WRTSIL 32

ENGINE TECHNOLOGY
FOR EMERGENCY POWER APPLICATIONS

WRTSIL 32
ENGINE TECHNOLOGY
FOR EMERGENCY POWER APPLICATIONS
This is a brief guide to the technical features and performance of the
Wrtsil 32 engine, when used for emergency power applications
requiring fast and reliable start, fast loading, large load steps, and long
periods in stand-by mode.

DESIGN PHILOSOPHY.................................................... 4
BENEFITS..................................................................... 5
EMERGENCY APPLICATIONS.......................................... 5
CRANKSHAFT AND BEARINGS ...................................... 6
ENGINE BLOCK............................................................. 6
PISTON........................................................................ 6
PISTON RINGS.............................................................. 6
CYLINDER LINER AND ANTI-POLISHING RING.................. 7
CONNECTING ROD........................................................ 7
CYLINDER HEAD........................................................... 7
MULTIDUCT.................................................................. 8
STARTING AIR SYSTEM.................................................. 8
FUEL INJECTION SYSTEM.............................................. 8
TURBOCHARGING SYSTEM............................................ 9
COOLING SYSTEM........................................................ 9
LUBRICATING OIL SYSTEM............................................ 9
MONITORING AND CONTROL....................................... 10
EASY INSTALLATION................................................... 10
EASY MAINTENANCE.................................................. 10
THE TOTAL SERVICE PROVIDER................................... 11
MAIN TECHNICAL DATA............................................... 11
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The passenger ferry Finnmarken is equipped with two Wrtsil 9L32 main
engines and two Wrtsil 6L32 auxiliary engines.

The combined heat and power plant ItalGreen is

equipped with three Wrtsil 18V32 engines running
on liquid biofuel.

The oil power plant Yue Yuen is equipped with twelve

Wrtsil 18V32LN and three Wrtsil 18V32 engines.

DESIGN PHILOSOPHY
The Wrtsil 32 is based on the latest
achievements in combustion technology; it is
designed for safe and reliable operation and
long maintenance-free operating periods.
The engine is fully equipped with all essential
ancillaries and a thoroughly planned interface
to the plant systems.
The submersible heavy load ship Blue Marlin is equipped with three Wrtsil 8L32 engines.
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BENEFITS

More than 1,000 engines in operation

More than 10 Million accumulated running hours
Production capacity of more than 500 engines per year
Optimized for specific project requirements
Strong engineering and project management capability
Secured spare parts and service availability
Local service personel and workshops available.

EMERGENCY APPLICATIONS

The main qualities of the Wrtsil 32 are:

Fast and reliable start
Rapid loading
Reliability and safety
Low maintenance costs
Integrated lubrication and cooling systems
Ergonomic interface
Minimized consumables.

Diesel engines are well suited to operate in emergency applications, requiring fast and reliable
start, fast loading, large load steps and with long periods in stand-by mode.
This type of applications puts special demands on the engine and surrounding equipment and also
has certain implications for the operation and maintenance routines of the plant.
Readiness to start at any time, requires that the engine should be kept in hot stand-by position
all the time.
Testing and operating routines should be established to secure and verify that the plant is ready to
start at any time.
Features such as slow-turning, pre-lubrication and extensive monitoring possibilities are built-in
features of the Wrtsil 32 engine.
The control and automation system should be designed to minimize the possibility for start
failures, blocking of start requests or automatic shutdowns.
To secure that the engine is able to operate reliably over extended periods of time, at high load and
with a minimum of attendance, a preventive maintenance program should be put in place. This
program should cause a minimum of disturbance to the equipment and its readiness to operate.

CRANKSHAFT AND
BEARINGS
The latest advances in combustion
development require a crank gear that
operates reliably at high cylinder pressures.
The crankshaft must be robust and the
specific bearing loads kept at an acceptable
level.
This is achieved by careful optimization
of crankthrow dimensions and fillets. The
specific bearing loads are conservative and
the cylinder spacing, which is important for
the overall length of the engine, is minimized.
Besides low bearing loads, the other
crucial factor for safe bearing operation is
oil film thickness. Ample oil film thicknesses
in the main bearings are ensured by optimal
balancing of rotational masses and, in the big
end bearing, by ungrooved bearing surfaces
in the critical areas. All the factors needed for
a free choice of the most appropriate bearing
material are present.

result is a virtually pipe-free engine with a

clean outer exterior.
Resilient mounting is state-of-the-art in
many applications and requires a stiff engine
frame. Integrated water and oil channels in the
engine block are designed with this in mind
and serve the double purpose of transfer of
liquids and stiffening of the engine block.

ENGINE BLOCK

PISTON

Nodular cast iron is the natural choice for

engine blocks today thanks to its strength and
stiffness properties, along with all the freedom
offered by casting. The Wrtsil 32 makes
optimum use of modern foundry technology
to integrate most oil and water channels. The

For years, the outstanding piston concept

for highly rated diesel engines has been a
composite piston with a steel crown and a
nodular cast-iron skirt. More than 30 years
of experience has fine-tuned the concept.
When it comes to reliability, there is no real

alternative today for modern engines running

with high cylinder pressures and combustion
temperatures. Wrtsil-patented skirt
lubrication is applied to minimize frictional
losses and to ensure appropriate lubrication of
piston rings, the piston skirt and cylinder liner.
This design ensures proper lubrication of these
vital engine parts even after extended periods
in stand-by mode.

PISTON RINGS
In Wrtsils three-ring concept each piston ring
has a specific task. They are dimensioned and
profiled for consistent performance throughout
their operating lives. To avoid carbon deposits
in the ring grooves, the pressure balance on

top of and underneath each ring is crucial.

Experience has shown that this effect is most
likely achieved with a three-ring pack. Finally,
it is well-known that most frictional losses in a
reciprocating combustion engine originate from
the piston rings. Thus a three-ring pack is the
obvious choice in this respect, too. The top ring,
which bears the greatest load, is provided with
a special wear-resistant coating.

CYLINDER LINER AND

ANTI-POLISHING RING
The thick high-collar type cylinder liner
is designed to have the stiffness needed
to withstand both pre-tension forces and
combustion pressures with virtually no

deformation. Its temperature is controlled by

bore cooling of the upper part of the collar to
achieve a low thermal load and to avoid sulphuric
acid corrosion. The cooling water is distributed
around the liners with simple water distribution
rings at the lower end of the collar. At the upper
end the liner is equipped with an anti-polishing
ring to eliminate bore polishing and reduce lube
oil consumption. The function of this ring is to
calibrate the carbon deposits formed on the
piston top land to a thickness small enough to
prevent any contact between the liner wall and
the deposits at any piston position. Since there
is no contact between the liner and piston top
land deposits, no oil can be scraped upwards by
the piston. The other positive effect is that the
liner wear is significantly reduced at the same
time. The strength of the wear-resistant liner
materials used for years in Wrtsil engines has
been further increased to cope with the high
combustion pressures expected in the future.

CONNECTING ROD
A three-piece connecting rod with all the highly
stressed surfaces machined, is the safest design
for engines of this size intended for continuous
operation at high combustion pressures. For easy
maintenance and accessibility the upper joint
face is placed right on top of the big-end bearing

housing. A special hydraulic tool is developed for

simultaneous tensioning of all four screws.
To eliminate any risk of wear in the contact
surfaces, an intermediate plate with a special
surface treatment is placed between the main
parts.

CYLINDER HEAD
The cylinder head design is based on the fourscrew concept developed by Wrtsil and used
for more than 30 years. Its internal structure
is designed for maximum stiffness, which is
essential for obtaining both liner roundness
and even contact between exhaust valves and
their seats.
A four-screw cylinder head design also
provides all the freedom needed for designing
inlet and exhaust ports with a minimum of flow
losses. Computational fluid dynamics (CFD)
analysis in combination with full-scale flow
measurements has been used for port design
optimization.
The vast amount of experience gained from
operation of 1000s of engines all around the
world has contributed greatly to exhaust-valve
design and development. Put together, this
means that a valve material and geometry with
superior performance is now available.

Spex charging.

MULTIDUCT
Multiducts replace a number of individual
components in traditional engine designs.
Their functions are:
Air transfer from the air receiver to the
cylinder head
Exhaust transfer to the exhaust system
Cooling water outlet after the cylinder head
Cooling water return channel from the
engine.
Additional functions are:
Introduction of an initial swirl to the inlet air
for optimal part-load combustion
Insulation and cooling of the exhaust transfer
duct
Support for exhaust system and its
insulation.

STARTING AIR SYSTEM

Rapid and reliable starting is secured by the
air-over-piston starting system. Starting air
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is distributed to each cylinder via air pipes and

channels, starting air valves in the cylinder
head are pneumatically controlled by air
passing through the starting air distributor at
the end of the cam shaft.
The A and B-bank of the V-engines can
be fitted with totally separated starting air
trains, each capable of starting the engine.
Air reciever and valves for the pneumatic
emergency shutdown system is built on the
engine.

FUEL INJECTION SYSTEM

The ultimate safety in low-pressure fuel system
design is achieved with the Wrtsil-patented
multihousing principle. With this system the
fuel line consists basically of drilled channels in
cast parts clamped firmly on the engine block.
In the Wrtsil 32 these parts are:
The pump housing
The tappet housing
The fuel transfer housing
The multicover.

For ease of assembly/disassembly, these

parts are connected to each other with slide
connections. Since both the whole lowpressure system and the high-pressure system
are housed in a fully covered compartment,
the safety standard is unbeatable. The highpressure system was designed and endurance
tested at 2000 bar. Injection pressure is
around 1800 bar.
With a wear-resistant low-friction coating
on the plunger, no lubricating oil is required
for the pump element. Thanks to the profiled
plunger geometry the clearance between
plunger and barrel can be kept small, thereby
allowing only a minimum of oil to pass down
the plunger. This small leakage is collected and
returned to the fuel system. Any likelihood of
the fuel mixing with the lube oil is eliminated.
Both nozzle holders and the nozzle are made
of high-grade hardened steel to withstand
the high injection pressures. Combined with
oil cooling of the nozzles this guarantees
outstanding nozzle lifetimes.

Engine

5763 C

Lube oil
cooler

Charge air
cooler

Exp.
0.71.5 bar

LTC
central
cooler

Lube oil system

Filter

Cooler

Pump

Charge air
cooler

Prelubricating
pump
Exp.
0.71.5 bar

HTC
central
cooler

Engine
Pr eheater

Each injection pump is equipped with an

integrated electropneumatic shutdown cylinder,
connected to the overspeed protection system.
The engine has an independent mechanical
overspeed protection system, acting directly at
the fuel control rod.
The engine can be equipped with for
example, engine driven fuel feed pump, fuel fine
filter, electrical motor driven stand-by pump,
thus reducing installation work at site and
securing functional and pressure interphases.
The engine can be equipped with double
shielded high pressure pipes and leak
fuel alarms for early detection of possible
malfunctions.

TURBOCHARGING SYSTEM
The Single Pipe Exhaust pipe (SPEX) system
is designed for minimum flow losses on both
exhaust and air sides.
The charging systems are designed to give
high efficiency and extremely good start and
load acceptance.

Non-cooled turbochargers with inboard

plain bearings lubricated from the engines
lube oil system are used. This secures
readiness to start and acceptance of rapid
loading at any time.

COOLING
SYSTEM
The cooling system is split into two separate
circuits, the high-temperature (HT) and the
low-temperature (LT) circuits. The cylinder
liner and the cylinder head temperatures are
controlled through the HT circuit. The HT water
pump and thermostatic valve are integrated
with the pump cover module at the free end
of the engine. The complete HT circuit is thus
virtually free of pipes.
The LT circuit cools the charge air and the
lube oil. It is fully integrated with the engine,
including parts such as the LT water pump, LT
thermostatic valve and transfer channels in the
engine block.

LUBRICATING
OIL SYSTEM
The Wrtsil 32 engine is equipped with a
complete engine on-built lube oil system,
including an engine-driven main pump, electrical
motor driven prelubricating pump, lubricating oil
cooler, full flow automatic filter, centrifugal filter,
thermostatic valve and pressure control valve.
The engine is fitted with running-in filters before
each main bearing, these filters are removed
after start-up of the installation.
The lube oil filtration is based on an
automatic back-flushing filter requiring a
minimum of maintenance. The filter elements
are made of seamless sleeve fabric with high
temperature resistance. A special feature
is the centrifugal filter, connected to the
back-flushing line of the automatic filter. This
provides the means for extraction of particles
from the system.

MONITORING AND CONTROL

Depending on the application, the monitoring,
control and safety functions of the engine can
be met either by utilizing a passive sensor
and actuator interface fulfilling class 1E
requirements or an embedded control and
management system based on Wrtsils
advanced UNIC C1 automation system.
Class 1E
In the design of class 1E sensor and actuator
interface the focus is laid on:
Reliability
Redundancy
Diversity
Separation
Environmental, testing and maintenance
requirements.
The engine is equipped with sensors,
transducers, switches and actuators to
fulfill requirements according to applicable
standards and regulations. Essential operation
and protection functions can be realized
with diversified or redundant devices. Critical
protection functions such as engine over
speed, jacket cooling water temperature or
lubricating oil pressure can be provided with
sensors enabling 2-out-of-3 operation.
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The operational reliability of essential

controls and signals is ensured by means
of physical separation, which is taken into
account in design of cable routing and
connections.

to a minimum, the systems are fully pressure

tested at factory and the interaction between
different components are tested and verified at
the factory.

UNIC C1 automation system provides for:

Critical protection functions
Basic local monitoring
Hardwired interface to plant control
Speed and load control.
Highest possible reliability is achieved with
hardwired connections and devices specifically
designed for the on-engine environment. Speed
and load can be controlled with electrical or
mechanical speed regulator or alternatively
by means of electrical speed regulator with
mechanical speed regulator as a back-up.

Efficient and easy maintenance is incorporated

into the design. In combination with the long
intervals between overhauls, the hours spent
on maintenance are reduced to a minimum.
The lube oil filtration is one good example.
Hydraulics are used for pre-tension of the
cylinder head screws, all the connecting rod
screws and the main bearing screws. The
distinctive Wrtsil feature with individual
hydraulic jacks for each main bearing is of
course adopted. The unique fuel line design
enables injection pump exchange with a
minimum of work with less risk of error.
The multiduct arrangement allows the
cylinder head to be lifted without removal of
water pipes, while the slide-in connections
on the manoeuvring side allows it to be lifted
without removal of oil or air pipes. The water
pumps are easy to replace thanks to the
cassette design principle and water channel
arrangement in the pump cover at the free

EASY INSTALLATION
An important design principle for the Wrtsil32
engine is to build as much of the essential
auxiliary equipment as possible on the engine.
This goes for lube oil and water pumps and
thermostatic valves, lube oil cooler and filter,
amply sized lube oil sump, engine control and
monitoring. Installation work is thus reduced

EASY MAINTENANCE

MAIN TECHNICAL DATA

WRTSIL 32 FOR EMERGENCY POWER APPLICATIONS
end of the engine. There is greater accessibility to all the above
components thanks to a minimal number of pipes and an ergonomic
component design.

THE TOTAL SERVICE PROVIDER

More than 11 000 service professionals employed by Wrtsil
and over 70 Wrtsil owned service centres worldwide guarantee
outstanding field service support and fast spare parts supply
wherever the plant is located. Wrtsils total service commitment
means more than just providing a prompt supply of parts or sending a
maintenance specialist to fix a problem. It means taking responsibility.
Depending on the level of partnership required, a service package
can be tailored from round-the-clock technical support and original
parts deliveries to a comprehensive operation and maintenance
partnership on a day-to-day basis. The committed operation and
maintenance of power installations with more than 5500 MW of
installed power makes Wrtsil the largest diesel engine power plant
operator in the world. Additionally a Condition Based Maintenance
(CBM) services can be provided, which is based on remote monitoring
of the units from CBM-centre in Wrtsil factory. Personnel of the
operator are trained by the Wrtsil Land & Sea Academy (WLSA).
This global network of training centres, with highly qualified
personnel and state-of-the-art remote learning systems, delivers a
thorough understanding of how to optimize the safety, reliability and
performance of the installation. Wrtsil helps you to get the best
from your personnel and your installation.

Cylinder bore
Piston stroke
Engine speed
Piston speed

320 mm
400 mm
720, 750 rpm
9.6, 10.0 m/s

RATED POWER
Engine type
6L32
8L32
9L32
12V32
16V32
20V32

60Hz, 720 rpm

50Hz, 750 rpm

kWm

kWe

kWm

kWe

2 880
3 840
4 320
5 760
7 680
9 600

2 780
3 700
4 170
5 558
7 434
9 341

3 000
4 000
4 500
6 000
8 000
10 000

2 890
3 860
4 340
5 790
7 744
9 730

Acc to ISO3046 standard. 10 % overload allowed 1 hr every 12 hour.

ENGINE DIMENSIONS (MM) AND WEIGHTS (TONNES)

Engine type

Length

Width

Height

Weight

6L32
8L32
9L32
12V32
16V32
20V32

5 297
6 510
7 116
6 837
8 206
9 276

2 300
2 300
2 300
2 870
3 296
3 233

3 421
3 571
3 571
3 595
3 595
4 139

30
42
44
54
63
89

GENERATING SET DIMENSIONS (MM) AND WEIGHTS (TONNES)

Engine type

Length

Width

Height

Weight

6L32
8L32
9L32
12V32
16V32
20V32

8 766
9 750
11 200
10 030
11 239
12 200

2 410
2 410
2 410
3 050
3 300
3 300

3 740
3 740
3 740
4 420
4 420
4 420

58
77
82
92
119
130

Subject to revision without notice.

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Wrtsil is a global leader in complete lifecycle power solutions for the

marine and energy markets. By emphasising technological innovation
performance of the vessels and power plants of its customers. Wrtsil
is listed on the NASDAQ OMX Helsinki, Finland.

WRTSIL is a registered trademark. Copyright 2011 Wrtsil Corporation.

DBAB540962 08.2011 / Bocks Office / Waasa Graphics

and total efficiency, Wrtsil maximises the environmental and economic