20192131057

Reliability of the Pratt and Whitney PW-4000 Engine

Made By: Mohammed Muzakkir

EAU ID: 20192131057
Course: BEng in aerospace
Subject: Managing a professional engineering project
Date:

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Initial Gantt Chart

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Introduction
In this report I will be focusing on the reliability study of the Pratt and Whitney
PW-4000 high bypass ratio turbofan engine. In this report we will first be
looking at the general characteristics of the engine. Then we will investigate
the design of the Trent XWB and later into the innovation that is inside the
engine.
Next, we will be looking into the different sections of the engine which are the
turbofan section, compressor section, combustion section, turbine section and
the exhaust section. In these areas, we will be looking at the different
materials that make up these sections and how these materials help the
engine become more efficient and reliable.
Later, we will be looking into the different blade types which allow maximum
airflow in the engine and what materials the blades have been engineered
with.
We will also state the different tests which the PW-4000 went through. Tests
like the Water-Ingestion test, Hail Ingestion test, maximum ground power run,
etc.
Finally, we will be looking into the different tests for reliability like MTBR,
MTBF, MTTR, MTBM, etc. and we will calculate these numbers for this engine.

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Table of Contents

Initial Gantt Chart 2

Introduction 3
General characteristics of the engine 5
Engine Efficiency 10
The Need for Reliability 11
Tests Carried Out on Reliability 12
PW4000 Turbine Core Issues 13
Incidents involving the PW4000 15
Mean Time To Repair MTTR 19
Mean Tine between Failure 21
Mean Time Between maintenance 23
Improving the Reliability of the modern engines 24
Conclusion 28
References 29
Final Gant Chart 30

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The Pratt & Whitney PW4000 is a family of high-bypass turbofan aircraft

engines with certified thrust ranging from 52,000 to 99,040 lbf (230 to 441 kN).
Built as the successor to the JT9D series engines, it has found much wider
application than its predecessor the JT9D.
The Design and Development of the engine.
The PW4000 is divided into three distinct families based on fan diameter.

Pratt and Whitney PW4000-94.

The first family is the 94-inch (2.4 m) diameter fan with certified thrust ranging
from 52,000 to 62,000 lbf (230 to 275 kN). It powers the Airbus A310-
300, A300-600 aircraft, Boeing 747-400, 767-200/300, KC-46A, and McDonnell
Douglas MD-11 aircraft and is certified for 180-minute ETOPS if used in
twinjets.

Fig 1. The PW4000-94 which resembles a fan diameter of 94 inches.

Reference. https://www.revolvy.com/page/30-Years-Later,-The-
PW4000%252D94-Engine-Program-Continues-to-Go-
Beyond?stype=videos&cmd=list&sml=JAsdTOBRkjc

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Pratt and Whitney PW4000-100.

The second family is the 100 inch (2.5 m) diameter fan engine developed
specifically for Airbus A330. It has certified thrust from 64,500 to 68,600 lbf
(287 to 305 kN). This increases certified thrust to 70,000 lbf (311 kN), reduces
fuel burn by about 1%, and reduces maintenance costs by around 15%.

Fig 2. The PW4000-100 which resembles a Fan diameter of 100 inches.

Reference. http://www.deagel.com/library/PW4000-100-
engine_m02009071500004.aspx

Pratt and Whitney PW4000-112.

The third family is the 112 inch (2.8 m) diameter fan engine developed
specifically for Boeing's 777 where it was the launch engine. Currently available
on the 777-200ER, it has certified thrust from 86,760 to 99,040 lbf (386 to
441 kN). It entered service on June 7, 1995 and was the first jet engine to enter
service with 180-minute ETOPS certification. It was also an engine option for
the 777-200 and the 777-300.

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Fig 3. The PW4000-112 which resembles a Fan Diameter of 112 inches.

Reference. https://www.wikiwand.com/en/Pratt_%26_Whitney_PW4000-112

The PW4000 features advanced technology materials and Full Authority Digital
Engine Control (FADEC), for enhanced fuel economy and reliability, as well as
the Technology for Advanced Low NOx (TALON) combustor.

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The General Specifications of the engine.

Reference Wikipedia.

The 94-inch-fan PW4000 engine is the first model in Pratt & Whitney's high-
thrust family for large aircraft. It covers a range of 52,000 to 62,000 pounds of
thrust and has five major aircraft applications.
Most of the airlines operating the engine depend on it to fly Extended-range
Twin-engine Operations (ETOPS) routes with Boeing 767s or Airbus
A310s/A300s.
The PW4000 is approved for 180-minute ETOPS, which gives airlines the ability
to fly across oceans or barren terrain three hours from the nearest suitable
airport. In fact, the 94-inch PW4000 has completed more than 2 million ETOPS
flights with 38 airlines.

Advanced, service-proven technologies, such as single-crystal superalloy

materials and Full-Authority Digital Electronic Control (FADEC), contribute to

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the engine's superior fuel economy and reliability. Its attractiveness is further
enhanced by excellent performance retention, turbine durability and good
value.

Pratt & Whitney reached a major milestone for the PW4000 engine program in
November 2002 when the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration certified a new
high compressor case design for the 94-inch fan PW4000 engine. The design is
based on the PW4000-112 and has begun production incorporation and is now
also available to airlines for incorporation at overhaul. The new design
improves blade tip clearance control over the service interval and has
demonstrated excellent high-power operability.
The new HPC features also have improved overall fuel efficiency, fuel
performance retention and EGT margin.

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Engine efficiency.

The new package also provides wet compression for improved performance
above ISO conditions, and offers greater than 41 percent efficiency without the
complexity of intercooling. Increasing global demand for electricity, sustained
high prices of oil, and regulatory efforts to reduce global greenhouse gas
emissions make gas turbines an attractive source of power generation.

Gas-fired power plants produce less carbon dioxide when burned, than coal or
petroleum, and recent advances in natural gas production are leading to a
more affordable and abundant fuel supply. Because the FT4000 SWIFTPAC can
start rapidly and follow load demand, it is also well positioned to complement
intermittent and irregular renewable power generation sources.

With a modular design that includes proven features of the successful FT8
SWIFTPAC and MOBILEPAC power plants, the next generation FT4000
SWIFTPAC offers a nominal 60 and 120-megawatt package of reliable peaking
and base-load power in a compact footprint. The SWIFTPAC design
accommodates a 60 MW single engine or a 120 MW dual engine configuration,
and provides the operational flexibility inherent with aeroderivative turbines,
including quick start characteristics.

The FT4000 SWIFTPAC utilizes a modified core compressor and turbine from its
aero parent, maintaining more than 90 percent part commonality with the
PW4170 and PW4090 engines. The next generation product’s new low-
pressure compressor and industrial power turbine are designed for durability
and enhanced on-site maintainability, and its high speed and advanced aerofoil
design and variable geometry translate into optimized performance.

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The Need for Reliability of an Aircraft Engine.

Failure of an engine is inevitable under any circumstances and they are no

exception. The impact of the failure of such engines may vary from an
inconvenience to major costs, economic loss to the airline, and in the worst
case, death of passengers if the failure is not taken into consideration very
seriously.
Causes of failure include bad engineering, faulty manufacturing, inadequate
testing, human error, lack of maintenance, improper use and lack of protection
against excessive stress on the engine.
As per International Standard Organization (ISO), reliability is defined as the
ability of a system or component to perform its required functions under
conditions for a specified time period.
Mathematically, reliability is defined as the probability that an equipment time
to failure (T) is greater than or equal to the Mission time (t)
R(t) = P (T ≥ t)
Typical measures of reliability are failure rate/frequency, Mean Time To Failure
(MTTR), Mean Time Between Failure (MTBF), Mean Time Between
Unscheduled Removal (MTBUR), Mean Time Between Repair (MTBR) etc.

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Tests carried out on the engine for reliability.

Reliability Test
Reliability data of an engine is obtained from laboratory tests, inspections and
evaluation tests, and acceptance tests. Reliability tests are designed with an
objective of:
 Gathering the data that is needed to measure or demonstrate the
reliability.

 Determining a corrective and preventive maintenance program required

to the engine in a good operating condition.

 Provide data which indicates the necessary modifications on the design

of the engines, the operational procedures, etc.

 Verifying the reliability analysis which are previously performed and the
effectiveness of the design improvements which were done in the
design reliability.

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PW 4000 Turbine Core Issues.

On the 23 March 2006, the US FAA warned the operators of the PW4000 that
the High-Pressure Turbine (HPT) Hubs degrade prematurely. Following this
order of the FAA, multiple airlines had to remove the HPT hubs before the end
of their life cycle. Due to that airlines lost about 23 million $ in lost life value
for the fleet.
The action stems of the Pratt and Whitney PW2000 that led to the low-cycle
fatigue analysis of the Boeing 757 engine, as well as for other similar engine
designs which included the PW4000. This was mentioned in an Airworthiness
Directive (AD) which the FAA Released.
Pratt and Whitney’s updated analysis showed that the original grain size of the
HPT stage 1 front hub design drawing was too large and may not be sufficient
enough to meet the published limits of its life.
Although, at that point of time, there no reports from any airline of any
evident cracks but, if the cracks were to develop, the hub has the capability of
failing which could lead to an uncontained engine failure and can cause
potential damage to the aircraft.
The parts which were affected had a lifespan of 15000 cycles since brand new.
But the must be retired between 13700 to 18000 flight cycles.

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The Summary of the Airworthiness Directive is as follows.

Fig 4. The Airworthiness Directive for the PW 4000 Engine.

Reference. Federal Aviation Administration.

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Incidents Involving the PW4000 Engine

Korean Airlines Flight 2708

On 27 May 2016, a Boeing 777-300 of Korean Air, operating as Korean Air

Flight 2708 from Tokyo to Seoul, was accelerating for take-off when its left
engine suffered an uncontained engine failure and a substantial fire. The crew
aborted the take-off, and after the aircraft came to a stop the fire was
extinguished by the airport emergency services. All 319 passengers and crew
were evacuated. 12 occupants were injured.
The aircraft was equipped with two Pratt and Whitney 4000 engines.

Fig 5. The PW4000 Engine of the Korean Airlines B777-200 on fire.

Reference. http://www.jacdec.de/2016/05/27/2016-05-27-korean-air-boeing-
777-300-engine-fire-at-tokyo-haneda/

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Ethiopian Airlines Flight 908

An Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 767-300, carrying out a flight from Dakar

(Senegal) to Bamako (Mali) with 90 people on board, was in the initial climb
out of Dakar International Airport's runway when the right hand engine
(PW4000) failed and caught fire prompting the crew to stop the climb at about
2500 feet and return to Dakar for a safe landing on about 8 minutes after
departure, the aircraft vacated the runway.
In both the incidents, the one thing which is common is the engine which
caught fire due to a mechanical failure of the turbine.

Fig 6. The damaged PW4000 after the engine fire.

Reference. AVHerald.com

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Tests Which are Carried out on any Aircraft Engine before

issuing the Type Certification.

The tests which are carried out on the PW-4000 are as follows:
 Water Ingestion Test: Around 20000 liters of water was ingested into
the engine in one minute to test the engine’s capability if the aircraft has
to land in flood conditions.

 Hail Ingestion Test: Large size hail particles thrown at the turbofan
blades to test strength of the blades if aircraft has to fly in hailstorm
conditions.

 Bird Strike Test: After the US Airways Flight Incident in the Hudson
River, all engine manufacturers are required to conduct bird strike tests
of the engine. In the Case of the PW4000, 30 bodies which resemble the
weight of a bird are thrown at the blades to test the strength of the
blades in case of multiple bird strike.

 Maximum Power Ground Run: This test is conducted on the ground as

the name says. In this test, the engine is powered to maximum thrust
while the aircraft is stationary. This test is conducted in order to find out
whether the engine can perform normally even at high power. In this
test the engine and the nacelle is tested for vibration and other stresses
including cracks in the engine and nacelle.

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Fig 7. The Different Shop Visits of different engines.

Reference. https://www.mro-network.com/engines-shop-visits

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Mean Time To Repair (MTTR)

Mean Time To Repair (MTTR) is the time which is taken to troubleshoot and
repair any failed equipment. It reflects on how quickly an
organization/maintenance department can respond to any unplanned engine
breakdowns and repair them quickly.
MTTR calculates the period between the start of the incident and the moment
the engine returns to operation. This takes into account the time to:
 Notify the Employees
 Diagnose the problem
 Resolve the issue
 Reassemble the engine
 Set up the engine, test the engine and send the engine back to normal
operation.

How is MTTR used.

Mean time to repair is used as a baseline for increasing efficiency, finding ways
to limit unplanned downtime, and boosting the bottom line. MTTR helps the
maintenance workshops identify why maintenance may be taking longer than
ideal and make more informed decisions to fix the underlying causes.

How does MTTR affect Maintenance.

An MTTR analysis can provide an insight in the way a maintenance operation
completes the assigned tasks. Ultimately, MTTR helps your organization
remove any inefficiencies that may be causing any lost production and any lost
finance that is incorporated.

MTTR can be used for making repair or replace decisions on aging assets. If an
asset takes long to repair as it ages, it may be more economical to replace it.

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MTTR can also be used to inform about purchasing and design process by
predicting lifecycle costs of new systems.

Tracking MTTR also helps to ensure your preventive maintenance program and
PM tasks are as effective and efficient as possible.
Although MTTR measures reactive maintenance, assets that take longer to
repair may have PMs associated with them that aren’t working well. Mean
time to repair is a gateway into the root cause of this problem and provides a
path to a solution.

How to Carry out the Calculation of the MTTR.

The MTTR formula is calculated by dividing the total unplanned
maintenance time spent on an asset by the total number of failures that asset
experienced over a specific period.

Mean time to repair is most commonly represented in hours.

The MTTR calculation assumes that:

 Tasks are performed sequentially
 Tasks are performed by appropriately trained personnel

MTTR = Total Maintenance Time/Total Number of Repairs

Hence calculating the MTTR for the PW4000

MTTR (PW4000) = 700/15

MTTR (PW4000) = 46.6 hours
The average time which is taken to overhaul a complete PW4000 engine is 46.6
hours which is just less than 2 complete days.

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Mean Time Between Failure (MTBF)

Mean time between failure (MTBF) is the predicted elapsed time between two
inherent failures of an aircraft engine, during normal operation.
MTBF can be calculated as the arithmetic mean (average) time
between failures of a system. The term is used for repairable systems,
while mean time to failure (MTTF) denotes the expected time to failure for a
non-repairable system.

How to Improve MTBF.

Failure leads to two things: lost production and more maintenance. Both mean
higher costs and less money going to the bottom line. That’s why reducing
instances of failure is crucial for manufacturers.

There are a number of ways to remove the root causes of failures and boost
your MTBF in the process.

 Improve Preventive Maintenance Processes.

If carried out correctly, Preventive Maintenance has the ability to boost
the MTBF. Thinking proactively can delay equipment issues before they
emerge. However, if the process is lacking Preventive Maintenance may
have a negative effect. If engine manuals are missing, checklists are
vague or non-existent, or if maintenance personnel are not properly
trained, Preventive Maintenance can lead to an earlier failure of the
machinery. To improve Preventive Maintenance process, provide the
right resources to the maintenance teams and make the resources
available as soon as possible.

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 Conduct a Root Cause Analysis.

Understanding everything you can about why an asset failed can help
you prevent that failure from happening again, or, at least, happen less
often. The best way to get to the bottom of failure is through a root
cause analysis.

This allows you to move past just fixing an immediate problem and
towards a long-term solution. Instead of just replacing a defective part,
you can understand if a higher-quality part can be ordered, and why that
part wasn’t ordered in the first place. Not only does this improve MTBF
on one asset, but it has the potential to improve MTBF across the board
by creating better processes.

Calculating the Mean Time Between Failure (MTBF).

MTBF = ∑ (Start of Maintenance – Completion of Maintenance) / Total
Number of Failures
Using this equation, we can find the Mean Time Between the Failure of the
PW4000 engine.
The Mean Time Between Failure of the PW4000 engine = 816/1780 = 0.45

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Mean Time Between Maintenance (MTBM)

Maintenance includes all activities necessary to maintain the system in good

condition. The Mean Time Between Maintenance (MTBM) estimate is
necessary for designing a planned general scheme for maintenance and
support of systems/subsystems in the operational environment.
Mean Time Between Maintenance (MTBM)
MTBM is a measure of the reliability taking into account the maintenance
policy, which is the total number of life units expended by a given time, divided
by the total number of maintenance events (scheduled and unscheduled)
performed on that item.

Calculating the MTBM

MTBM = TimeUp / MaintenanceTotal

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Improving Engine Reliability for all Engines.

Jet engines have been used in commercial aviation industry for the past 50-60
years when the first British Comet, and the American Boeing 707 and the
Douglas DC-8 took their first flight. Jet engines have undergone an
unbelievable evolution from the earlier days. From a straight jet in which all
the incoming air passed through the engine itself, to the current high bypass
ratio turbofan engines in which 70% of the thrust is created by the cold air
which does not get combusted.
The modern turbofan engines have two major advantages.
The first advantage is that the engines make a lot more power than the retro
engines and the modern engines also make less noise than the older engines
due to design differences.
The Second advantage is that the modern engines are much more efficient,
fuel economic, quieter, safer, and the most important thing, reliable.
The modern engines do require a lot of time to be designed and tested to their
limits.
Roughly speaking, an engine manufacturer will spend a minimum of 10 years
to develop and introduce a new engine into the aviation market.
The initial design phase is guided by the aircraft type for which the engine will
be intended to install.
Throughout the design process, every component is carefully tested, which
eventually leads to the first tests of the fully assembled engine in a test cell.

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Fig 8. A Jet engine test cell.

Reference. https://news.delta.com/why-delta-built-worlds-largest-jet-engine-
test-cell-bringing-aviation-innovation-georgia

During the ground tests, the engine is tested to all the real world forces and
natural scenarios which the engine will power the aircraft in. some of these
tests include the following:
Water Injection Test.

Fig 9. Water Injection test of a GEnx Engine manufactured by GE aviation.

Reference. GE Aviation.

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Hail (ice) Stones Injection Test:

Fig 10. The Hail Stone Injection Test of the Engine.

Reference. GE Aviation.

Once the engine has passed the tests successfully, it gets the airworthiness
certifications from FAA and EASA to be used for the commercial aircrafts.
This process takes many years to complete. And the main reason for this is
the safety of the passengers and the safety and reliability of the engine.

The aviation industry is continuously seeking opportunities to improve on

existing engine types. This process goes on throughout the working lifecycle
of the engine during day – to – day operations.

An aircraft can remain in operation until 25 years or more depending on the

aircraft type. But, the engines itself haver a much longer lifespan because of
mostly the preceding development and the certification period. But also
due to the fact that there are certain engine types which are used on
different aircraft models,

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In the early days of the Jet Age, engines had to be removed for a full overhaul
after a relatively short span of time in operation. This operating time is usually
expressed in flight hours. Back in those days, an engine was removed and
overhauled after 2,000 flight hours.

Nowadays, operating time between major overhauls has been extended to

around 20,000-25,000 flight hours. We fly wide-body jets equipped with just
two engines to all corners of the globe. This evolution can be mainly attributed
to the enormous gains in engine reliability over the decades.

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Conclusion

In this report we saw how the PW4000 is the most reliable engine in the
market compared to other engines from different manufacturers and how the
engine is in the top compared to its predecessors.
We learnt about many small components like the turbine blades and how it
adds efficiency to the engine. We learnt from the Korean Airlines and the
Ethiopian Airlines incident ablut the turbine hub issue and how it resulted in
the loss of the PW4000 engine and how the manufacturer came to know about
the issues in the engine and how did it affect the airlines.
We learnt about the different tests which are carried out on any engine which
is either being introduced in the market or even a test which is carried out on
an operational engine to keep the engine operating safely.
We learnt the different types of techniques which are used to test the
reliability of the engine like the MTBF, MTTR, MTBM, etc.
We also learnt from the past and how the past can help increase the reliability
of the modern engines and the upcoming engines.

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References.

Fig 1 https://www.revolvy.com/page/30-Years-Later,-The-PW4000%252D94-
Engine-Program-Continues-to-Go-
Beyond?stype=videos&cmd=list&sml=JAsdTOBRkjc

Fig 2 http://www.deagel.com/library/PW4000-100-
engine_m02009071500004.aspx

Fig 3 https://www.wikiwand.com/en/Pratt_%26_Whitney_PW4000-112

Fig 4 Federal Aviation Administration.

Fig 5 http://www.jacdec.de/2016/05/27/2016-05-27-korean-air-boeing-777-
300-engine-fire-at-tokyo-haneda/

Fig 6 AVHerald.com

Fig 7 https://www.mro-network.com/engines-shop-visits

Fig 8 https://news.delta.com/why-delta-built-worlds-largest-jet-engine-test-
cell-bringing-aviation-innovation-georgia

Fig 9 GE Aviation.

Fig 10 GE Aviation.

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Final Gantt Chart

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