuel Efficiency Up To 16
Percent
Is this the program
Boeing and Airbus have been waiting for, as each mulls significant
updates and/or redesigns to their respective narrowbody 737NG and
A320 aircraft families? Sunday at Farnborough, GE Aviation
announced the launch of a new engine core program, called "eCore,"
as the basis for a new generation of jet engines for narrow-body,
regional, and business jets.
The program is designed to outpace competitive engine designs by
offering aircraft operators up to 16 percent better fuel efficiency
over GE's best engines now in operation.
GE says the new program will build on the company's previous
efforts towards improving engine efficiency, including the
GE90-115B used in Boeing 777s and the GEnx slated to power the
upcoming Boeing 787. The company says "eCore" raises the bar
further for all future aircraft with 200 passengers and fewer. The
fuel-efficiency targets for eCore exceed competitive engine offers
being announced for new-generation commercial aircraft.
"eCore is also the foundation for new regional and business jet
engines now being designed by thousands of GE engineers," said
David Joyce, president and CEO of GE Aviation. "Using eCore as the
basis, GE is developing and maturing technologies for new regional
and business jets for a time frame of 2015 and beyond."
The engine core -- comprised of the compressor, combustor,
high-pressure turbine -- is the heart of any jet engine. It’s
where air is compressed and mixed with fuel to drive turbines, and
create thrust. To this core, the fan system is attached to complete
a jet engine.
Leveraging GEnx technologies, the eCore program features
advanced materials such as ceramic matrix composites, unique
cooling technologies, a next generation TAPS (Twin-Annular,
Premixed, Swirler) combustor for efficient and cleaner fuel
combustion, and new 3-D aerodynamic design airfoils.
The first eCore will run in 2009
for GE's joint technology efforts with Snecma (SAFRAN Group) on the
next-generation CFM engine for narrow-body aircraft. CFM
International, a 50/50 joint company of Snecma and GE, is the
world’s most successful commercial jet engine program.
For several years, GE Aviation has invested more than $1 billion
annually in research & development, leading to an array of
highly-successful new engines, including the GE90-115B, GP7200,
GEnx, CF34 regional jet family, and GE Honda HF120. These engines
include technologies unique in aviation to GE, such as composite
fan blades on the GE90 and GEnx, composite fan case and TAPS
combustor on the GEnx.
GE’s aggressive development programs continue to pay
dividends, as more than 23,000 CFM and GE engines now power
commercial aircraft in service -- the largest installed base of
airline jet engines in the world.