Energy conversion

Wind energy

Siempelkamp Foundry has supplied foundry components for wind turbines made of the material EN-GJS-400-18U-LT since 1998. Whereas the cast parts were initially manufactured for wind turbines up to 1.5 MW, today these highly stressed parts are used in plants up to 5 MW.

Close consultation has taken place with customers in order to develop the optimized geometries and materials needed to meet the increasing stresses being placed on the cast parts as a result of the increase in size of the rotor blades and the siting of the turbines in offshore areas.

The individual weights of the cast parts for the largest wind turbines built up to now are:

Machine carrier 46,600 kg

Axle journal 37,000 kg

Rotor hub 28,200 kg

Blade adapter 12,000 kg

Engines

One of the most challenging and demanding types of foundry product is thin-walled and core-intensive engines. They are delivered in raw cast state, leaving the machining and finishing of individual components to the customer.

In the Siempelkamp Foundry, engines ranging from 6 to 20 cylinders which weigh between 3,000 kg and 84,000 kg are cast for use either as ship’s engines or in energy conversion plants.

Turbines and compressors

Axial compressors can attain volumetric flow rates between 70,000 m³/h and 1,400,000 m³/h and deliver an outlet pressure of 20 bar max. The vertically split housings for these compressors made of EN-GJS-400-18U are cast at the Siempelkamp Foundry. The weights of the raw castings can reach up to 62,000 kg per half housing depending on the compressor type.

 Castor

The demands on castors as transportation containers for radioactive materials are very high in terms of the material and its joints. The high level of precision with which processes are controlled at the Siempelkamp Foundry guarantees reproducible production of these demanding and rigorously tested cast parts. The different types of castor have raw cast weights ranging from 80,000 kg to 150,000 kg, with a wall thickness of up to 600 mm.