MAN Sending Compressor System To RWE
Wednesday, September 12, 2012
MAN Diesel & Turbo received an order from RWE, a German electrical and gas supplier, to deliver a complete compressor system to extend a gas storage cavern in Staßfurt, Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. The system is scheduled for delivery in fall 2013.
The HOFIM unit will increase the capacity of the storage cavern from around 0.38 X 109 m3 of natural gas to as much as 0.5 X 109 m3, MAN said. Weighing around 80 tonnes, the unit comprises two multi-stage radial compressors arranged in tandem around a centrally positioned 14 MW motor driver. The driver was specially developed and manufactured by MAN Diesel & Turbo for use in compressor units with magnetic bearings, according to the company.
Their tandem arrangement enables the compressors to feed gas into and out of the storage cavern, operating either in parallel or in series. The system achieves its highest output of 0.3 X 106 m3/hr in parallel, and peak pressure of over 160 bar in series operation.
Because it is hermetically sealed, the complete compressor unit does not require dry gas seals on the drive shafts. At the same time, the sealing eliminates the possibility of any gas escaping into the atmosphere, MAN said. Additionally, the rotating shafts are located in magnetic bearings and float freely in the bearing points, without touching the bearing, eliminating the need for lubrication throughout the system.
For more information: www.mandieselturbo.com
