PurePower, Game-changing Engine

Since 1925, when Pratt & Whitney (P&W) was established, it has been continuous developments of aero-engines that has kept the flag flying high of the United Technologies Corporation. The first aircraft engine, a 410-hp, aircooled Wasp, transformed the aviation industry. The Wasp delivered unprecedented performance and reliability. Pratt & Whitney has been leading change ever since, by designing, manufacturing and servicing aircraft engines and auxiliary power units (APUs).

Today, Pratt & Whitney develops game-changing technologies for the future, such as the PurePower PW1000G engine, with patented geared turbofan engine technology. The company’s worldwide large commercial engine maintenance, repair and overhaul network provides innovative services that add value and delight customers around the globe.

High-bypass Geared Turbofan Engine

PurePower PW1000G is a high-bypass geared turbofan engine family, currently selected as the exclusive engine for the Bombardier CSeries, Mitsubishi Regional Jet (MRJ), and Embraer’s second generation E-Jets, and as an option on the Irkut MC-21 and Airbus A320neo. The project was previously known as the geared turbofan (GTF) and originally the advanced technology fan integrator (ATFI). The PW1000G engine first entered commercial use in January 2016 with Lufthansa’s first commercial Airbus A320neo flight. The PW1100G-JM engine for Airbus A320neo family of aircraft and the PW1500G engine for the Bombardier CSeries are certified. The PW1400G-JM engine for the Irkut MC-21 aircraft, the PW1200G engine for the Mitsubishi Regional Jet and the PW1900G for the Embraer E190-E2 are all in testing. The PW1100G-JM began powering revenue flights in January 2016.

Game-changing Reductions

With 20 years of research and development, component rig testing on all major modules, extensive ground and flight testing underway, two engines in the family certified and the PW1100G-JM carrying passengers on a daily basis, the PurePower PW1000G engine with geared turbofan technology delivers game-changing reductions in:

• Fuel burn
• Environmental emissions
• Engine noise
• Operating costs

In the PurePower PW1000G engine family, a state-of-the-art gear system separates the engine fan from the low pressure compressor and turbine, allowing each of the modules to operate at their optimum speeds. This enables the fan to rotate slower and while the low pressure compressor and turbine operate at a high speed, increasing engine efficiency and delivering significantly lower fuel consumption, emissions and noise. This increased efficiency also translates to fewer engine stages and parts for lower weight and reduced maintenance costs.

The PurePower PW1000G engine’s fan-drive gear system is just one component of this next-generation engine. The PurePower PW1000G engine also incorporates advances in aerodynamics, lightweight materials and other major technology improvements in the high-pressure spool, low-pressure turbine, combustor, controls, engine health monitoring and more.

Technology Shaping the Future of Aviation

Pratt & Whitney has been actively testing all key components of the PurePower PW1000G engine family, with 16 technology rigs running around the world. In 2008, Pratt & Whitney’s full-scale demonstrator engine completed its rigorous 400-hour ground and flight test programme with test results that indicated the engine delivers the performance and efficiency targets of this revolutionary technology.

Pratt & Whitney’s PurePower PW1000G engine has been recognised by Popular Science magazine with a 2009 “Best of What’s New Award.” In addition to the Popular Science Award, Pratt & Whitney’s PurePower engine family also received the 2009 Aviation Week Laureate Award for outstanding achievement in Aeronautics and Propulsion and the 2008 Technology Breakthrough Award from the China Aviation Association and AVIC Science and Technology Department. In 2015 the engine won a Gold Edison Award and was named an Aviation Climate Solution by the Air Transport Action Group.

Pratt & Whitney has invested over $10 billion and 20 years in perfecting the geared turbofan engine and it is paying off. The features are:

Burns less fuel

The PurePower PW1000G engine improves fuel burn — gate-to-gate — by 16 per cent versus today’s best engines. With the benefits of a new, advanced airplane the fuel burn benefit can be even greater — over 20 per cent versus today’s best aircraft. That can be a significant savings to airline business.

Cuts carbon emissions

The PurePower PW1000G engine cuts carbon emissions by over 3,600 tonnes per aircraft per year. And Pratt & Whitney’s TALON X combustor slashes NOx exhaust gases by 30-50 per cent — benefits which are good for the environment, and may help brush off increasing environmental fees.

Slashes aircraft noise considerably

The PurePower PW1000G engine slashes aircraft noise footprints by up to 75 per cent — a big relief to communities. At up to 20 decibels below today’s most stringent standard, it is the quietest engine in its class. Meaning lower noise fees, shorter flight tracks, extended curfew operation, and quieter cabins. Good for airlines and good for passengers.

THE PUREPOWER PW1000G ENGINE INCORPORATES ADVANCES IN AERODYNAMICS, LIGHTWEIGHT MATERIALS AND OTHER MAJOR TECHNOLOGY IMPROVEMENTS IN THE HIGH-PRESSURE SPOOL, LOWPRESSURE TURBINE, COMBUSTOR, CONTROLS, ENGINE HEALTH MONITORING AND MORE

Geared around low operating costs

The PurePower PW1000G engine isn’t just about delivering the lowest fuel burn, emissions and noise — it’s about paying out uncompromised savings and operational benefits. That adds up to a competitive advantage for airlines: the lowest costs, and the most flexibility. Win, win.

Game-changing architecture for this decade — and the next

The secret of the PW1000G engine is not the Fan Drive Gear System (FDGS). It’s the gamechanging geared turbofan architecture enabled by the FDGS, and supported by a family of engines at the highest level of technology readiness. We don’t have to compromise on noise, maintenance, and installation, to get a big improvement in fuel burn. We get much higher efficiency out of every module in the engine.

The most efficient fan in its class

A large, lightweight fan moves well over 90 per cent of air around the core, delivering a very quiet engine with very low fuel burn.

The most efficient compressor and turbine in their class

A compact, high-speed low-pressure system accomplishes the same work in fewer stages. That means fewer airfoils, fewer life-limited parts, and ultimately lower maintenance costs.

A really cool core

The supercharged low-pressure system allows the advanced PurePower engine core — optimised for high-cycle durability — to run cooler than the competition, with fewer stages, and without expensive, exotic materials. That means longer time on wing and lower maintenance costs.

Unlike traditional engine designs, the geared architecture is just getting started. It is the solution for this decade — and the next one. That means it is today’s technology which P&W will build upon tomorrow.

Over the 60 years that jet engines have been used on commercial flights, fuel-burn efficiency has improved at 1 to 1.5 per cent every year, says Pratt & Whitney’s Dr. Michael Winter. “The GTF engine, in one fell swoop, improves efficiency by over 15 per cent.”

ERA project collaboration

In the coming years, other GTF engine models will offer even greater fuel-burn efficiency and noise reduction, thanks to the ongoing ERA project collaboration between the company and the US National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). A third partner, the Federal Aviation Administration, is also providing funding and guidance through its Continuous Lower Energy, Emissions, and Noise programme.

Customers know the Pratt & Whitney PurePower engine family has completed more than 58,000 cycles and 35,000 hours of testing to date and is meeting or exceeding all its performance specifications at entry-into-service. The Pratt & Whitney PurePower family has more than 80 customers, for both announced and unannounced firm and option orders from more than 30 countries.