Australian Future Sub's Diesel Genset Requirements - PART THREE

The critical issues of providing sufficiently powerful and reliable diesels for Australian future submarines are complex. Unreliable diesels and generators seem to have been the main weakness of the Collins.

Australia enthusiasm for selecting a Japanese submarine in the years up to 2016 relied heavily on an Australian assessment that the KAWASAKI 12V/25/25SB was the best high power submarine diesel available worldwide. The 12V25/25SB has been successfully used on Japanese subs since 2005 (see sidebar). 

So far I think Naval Group should work through the MAN Diesel & Turbo SE (which owns SEMT Pielstick diesel builder) grouping to obtain the 12V/25/25SB diesels under licence. Or perhaps obtaining Kawasaki's newly developed 12V25/31S (to be installed in 29SS, to be laid down in 2018/19 - see TABLE) as this will gradually replace the 12V/25/25SB. This is noting MAN and Kawasaki are already closely associated on marine diesels.

As outlined in PART TWO diesels (around 1.4MW or less) for smaller European designed submarines are inadequate in power to meet Australian submarine needs. Four more powerful diesels (around 2MW each) are required. This would avoid the need for 6 “euro” diesels (an arrangement which would inefficiently stretch the Australian submarine's length and/or diameter.

On the need for four diesels submarine expert Hans J. Ohff, with much knowledge and many Adelaide and Canberra contacts, commented on Selection of Naval Group Day (April 26, 2016) that: 

"The [Australian future submarine] will be equipped with four diesel alternators to generate electricity, a  >7 megawatt permanent magnet motor and ample battery storage." 

A Kawasaki-MAN effort to introduce Kawasaki diesels for Australian use should preferably avoid  major alterations, like an Australia Only turbocharger-supercharger system, due to technical/reliability risk. 

Australian submarine diesels will not function in isolation. Other power train components matter. In that vein it appears that Naval Group has already selected Jeumont Electric as the official supplier of the generator pack which includes manufacturing permanent-magnet synchronous motors and the associated power electronics cabinets. Hence the diesel supplier will need to work closely with Jeumont Electric on a business and technical level.

Pete