ACTurbo – Aachen Center for Turbomachinery Manufacturing

 

Topic

The task of the ACTurbo Project House is to bundle and align cutting-edge integrative-interdisciplinary research into the manufacture and repair of turbomachinery at the Aachen site. The Project House is part of the measures of the Production Engineering profile area derived from the strategy process. The aim is to implement the model of networked adaptive production on turbomachinery products.

Research Goals

The manufacture of reliable and powerful turbomachinery places the highest demands on production technology. Turbo-machines are key technologies of our modern industrial society: jet engines of large aircraft, exhaust gas turbochargers for low-CO2 cars or steam turbines for power generation - a large number of our current technical systems for mobility and energy would be inconceivable without the broad application of turbo-machines. Due to the central technical significance, improvements to turbomachinery have a direct impact on the costs and environmental impact of the overall system that drives it. According to studies, CO2 emissions from current aircraft engines could be reduced by up to 30 percent through optimization before the physical limits of the technology are reached.

Cutting-edge research for the manufacture of turbomachinery requires interdisciplinary cooperation in the fields of thermodynamics, aerodynamics, manufacturing technology and materials engineering.

However, this interdisciplinary research approach must be aligned with the value chain. This is the only way to meet future demands for greater efficiency, lower pollutant emissions and a longer service life. Industrial feasibility and consideration of official requirements are decisive boundary conditions in the manufacture of turbomachinery, which must be taken into account from the outset. This transdisciplinary research approach is the implementation of the model of networked adaptive production by the project house.

The ACTurbo Project House is the central hub in Aachen for players from research, industry and public authorities in the field of turbomachinery production.

 

Professorships Involved

Fraunhofer Institute for Production Technology IPT
Machine Tool Laboratory WZL of RWTH Aachen University
Univ.-Prof. Dr.-Ing.Thomas Bergs MBA (Director/Chair)

Fraunhofer Institute for Laser Technology ILT
Univ.-Prof. Dr. rer. nat. Reinhart Poprawe

Chair for Digitale Additive Production DAP
Univ.-Prof. Dr.-Ing. Dipl.-Wirt. Ing. Johannes Henrich Schleifenbaum

Institute for Jet Propulsion and Turbomachinery IST
Univ.-Prof. Dr.-Ing. Peter Jeschke

Projects

ICTM International Center for Turbo Machinery Construction in Aachen

The ICTM International Center for Turbomachinery Manufacturing in Aachen is a joint initiative of the Fraunhofer Institute for Production Technology IPT, the Fraunhofer Institute for Laser Technology ILT, the Laboratory for Machine Tools and Manufacturing Technology WZL of RWTH Aachen and the Chair for Digital Additive Production DAP of RWTH Aachen University.

The aim of ICTM Aachen is to accelerate technological innovations and transfer them to industrial applications. It will use the entire technology portfolio of all institutes to offer excellent research and development for turbomachinery construction.

Workshops

The ICTM Academy offers a training program for the manufacture and repair of turbomachinery. The program consists of seminars with a special focus on turbomachinery construction. Over the next few years, it will be extended to a broad spectrum of relevant seminars along the process chain of turbomachinery construction.

Contact


WZL Laboratory for Machine Tools and Production Engineering RWTH Aachen
Steinbachstraße 19
52072 Aachen

Phone +49 241 80-28183
Fax +49 241 80-22293

Dipl.-Ing. Daniel Heinen
Fraunhofer Institute for Production Technology IPT
Steinbachstr. 17
52074 Aachen, Germany

Phone +49 241 8904-443
Fax +49 241 8904-6443

Websites

www.rwth-aachen.de/go/id/layq
www.ictm-aachen.com/
www.ictm-aachen.com/en/academy.html