Navy tries out fixes for lube-oil problem - Navy News | News from Afghanistan & Iraq - Navy Times

Navy tries out fixes for lube-oil problem

The nagging problems that have threatened to wreck the main propulsion engines of San Antonio-class amphibious transport docks finally may have been fixed by a series of solutions put together by a team of Navy and industry engineers.

At issue is near-microscopic grit that gets into the lubricating oil of the diesel engines that drive the 25,000-ton ships. If undetected or untreated, the grit causes scarring on the main bearings that support the engine over the crankshaft; if the problem continues, the crankshaft gets out of alignment and ultimately could destroy the engines.

While all five ships of the class that are in service have suffered to varying degrees from the problems, two of them — the San Antonio and brand-new New York — have engines out of service because of the trouble.

The issue is even more perplexing because the engine — the 16-cylinder Colt-Pielstick PC2.5 STC made by Fairbanks Morse — is quite familiar to Navy engineers, powering, for example, the Whidbey Island-class dock landing ships.

Engineers have been scratching their heads over the problem almost since San Antonio was commissioned in 2005. Various fixes were thought to have solved the issue, but it has continued to plague the ships.

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