The new Boeing, Airbus, and Comac planes are
utilizing innovative composite materials and
technologies that need engines to match. CFM
International, a joint venture between GE
Aviation and the France’s Snecma, is developing
a family of advanced LEAP engines that fit the
bill. CFM will show the engines during the 2012
Farnborough International Airshow, which starts
Monday. The company plans to run the first full
LEAP engine tests mid-next year, and start
deliveries in 2016.
A lot has been written about the LEAP. The
engine brings the efficiency found in larger,
wide-body, long-haul engines to the single-aisle
short-haul market, where durability and quick
turnaround between takeoffs and landings are
paramount.
The LEAP, which is part of GE’s ecomagination
portfolio, is a high-bypass turbofan engine
sporting innovative features and materials that
reduce its weight by several hundred pounds, and
shave fuel costs by 15 percent, compared to
current CFM models in its class. That translates
to $12 million in savings per plane over 15
years. Advanced engine design also cuts noise
and emissions and lowers maintenance demands.
What are the new features? The engines employ
several types of advanced materials, including
for the first time Ceramic Matrix Composites
(CMCs). GE has been developing the material for
two decades. CMCs are as tough as the best
performing nickel super-alloys currently used to
manufacture engines, but can operate at much
higher temperatures (2,400⁰F),
which makes the engines much more efficient.
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