WinGD’s X-DF-A ammonia engine aces initial performance milestone

Switzerland-headquartered marine power company WinGD has recorded “key” parameters in accord with the expectations during an early testing phase of its new X-DF-A ammonia-fueled engine design.

As informed, a 52-bore single-cylinder variant of the X-DF-A engine is currently operating at the company’s Engine Research and Innovation Centre (ERIC) in the city of Winterthur, in northern Switzerland, with final validation expected to be completed ahead of the first engine deliveries in June 2025.

As per the company, the X-DF-A platform is based on the diesel-cycle concept that has been present for several decades on WinGD’s diesel-fueled engines. New technologies have been developed to inject and burn ammonia in a way that controls and minimizes emissions.

Efforts have also reportedly been undertaken to develop the whole fuel handling and safety concept, which is described as especially challenging due to the characteristics of ammonia as fuel.

According to WinGD, the single-cylinder testing is expected to pave the way for ‘rapid’ validation of the ammonia combustion system under engine conditions, as well as optimization of emissions and performance.

It reportedly follows earlier combustion experiments and validation of critical systems on dedicated test rigs and multiple class approvals of the safety concept, including those by the UK-based classification society Lloyd’s Register and French classification society Bureau Veritas (BV).

Representatives from the Swiss player have shared that, in the upcoming months, a multi-cylinder engine test at its Global Research Centre in Shanghai is hoped to validate the full-scale engine, turbocharger configuration and control system before the engine enters production.

“The single-cylinder X-DF-A concept is running well, with combustion efficiency, emissions and pilot consumption within our range of expectations. This milestone is a testament to our approach to innovation and the fantastic work of our development team and partners,” WinGD Vice President Research & Development Sebastian Hensel highlighted.

As disclosed, the company’s ammonia development program began in 2019. In 2022 the project progressed to experiments using WinGD’s spray combustion chamber (SCC). This was followed by an investigation of key engine components on the test rigs housed within ERIC’s Future Fuels Lab.

It is understood that, before the single-cylinder engine tests started, the X-DF-A ammonia fuel injectors were researched on test rigs to validate the functional, mechanical behavior and reliability, and on a multi-cylinder methanol engine at 100% load.

The later experiment using methanol is said to have enabled WinGD a ‘better’ opportunity to verify the ammonia injection concept under harsh engine conditions and thermal stress and make improvements before testing with this alternative fuel.

“In previous tests, we verified that SCC results were transferable one-to-one to the results on our test engines, which is why we invest so much time in these early testing phases. As a result, we are in a strong position to make rapid progress through validation of our ammonia technology,” Sotiris Topaloglou, WinGD Head of Testing and Validation, elaborated.

As stated by WinGD, the company has so far bagged nearly 30 orders for X-DF-A engines in the bulk carrier, containership, tanker and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG)/ammonia carrier segments.

WinGD has already secured nearly 30 orders for X-DF-A engines in the bulk carrier, containership, tanker and LPG/ammonia carrier segments. The first engines will be built for four LPG/ammonia carriers owned by the Belgian shipping company EXMAR—currently under construction at HD Hyundai Mipo in South Korea, with the delivery scheduled for the first quarter of this year—and ten bulk carriers operated by the Belgian bulk carrier operator CMB.TECH, to be built at a Chinese shipyard in 2025 and 2026.

More recently, in late November 2024, WinGD revealed that its X-DF-A engines would also feature on seven 20,500 cbm and 41,000 cbm LPG/ammonia carriers, slated to enter service from Q3 2023, that were ordered by China’s Tianjin Southwest Shipping.