Longer life low-speed

Low-speed, two-stroke engines have continued their dominance in the area of shipbuilding with low-speed engines propelling more than 70% of ships built in 1998. However, ship owners have been complaining about a decline in the reliability of these engines and designers have responded by developing several modifications which have either already been incorporated into the engine design or are being tested. For example, combustion chambers for the 80-, 90- and 98-cm-bore MAN B&W engines have been modified to address complaints about the inconel heat protection coating on their piston crowns.