TURBOCHARGERS, SUPERCHARGERS AND NITRO BOOSTERS
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I noticed this section two days back, Advice on turbochargers. It is better off with a simple name Turbochargers or performance boosters or something like that.
When the word turbo is came across in a car’s specifications, there are three things that can come to a person’s mind, the turbocharger, the supercharger and the nitro booster. While the three devices have the same function of increasing the performance of the engine, they are fundamentally very different in the mode of operation.
Before going to the details of the three, a basic knowledge of the working of an engine is required. As all of you know, there are three types of engines currently available in the vehicles in the country, which are 1. Petrol engines, 2. Gas engines and 3. Diesel engines. The most commonly used ones are the petrol and diesel engines
In engineering, the study of heat and work comes under the branch of thermodynamics. When a thermodynamic system changes from one state to another it is called a process. A process in which the initial state is identical to the final state is called a cycle. Thermodynamic cycles are the basis of all internal combustion engines. The petrol and gas engines work on the principle of a thermodynamic cycle called Otto cycle and diesel engine works on a cycle called the diesel cycle.
Working principle of Diesel engines
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As I said, diesel engine works on the diesel cycle devised by Rudolph diesel.In the diesel engine atmospheric air is drawn into the engine cylinder and is compressed by the piston to high pressure and temperature. This temperature is above the ignition temperature of the fuel. Just before the end of the compression stroke, the fuel is injected as a fine spray by means of a fuel injector.Due to the extreme conditions inside the compressed cylinder the FUEL LITERALLY EXPLODES and the gases expand the cylinder, and this is what we obtain as the mechanical power from the engine. As the ignition of the fuel takes place due to high pressure and temperature brought about by the compression of air inside the cylinder, the engine is called the CI ENGINE or the compression ignition engine.
Working principle of the petrol engine
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Petrol engine operates on the Otto cycle. Petrol is a highly volatile fuel than diesel. As most of you may have noticed, it vapourises very easily.In the petrol engine, many of you may have seen a carburetor associated with it. The device is used to mix a desired quantity of petrol and air. This fuel air mixture is injected into the engine cylinder, as only air is compressed and fuel is injected later in the diesel engine. This fuel air mixture in the engine cylinder is BURNT BY USING THE SPARK provided by the spark plug. The gases expand, and we get the power output. As the ignition takes place with the help of the spark plug, the petrol engine is called a Spark ignition engine or the SI ENGINE.
TURBOCHARGERS.
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It is a device used to increase the performance of the engine. Inside the engine combustion takes place that utilizes oxygen and fuel. In a petrol engine, the carburetor is used to mix the fuel and the air, and petrol- air mixture is injected into the cylinder to be burnt using the spark plug.
This leaves us with two choices for increasing the power output of the engine, increasing the fuel or increasing the density of air that is injected into it.
Increasing the air density is much more efficient as it does not affect the mileage of the engine. This is done by using a turbocharger. It is coupled to the engine, and starts its operation when the engine goes above a specified rpm.
What does this do to the power of the engine? Well! It does many wonders. The recently launched Swift has a 1.3l engine and it gives 87 bhp power, while the rally sport, with a 1.8 l engine has a power of 150 bhp. 150 horses tied to the front end of your car due to this small baby in your bonnet.
The turbocharger is used very commonly with diesel engines nowadays.
SUPERCHARGERS
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Many of you may not be aware of superchargers. I was also not aware that they were different from turbochargers until I was told by Arnab, one of the best automobile experts here on mouthshut.
So what are superchargers? They are very similar to turbochargers except that it is connected to the flywheel. The flywheel is a heavy shaft connected to the crank, so they the rotation is made uniform. The crank provides a very sudden torque during the power stroke, which would, in the absence of the flywheel, make the ride a very bumpy and uncomfortable one.
Superchargers operate at low rpm’s and are rendered nearly ineffective at high rpm.
NITRO BOOSTER(NOS)
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The nitro booster will be very familiar to you from the films like’The fast and the furious’. Watched with awe how the car accelerates beyond the speed given even in the speedometer. Well it is by the help of the help of the nitro boost. Yup, the red button that they press.
Nitro booster is very different from the rest of the lot, in that it supplements the petrol with nitrous oxide that burns more efficiently. It releases a lot more oxygen into the system causing very efficient combustion.
ALL THE DEVICES MAKE THE CAR FUN TO RIDE, BUT THE MOST IMPORTANT THING IS TO DRIVE CAREFULLY.
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