Additive manufacturing boosts Berlin-Mitte

16 September 2018



GE reports that an MXL2 upgrade carried out on GT13E2 gas turbines at Vattenfall’s Heizkraftwerk Berlin-Mitte power plant has made use of components produced by additive manufacturing (aka 3D printing): first-stage turbine vanes; and heat shields. These parts are among the turbine’s hottest-running components, and the significant amount of cooling air they traditionally require impacts the engine’s performance. Additive manufacturing has enabled improved cooling schemes to be used that considerably reduce the amount of cooling air the parts need, promising the following benefits: reduction in component cooling requirements by up to 25%; output increased by up to 21 MW in combined cycle mode; 1.6% combined cycle efficiency improvement; and increase of maintenance interval to 48 000 hours.


GE reports that an MXL2 upgrade carried out on GT13E2 gas turbines at Vattenfall’s Heizkraftwerk Berlin-Mitte power plant has made use of components produced by additive manufacturing (aka 3D printing): first-stage turbine vanes; and heat shields. These parts are among the turbine’s hottest-running components, and the significant amount of cooling air they traditionally require impacts the engine’s performance. Additive manufacturing has enabled improved cooling schemes to be used that considerably reduce the amount of cooling air the parts need, promising the following benefits: reduction in component cooling requirements by up to 25%; output increased by up to 21 MW in combined cycle mode; 1.6% combined cycle efficiency improvement; and increase of maintenance interval to 48 000 hours.

The deployment of additively manufactured parts into the MXL2 solution “represents a turning point in the global power generation industry”, says GE. 

The new parts were produced by GE’s Additive Manufacturing Works (AMW) teams in Birr, Switzerland, and Greenville, South Carolina, United States.

Vattenfall began supporting additive manufacturing for GT13E2 upgrades in 2015, with the installation of four different 3D printed components at the Heizkraftwerk Berlin-Mitte plant.

GE is marketing the upgrade as MLX2 with AMP (Additive Manufactured Performance). 

Vattenfall’s Heizkraftwerk Berlin-Mitte power plant
Heat shields for GT13E2 gas turbine produced by additive manufacturing


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