What’s A Turbocharger & How Does It Work?
The internal combustion engine hasn’t changed much since its inception. Over the years, it has become more reliable and thanks to fuel injection as well as variable valve timing, more efficient. But the general concept of how it works remains the same.
How An ICE Works
A specific ratio of fuel and air is mixed and injected into the cylinders as the piston moves downward. When it comes back up, the mixture is compressed and ignited in the combustion chamber. This burning of fuel causes the expansion of gasses and that pushes the piston downwards. The same process occurs in the rest of the cylinders in a set firing order.
When the piston comes back up again, the exhaust valve opens allowing the exhaust gasses to be expelled from the cylinder. Since a finite amount of fuel can be burnt in the combustion chamber at any given time, larger displacement engines are needed to create more power.
That said, larger displacements don’t necessarily guarantee more power. It also depends on the efficiency of the engine, quality of the components as well as various other factors. Instead, incorporating a turbocharger is one way to produce decent power gains.
Role Of Turbochargers
They allow smaller displacement engines to produce as much or more power than larger ones. Turbochargers work by compressing the air that enters the cylinder. This allows a higher volume of air to occupy the same space in each cylinder and subsequently allow more fuel to be burnt during each combustion cycle.
Turbochargers are powered by exhaust gasses that are expelled from the engine after combustion. These gases enter the intake of the turbocharger and cause its turbine to spin, then exit into the exhaust piping. Its rotation powers the compressor via connecting shaft, which pulls in air from the engine’s intake system, compresses it and feeds it into the combustion chambers.
An intercooler is used to cool the compressed air before it enters the engine. Compressing any volume of air causes a rise in its temperature. Cooler air is denser, which allows more oxygen to enter the cylinder and this is what allows more fuel to be burnt during the combustion process.
Types Of Turbochargers
Turbocharger technology has advanced significantly over the years to make more efficient use of the exhaust gases that are expelled from the engine. This has spawned twin scroll and variable geometry turbochargers and various others.
It’s also the reason smaller and more efficient engines can be used to produce substantial amounts of power. That said, turbocharged engines undergo far more stress during their lifetime compared to naturally aspirated ones. As such, they may not offer the same service life as their legacy counterparts.
