super charged vrs turbo charged

[Bernoulli]

What is the difference between an engine that is super charged and one that is turbo charged? Thanks in advance for all constructive comments.

 

[Dash8]

Supercharger
engine direct driven device to increase the fuel/air mixture in an engine

Turbocharger
same principle, but its driven by exhaust gas

there's pro's and cons to both, but imho, supercharging is better (and looks cooler )

 

[bigD]

Because the supercharger is being driven by the engine - there's a bit of power being used to drive it. Therefore, turbos typically provide more additional power than superchargers do.

The flip side of this is that because the supercharger is directly connected, it doesn't suffer from the lag that turbos do. On a turbo, the turbine needs to spool up, which results in a bit of lag before it begins providing boost.

 

[VNugget]

Also note that sometimes you'll see "supercharged" referring to either, especially in older writing.

 

[EagleRJ]

If you're talking about aircraft engines, turbocharging is more common than supercharging- probably because the supercharger's drive belt is one more thing to break in an airplane (there are gear-driven designs too, but it's still more complex). There are several types of adding power in an aircraft:

-Turbo-normalizing- Using a turbocharger to restore the induction charge to sea-level pressure as the aircraft climbs.

-Turbo-supercharging- Using a turbocharger to boost the induction charge above sea-level pressure.

-Turbo-compounding- Not really supercharging at all, but using an exhaust-driven turbine that is connected to the crankshaft by a gearbox. Used to recover lost energy in the exhaust and return it to the crankshaft as additional power.


As previously mentioned, turbochargers and superchargers each have their strengths and weaknesses. You should see some of the turbo/super throwdowns that get going on automotive message boards! They can be more spirited than the PFT/Mesa/Boeing/Airbus/religion discussions on here!

 

[crash-proof]

-Turbo-compounding- Not really supercharging at all, but using an exhaust-driven turbine that is connected to the crankshaft by a gearbox. Used to recover lost energy in the exhaust and return it to the crankshaft as additional power.

From my knowledgethe Wright 3350 was the only motor to use the turbocompund method, but were there others? Smaller GA engines? To me it makes sense, why throw away that exaust when you could use it to help regenerate power. I could see it being used in a smaller continental or lycoming type motor.

 

[bocefus]

"there are gear-driven designs too, but it's still more complex"

Perhaps, but gear driven superchargers on aircraft have proven to be much more reliable than exhaust driven turboshargers

 

[troy]

don't forget that when using an exhaust restricting device (turbo), the back pressure increases in the exhaust and combustion chamber resulting in a slight hp reduction. the turbo makes up for the difference. I've never heard of the turbo compund method, I wonder how much is recovered?

 

[FN FAL]

Also note that sometimes you'll see "supercharged" referring to either, especially in older writing.

You'll find that out if you ever have to get TSIO-470's worked on...they just about have to dig out some Egyptian stone tablets and dust them off, just to get a clue.

 

[wingnutt]

...superchargers are good, but turbos rock