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Turbochargers & Superchargers: Theory and Application

113 messages,  Last post on Jul 29, 2008 at 7:31 PM

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What is this discussion about? Performance Mods

Messages Page 12 of 12

#111 of 113 Turbocharger and a Supercharger? by nitrousxl

Jul 29, 2008 (12:10 pm)

Excuse my ignorance, but what exactly is the problem with using a supercharger for low RPM's and letting a turbo take over at high RPM's? Seems like a good way to add power without much weight. Also it seems that TC's improve the gas mileage when the car isn't being floored all the time, what about SC's?

#112 of 113 Re: Turbocharger and a Supercharger? [nitrousxl] by paisan

Jul 29, 2008 (1:14 pm)

Replying to: nitrousxl (Jul 29, 2008 12:10 pm)
SCs can't be turned off at higher RPMs, they are directly proportional to the engine RPMs. I think there have been some cars with SCs and TCs on the same car but can't recall which if any.
 
-mike

#113 of 113 Re: Turbocharger and a Supercharger? [nitrousxl] by waterdr

Jul 29, 2008 (7:31 pm)

Replying to: nitrousxl (Jul 29, 2008 12:10 pm)
Anything is possible on paper....sure, this could be done, and there might even be a car or two out there with such a setup, though, not likely off the showroom floor. The biggest challenge would be cost and complexity of tune.
 
A solid option, however, is adding a waste gate to a super charger. Waste gates are generally used on turbos, but there are a few after-market applications where tuners have employed a waste gate on an SC. This gives you the benefit of being able to nearly turn the SC "on" or "off" by allow air to by-pass the intake during certain load conditions. A waste gate will give a SC a non-linear response if you want too.
 
BUT, the greatest benefit to having a wastegate is that you can over-size the SC so more boost is added in the lower RPM ranges, then as RPM's increase and you hit a designed boost level, the waste gate can open proportionally to maintain a flat boost level throughout the rest of the rpm range. Make sense?
 
I also think there are some SC applications that use a clutch to engage and disengage the blower pulley...similar to an AC system. This creates challenges for the tune, however.

Messages Page 12 of 12

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