Solar Turbines: the path from passenger aircraft to the biggest producer of Gas Turbines

Solar^® Turbines, part of the American company Caterpillar, is currently the biggest manufacturer of Gas Turbines in the 1MW – 22MW segment in the world, with the largest fleet of operating engines in more than 100 countries around the world that have generated a total of more than 2 billion operating hours. Eneria CAT offers customer-tailored technical solutions based on proven and reliable Solar^® Turbines.

The history of the company from its inception to the present day, with the most important milestones.

1927

In the early days of passenger aviation, in San Diego, CA, Solar Aircraft Company is founded. The first part of the name comes from the sunny weather for which California is known. Unfortunately, development plans were thwarted by the Great Depression, which followed the fateful collapse of the New York Stock Exchange on 24 October 1929, henceforth known as Black Thursday.

1930

The development of aviation reveals many problems that manufacturers have to face. One of them is the corrosion of exhaust manifolds, which due to high thermal loads are very quickly covered with oxide layers. Solar solves this problem by developing technology to produce stainless steel collectors. The success of the solution leads to an avalanche of orders for collectors manufactured by Solar.

 

1933

In the period of the Great Depression, it is difficult for the young company to maintain liquidity. Solar produces a lot of equipment, unrelated to the aviation industry. We can mention radio beacons, beer barrels, motor boat hulls or cisterns for tanker trucks. Meanwhile, exhaust manifolds continue to be produced.

1938

Solar, specially commissioned by visionary and billionaire Howard Hughes (see the 2004 movie “Aviator”), constructs and manufactures exhaust manifolds for the Lockheed Electra aircraft with which Hughes breaks the record for the fastest circumnavigation of the Earth in an aeroplane (23612 km, 3 days, 19 hours, 17 minutes).

1943

World War II brings further challenges for Solar.  After a series of crashes of Lockheed P38 aircraft related to thermal problems, the manufacturer asked the most experienced company in this area to develop safe exhaust systems and compressors for P38 Lightning aircraft. This cooperation provided the experience to support the first American jet engine (GE-40)

1946

The postwar period again forces diversification of the product portfolio. Solar begins producing milk tanks, coffee makers, ice trays and mini racers, and other products. At the same time, aerospace products such as the first afterburners and rocket engines for the Hermes program are being developed.

1953

Further development of research into thermally durable materials has resulted in a number of patents and unique solutions in this area. Worth mentioning here is Solaramic™, a special coating that was first used to cover the exhaust stacks of the PBM Martin Mariner aircraft and then to make the bellows of the first NASA rockets.

 

1956

Solar develops the first gas turbines to drive generators on Oklahoma-class destroyers. The first two models are the Jupiter and Mars, with 500 HP and 50 HP, respectively. This was a milestone for the company and also the first commercial use of gas turbines as a generator drive.

1960

First Solar gas turbine-powered compressor is presented. It turns out soon, that gas compressors are a very important part of the company’s portfolio. In 1960, the company was purchased by International Harvester. Saturn^®, the first commercial gas turbine (1000 HP), is introduced. It was not only used for propulsion but also steam generation in a recovery boiler.   

1967-1969                       

Solar participates in the race to the moon, building the fuel system for the Saturn 5 rockets carrying astronauts into orbit in the Apollo programme. In 1969, the company’s power generators landed on the moon with the Apollo 12. Meanwhile, the first thousand gas turbines are delivered.

1973

Solar is not slowing down, patenting more solutions, including the first non-toxic, high-temperature insulation foam Solimide™. As part of its development, it introduces chip-based control. The company stops producing aerospace components. All energy goes into the development of gas turbines and compressors.             

1977

In response to growing demand for higher-capacity generation units, Solar launches the Mars 100 and Mars 90 gas turbines with a capacity of 11 more than 10 MW. The product quickly gains recognition from major oil and gas companies providing reliable power for pumps and compressors for minerals.

 

 

1978

Solar releases another product highly anticipated by the market. Transportable, trailer-mounted complete generation system based on the Saturn turbine. The first client was the US Army, and the device was able to operate at two voltages and frequencies.            

1981

Solar Turbines becomes part of Caterpillar.

1984           

Solar introduces the first PLC panel, Turbotronic. It also develops the first next-generation gas turbine, Centaur^®50, created using modern materials, with a revised compressor design.

1986

Solar leads the first decarbonisation project. At the request of the DOE (Department of Energy), it developed the Centaur turbine powered by fuel derived from coal gasification.

1987-1994

Solar launches a series of new gas turbines (Taurus™ 60, Taurus™ 70, Mars® 100), which are still the mainstay of the portfolio today. Each of them has found thousands of users around the world.

1990

Solar introduces the first programmable HMI (Human Machine Interface), TT2000, based on MS-DOS.

1994

Solar makes another milestone in reducing harmful emissions. SoLoN0x technology is patented and marketed, enabling reductions in nitrogen oxide emissions. To date, more than 3,000 units equipped with this solution are in operation.

1997

Solar releases its largest gas turbine to date, the Titan 130, with a capacity of more than 16 MW and a thermal efficiency of more than 35%.

2000

Solar as part of the government’s Advanced Turbine Systems (ATS) program, launches the Mercury™ 50 Gas Turbine with an integrated exhaust gas recirculation system, achieving a thermal efficiency of 39%. As it turned out, this is a sensational solution for reducing pollution. It performs perfectly with coke oven gas and landfill gas.

2005

Solar launches a special gas turbine, Taurus™ 65, designed from the ground up for CHP applications.

2005

The  InSight Platform™ is made available to Solar customers. It is an advanced turbine parameter control system with dedicated tools and applications.

2008

Solar launches the largest gas turbine to date, Titan™ 250, with a capacity of 22 MW. The project was a response to growing customer demand for large, gas-fired generation units. The company’s engineers managed to build an engine not much larger than the Titan 130. This design has the highest power density in the market.

2018

Solar launches a series of modular solutions based on PGM (Power Generation Module) gas turbines. Customers can receive a ready-assembled generation unit at the factory, ready to work from the first day after installation.

2020

EneriaCAT implements the first project based on Solar  Gas Turbines as a general contractor. The new product line is now supported by Caterpillar’s Polish subsidiary. Details coming soon on the company’s blog.

 

mail: jbigoszewski@eneria.pl

Wrtten by: Jakub BIGOSZEWSKI

Gas Turbines Manager, Gas Turbines Expert