The Biggest Engine... IN THE WORLD

"this is not matt farah's foxbodymiata" (fantastic-mr-foxbody)
04/10/2015 at 03:29 • Filed to: Big Things

Welcome to the !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! , the biggest reciprocating engine ever made. This beast is a two stroke turbo-diesel, used in big container ships. The biggest version displaces 25,480 liters and sends 108,920 brake horsepower and 5,608,310 lb-ft of torque through a 300 ton crankshaft.

Five. Million. Torques.

Let that sink in. (Sinking ship pun not intended)

It's available in anything from 6 cylinders to 14. The 14 cylinder variant is 44 feet high, 87 feet high, and weighs 2,300 tonnes. It's also, apparently, quite efficient for it's class. But really, all you need to know that this thing is BIG.

REALLY big. Does your engine have four stories? I thought not.

And then there's the big turbo, and the big pistons, and the big valves...

It's kind of really fucking big.

It has some interesting technical tricks up it's sleeve as well, but I'm too tired to be bothered with that writing that up right now. Basically, the point is that it's a really goddamn BIG engine.

DISCUSSION (21)

Steve in Manhattan > this is not matt farah's foxbodymiata
04/10/2015 at 03:36

Put one in a Miata, and get back to me.

Wheelerguy > this is not matt farah's foxbodymiata
04/10/2015 at 03:52

Well, fuck LS swaps, 26B swaps, SR20 swaps, Tipo 140 swaps, and BMW P82 swaps. THIS would make or the ultimate engine swap.

Jordan and the Slowrunner, Boomer Intensifies > this is not matt farah's foxbodymiata
04/10/2015 at 04:00

Will it fit in my Honda?

Distraxi's idea of perfection is a Jagroen > Steve in Manhattan
04/10/2015 at 04:05

Put one on a Miata, and get back to me.

Fixed that for ya.

Alex87f > Distraxi's idea of perfection is a Jagroen
04/10/2015 at 04:11

You'd more likely end up putting the Miata on this engine.

kanadanmajava1 > this is not matt farah's foxbodymiata
04/10/2015 at 05:28

I think that MAN B&W G95ME-C9 in 12 cylinder configuration is a bit larger. Not much but still a bit. It has a displacement of 29,430 liters and a maximum power of 112,000 hp. Dry weight is 2,360 tonnes.

Cé hé sin > this is not matt farah's foxbodymiata
04/10/2015 at 05:59

Max power is at 102 rpm and it'll run at 20 rpm. No need for a rev counter, you can just count by yourself.

JQJ213- Now With An Extra Cylinder! > Jordan and the Slowrunner, Boomer Intensifies
04/10/2015 at 06:36

the weight of the engine alone would stance the front for you as well!

cornerslide > this is not matt farah's foxbodymiata
04/10/2015 at 07:27

Can you imagine the intake. Once it's fire up it's a miracle there's any air left for us to breath.

whatisthatsound > this is not matt farah's foxbodymiata
04/10/2015 at 08:51

I wonder what the tolerances are in this engine. How precise is everything machined down too. Is it like a car engine where a thimble of sand cab destroy it? If you drop a screw in there is everything taken apart to find it I see ladderwells for access. I know on our ships if something gets dropped nothing starts until that something is found.

this is not matt farah's foxbodymiata > kanadanmajava1
04/10/2015 at 14:19

Yeah idk what the metric is for that. Maybe it's physical size, though that would be pretty crazy. Wouldn't be the first time Wikipedia has been wrong haha.

this is not matt farah's foxbodymiata > whatisthatsound
04/10/2015 at 14:24

Apparently cylinder liner wear is only like .03mm per 1000 hours. That's on a 960mm bore, which would mean it wears about .00003% per thousand hours. Seems like a pretty fine tolerance to me.

What size ship are you on?

whatisthatsound > this is not matt farah's foxbodymiata
04/10/2015 at 14:33

Thanks! I'm in the Navy in ROTC I was on destroyers for summer training. I have always been interested in how sensitive the massive engines are and if the same amount of debris that destroy smaller engines can destroy these. I don't know how the would avoid dirt falling in during manufacturing. The factory and parts don't look dirt/rust free.

this is not matt farah's foxbodymiata > whatisthatsound
04/10/2015 at 14:57

I bet that was really cool, giant pieces of machinery always amaze me.

I think that even the smallest piece of debris would cause some wear, but because of the relatively low velocity of all the parts, I doubt something small could cause a catastrophic failure.

I think about it as the difference between a torquey american big block V8 which operates at 3 or 4,000 rpm, compared to an 18,000 rpm F1 V8. Each part is under a lot more stress at any given moment, and therefore a smaller disturbance in weight (through wear) and the small change in vibration that creates is more likely to lead to a larger failure, regardless of how tight the actual tolerances are.

Now scale that like 1000x

Still, with the Navy, I'm sure it's better be safe and minimize wear, than lose a cylinder or a whole engine when you're taking fire.

Jordan and the Slowrunner, Boomer Intensifies > JQJ213- Now With An Extra Cylinder!
04/10/2015 at 15:57

I could start a new trend where the car is so low that it sinks into the ground.

You can tell a Finn but you can't tell him much > this is not matt farah's foxbodymiata
04/10/2015 at 15:59

I love how precise they are with the torque figure, 5,608,310 lb-ft of torque. I would think at that level of torque it would be give or take a few hundred pound feet depending on the air temp, phase of the moon and whether or not the captain had beans for dinner last week.

kanadanmajava1 > this is not matt farah's foxbodymiata
04/10/2015 at 17:49

The Wärtsilä is probably a bit longer as it has two cylinders more. And there is also the possibility that even though MAN B&W is offering such engine none has been built. That engine might remain the largest engine ever made as Wärtsilä isn't offering 96 size engine any more.

Those extremely large two stroke engines are usually built where the ships are built as they are way too big to transport when they are assembled. The engine company sells a license to build the engine and they only supply the smaller parts.

Wärtsilä had two engine assembly plants in Finland but now they only have one left. I have visited twice in the factory that is now closed. They built Wärtsilä 46 four stroke engines there. Even they are ridiculously big but still small enough that they can be transported when assembled. The largest variants weight mere ~230 tons.

Steve in Manhattan > Distraxi's idea of perfection is a Jagroen
04/10/2015 at 18:42

Ouch. That thing probably has more metal in it than and entire day's production of Miatas.

whatisthatsound > this is not matt farah's foxbodymiata
04/10/2015 at 22:24

Excellent, luckily in the guy who gets too fly away from the ship. It really is amazing though.

Raymundo > this is not matt farah's foxbodymiata
07/27/2015 at 19:27

Fuck goddamn! That’s really goddamn big!

this is not matt farah's foxbodymiata > Raymundo
07/27/2015 at 22:26

indeed