SERVICE

LETTER

Wärtsilä low-speed engines RT-139

Services 2-stroke Issue 2, 26.12.2012

Running of main engines with For immediate attention

turbocharger cut-off Concerned products

Information to all Owners and Operators of
Wärtsilä RTA and RT-flex engines
Wärtsilä RTA and RT-flex engines in
operation with one turbocharger cut-off.
Current situation
Piston running problems have been
reported on a few installations where a
turbocharger has been cut-off when
continuously operating the engine at
relatively high load.

Preventive action
Special attention has to be given to the
main engine running condition when
operating the engine at rather high power
with one turbocharger cut-off.

Solution
Wärtsilä will provide improved power
monitoring settings for contracted slow
steaming upgrade kits (SSUK) in due time.
Installations with turbocharger cut-off not
supplied by Wärtsilä have to assure by
other means that the maximum values of
the engine performance data are not
exceeded.

Note
This Service Letter (Issue 2) supersedes
Service Letter RT-139, Issue 1, dated
23.11.2012.
Reason: Clarification regarding engine
operating range.

Wärtsilä Switzerland Ltd. Tel (24h): +41 52 262 80 10

PO Box 414 Fax: +41 52 262 07 31
CH-8401 Winterthur technicalsupport.chts@wartsila.com
 SERVICE LETTER RT-139
Issue 2, Page 2 / 5

Contents
Page
Introduction 2 
Power range with turbocharger cut-off 2 
Limitation of engine power 3 
Contacts 5 

Introduction
Note:
This Service Letter (Issue 2) supersedes Service Letter RT-139, Issue 1, dated
23.11.2012. Reason: Clarification regarding engine operating range.

While operating the engines with one turbocharger cut-off, the maximum power
output of the engine must be limited to protect the engine against excessive high
loads, temperatures and stresses, which might consequently lead to piston
running problems. The power limit depends on the engine type (RTA or RT-flex)
as well as the total number of turbochargers installed.
The power limitation values given in the main engine Operating Manual Group 0,
Chapter 0590–1 “Operation under Abnormal Conditions” are specified for the
case that the engine has to run in “Emergency Operation” after a turbocharger
failure and are not intended for continuous operation.
The values listed in Tables 1 to 3 define the power range in which unlimited
continuous engine operation with one turbocharger cut-off is possible without
further precautions.
Operating the main engine above this power range requires a careful engine
operation with regular checks of the engine performance data or an equivalent
automatic monitoring to assure that the maximum values for the most essential
performance parameters such as turbocharger speed, scavenge air pressure and
engine firing pressure are not exceeded.
The effective power limit slightly varies from installation to installation and
depends on the actual engine condition. It is basically defined by the maximum
engine firing pressure.

Power range with turbocharger cut-off

Tables 1 to 3 below define the power range for unlimited continuous operation.
Engine operation above these power values is possible but requires means that
assure that maximum values for turbocharger speed, scavenge air pressure and
engine firing pressure are not exceeded.

Power limits for RTA*) engines

Number of turbochargers Power limit

2 45%
3 55%

*) For RTA84T engine types see Table 2

Table 1
 SERVICE LETTER RT-139
Issue 2, Page 3 / 5

Power limits for RTA84T, RTA84T-B and RTA84T-D engines

Number of turbochargers Power limit

2 40%

Table 2

Power limits for RT-flex engines

Number of turbochargers Power limit

2 40%
3 50%
4 60%

Table 3

Limitation of engine power

Installations with Wärtsilä Slow Steaming Upgrade Kit (SSUK) contracted with
Wärtsilä
The control system of the SSUK monitors the turbocharger revolutions and the
scavenge air pressure.
The proper settings in the control system of the SSUK will assure that the
maximum values for turbocharger speed, scavenge air pressure and engine firing
pressure will not be exceeded.
Running the engine close to the limits triggers an alarm and when reaching the
limit values a main engine slowdown is activated.
With such a monitoring installed the power range given in Tables 1 to 3 can be
exceeded depending on the engine configuration and performance, thus making
it possible to operate engines with e.g. three turbochargers up to 60% power.

The values currently set in the SSUK systems in service are based on data from
the Factory Acceptance Test (FAT) of the engine. Practical experience however
has shown that with these settings the maximum acceptable power has been
exceeded in certain cases and therefore a readjustment of these settings is
necessary.
On request Wärtsilä engineers will board those vessels in order to improve the
settings for the power monitoring taking into account the measured values from
the SSUK commissioning.

Until the above mentioned correction is applied we request you to follow one of
the described power limitation possibilities described in the chapter “Possibilities
for power limit protection” below or provide other means to assure that especially
the maximum value for the engine firing pressure is not exceeded.

Attention:
Until this job has been executed, we request you to make your crew on-board of
your vessels aware about the power limit as described above.
 SERVICE LETTER RT-139
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Installations with turbocharger cut-off not supplied by Wärtsilä

Owners running their engines with a turbocharger cut-off not supplied by Wärtsilä
have to assure by other means, that the maximum values for turbocharger
speed, scavenge air pressure and engine firing pressure are not exceeded when
operating the engine above the power range listed in Tables 1 to 3 of this Service
Letter or limit the operation to the range listed in Tables 1 to 3.

Possibilities for limiting engine power output

There are various possibilities to limit the power with different levels of protection.

• Electronic speed control systems usually have the possibility to set a manual
fuel limiter (chief limiter) to limit the output (fuel index / load index) of the
speed controller.
• Limiting the speed set point to the speed control is another though less
effective possibility.
• Where an electronic shaft power meter is installed this might also be used to
monitor / control the maximum engine power.
• An online engine firing pressure monitoring system provides the most direct
monitoring of the limiting factor.
 SERVICE LETTER RT-139
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Contacts

How to contact Wärtsilä

For questions about the content of this Service Letter, or if you need Wärtsilä
assistance, services, spare parts and/or tools, please contact your nearest
Wärtsilä representative.
If you don’t have the contact details at hand, please follow the link “Contact us” –
“24h Services” on the Wärtsilä webpage:
www.wartsila.com

Contact details for emergency issues

Operational support
For questions concerning operational issues, please send your enquiry to:
technicalsupport.chts@wartsila.com
or phone 24hrs support: +41 52 262 80 10.

© 2012 Wärtsilä Switzerland Ltd. – All rights reserved

No part of this publication may be reproduced or copied in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical,
graphic, photocopying, recording, taping or other information retrieval systems) without the prior written
permission of the copyright holder. Wärtsilä Corporation makes no representation, warranty (express or implied)
in this publication and assumes no responsibility for the correctness, errors or omissions for information
contained herein. Information in this publication is subject to change without notice.
Unless otherwise expressly set forth, no recommendation contained in this document or any of its appendices is
to be construed as provided due to a defect in the engine, but merely as an improvement of the engine and/or
the maintenance procedures relating thereto. Any actions by the owner/operator as a result of the
recommendations are not covered under any warranty provided by Wärtsilä and such actions will thus be at the
owners/operators own cost and expense.
NO LIABILITY WHETHER DIRECT, INDIRECT, SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL, IS
ASSUMED WITH RESPECT TO THE INFORMATION CONTAINED HEREIN. THIS PUBLICATION IS
CONFIDENTIAL AND INTENDED FOR INFORMATION PURPOSES ONLY.