Tuesday, April 24, 2012

Getting to Know a Turbo Charger

etting to Know a Turbo Charger

By on April 23, 2012 4:30 am
The term ‘turbocharger’ is not a new word to many, as most of us used it in our everyday conversation to add an extra spice to it. All that is known is that if a car that possesses such features can run faster/ perform better. So what on earth is a turbo charger and how does it assist in the performance of a car? In short, the term of ‘turbo charger’ is a shorten name of turbine driven supercharger. In layman’s term, it is simply a pump that pushes more air into the engine instead of letting the engine suck in air itself.
Image courtesy of smreperformance.com

So how exact does it helps boost the performance? The pump’s function is to assist the engine in acquiring more air for combustion purposes which indirectly boost the efficiency of the engine. Many might question, through such process, does the fuel consumption increased as well? The answer is yes, with the added efficiency, the fuel efficiency tends to diminish. Therefore, it usually acts as a secondary engine in a sports or high performance vehicle. Also, it is incorporated in a diesel engine to increase the energy injected into the engine to generate more power to weight ratios. Such can be illustrated with an example.
Think of it like this, a car with a weight of 100kg that delivers 150 horsepower will have a power to weight ratio of 150hp/ton. Thus, with the help of a turbo charger on the engine, the ratio can be pushed higher, thus allowing the vehicle to carry more loads; therefore, making the turbo charger a necessity in a super car or larger vehicle.
Image courtesy of en.wikipedia.org
For those that still think that turbo charger is a complex machine, it is not! If only the operation of the turbo charger can be recognise, the simplicity of the set up will amaze you. The structure is made out of few turbines that had fins at the opposite directions which is located at the end of the shaft. One of which is connected to the engine where it turns the turbine, another end is connected before the inlet manifold to suck in more air to the engine. Therefore, the exhaust is the one that decides on the air inflow to the engine. Similar to other vehicle in the market, there are advantages and disadvantages in purchasing vehicle with a turbo charger, but the choice is always yours, so select a vehicle that best fit your requirement.
Image courtesy of 2carpros.com

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