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In this episode of the TurboTime Podcast, Myth Busters Klaus Burn of Ebara Elliott Energy, and Rainer Kurz of RKSBenergy LLC, discuss root-cause analysis (RCA), including what it is, the philosophy and methodologies behind it, what actions should and should not be taken, and more.

Brun said: “RCA, some folks call it root-cause failure analysis, looks at something that failed: Your machine had a catastrophic failure, or you’re missing performance by a percent or two—something is not as you would expect in a compressor or gas or steam turbine, and you want to figure out what it is. So, you perform an RCA based on certain symptoms. In most cases, RCA starts with a review of the machine’s operation that may have preceded the failure and in some cases a metallurgical investigation, which is one of the best indicators as to what failed. It can indicate it was high-cycle fatigue, sudden overload, corrosion or erosion, for example. Then you figure out what excitation may have caused the high-cycle fatigue or what in your process gas may have caused corrosion or erosion.”

Kurz said: “In a way, this is a bit like a detective story. You find something failed, aka the dead body, and then you gather evidence. One of the key things in root-cause failure analysis is that you not only gather evidence, but you also document it. One of the key problems when these reports are written is you have a failure in 2015, for example, and you conduct an RCA, and the next similar failure isn’t for another 10 years. (These events don’t happen that often.) And if you haven't documented what you did for the first one, you can’t use it as a starting point.”

Klaus Brun and Rainer Kurz discuss root-cause analysis—what it is, its methodologies, and why it’s so important to managing turbomachines.

TurboTime Podcast: Root Cause Analysis with the Myth Busters 

During this episode of the TurboTime Podcast, Klaus Brun and Rainer Kurz discuss how hydrogen is transported and its use as an energy carrier. They then discuss how ammonia is produced, its advantages and limitations, and for what industries it’s a suitable solution.

“We’ve previously talked about hydrogen in some of our Myth Buster podcasts and how it’s relevant to a decarbonized energy economy as an energy carrier. Unfortunately, hydrogen itself has a lot of nasty characteristics: it's hard to compress, highly flammable, as a gas it’s not easy to deal with, etc. From a transportation and storage perspective, it leaks, has many safety issues, causes hydrogen embrittlement, etc., making it difficult to transport.”

“Making ammonia is nothing new. We know how to how the process works, but it is an energy-intensive process. But ammonia is a very toxic gas. It causes skin burns rapidly if you touch it in liquid form. In vapor form, even at less than 100 PPMs, it’s very irritating, so it creates a lot of issues from the handling perspective.”

In this episode of the TurboTime podcast, Myth Buster Klaus Brun and Rainer Kurz discuss ammonia. 

TurboTime Podcast: Ammonia with the Myth Busters

GE Vernova’s LM6000 gas turbine will operate on 100% renewable hydrogen, what the company is calling, a “first of its kind” turbine solution. The aeroderivative is part of its LM6000VELOX package, and per an order with ATCO Australia, will deliver four LM6000VELOX units to the Whyalla hydrogen power plant in Australia. Commissioning is slated to begin in early 2026.

Midhat Mirabi, Managing Director at GE Vernova’s Gas Power Aeroderivatives New Units, told 

“The new design represents a leap forward in innovation, overcoming the challenges of hydrogen’s higher flame speed through precise design enhancements to the fuel nozzle, optimized water injection schedules, and advanced control modifications. Equipped with robust safety features, including nitrogen purge systems and hydrogen fire detection systems, it sets a new benchmark for reliability and safety. This is engineering excellence redefined."

Eric Gray, CEO of GE Vernova’s Gas Power business, said over the years, the company has been investing in R&D to redesign its combustion systems to operate on various blends of hydrogen. 

The Whyalla hydrogen power plant will deliver flexible power, additional grid stability, and consistent supply output for South Australian homes and businesses by leveraging spare renewable energy produced via large-scale wind and solar farms. It may provide a combined capacity of up to 200 MW, meeting local electricity demand when renewable energy sources enter intermittency periods.

“The state of South Australia is already capable of running its grid on 100% renewable energy; however, this requires devices such as gas turbines or synchronous condensers to provide inertia for grid stability," said Dr Jeffrey Goldmeer, Director of Energy Transition, GE Vernova. "Gas turbines, when operated on 100% renewable-based hydrogen, can provide dispatchable and decarbonized power.”

“With more than 70% of energy generated from renewable resources, South Australia is set to become a global leader in producing and utilizing renewable hydrogen and we are delighted to be part of this project that can unlock decarbonization opportunities,” said John Ivulich, CEO and Country Chair, ATCO Australia. “By deploying GE Vernova’s first-of-its-kind aeroderivative solution, able to operate on 100% hydrogen, we will support South Australia’s continued energy transition and decarbonization journey, in alignment with the state’s goals outlined in the Government’s Hydrogen Jobs Plan.”

The four LM6000VELOX units will be powered by renewable hydrogen produced at the Whyalla complex. Upon completion, Whyalla will include large-scale hydrogen production and storage plants.

GE Vernova has a proven reputation as a supplier of power infrastructure,” said the Premier of South Australia, Peter Malinauskas. “More importantly, GE Vernova is capable of producing turbines that can operate at 100% capacity on hydrogen. This means we can harness South Australia’s renewable resources and put it to productive use, helping develop a more sustainable electricity supply across our state.”

’s heavy-duty gas turbine combustion parts business located in Greenville, SC. Per the definitive agreement, GE Vernova will obtain all assets at Woodward’s Greenville site, which is focused on supplying parts and services for the company’s gas turbine manufacturing operations and supports its investments in United States manufacturing, jobs, and domestic supply chain. The transaction is expected to close in early 2025.

 was also chosen by the Department of Energy (DOE) to receive an award under the H2SENSE Exploratory Topic—a program run by the DOE’s Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy that supports technologies for gas detection and quantification across the hydrogen supply chain.

The LM6000 gas turbine units feature a newly designed fuel nozzle, optimized water injection schedules, advanced control modifications, and safety features.

First GE Vernova Aeroderivative Gas Turbine Operates on 100% Hydrogen

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