How Centrifugal Superchargers Work
The concept of a centrifugal supercharger is no different from any other type of supercharger, which is designed to increase the power output of an engine by packing more air into the cylinders during the intake stroke. By doing so, it allows for the injection of more fuel and, subsequently, burning more air and fuel, resulting in increased power production. In this article, we will delve into the details of how centrifugal superchargers work.
Design and Components
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A centrifugal supercharger is designed to spin a large impeller at high speed, which draws in air through an inlet and compresses it before forcing it out through an outlet. The impeller's design allows it to accelerate as it spins, creating a difference in pressure between the intake and outlet sides of the compressor. This pressure difference creates the boost that propels more air into the engine. The key components of a centrifugal supercharger include the impeller, compressor housing, drive system, and control system.
The Drive System
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The drive system is responsible for powering the impeller, which is typically connected to the crankshaft of the engine via a belt or chain. This connection ensures that the impeller spins at the same speed as the engine's crankshaft, allowing it to draw in air and compress it efficiently. The drive system can be configured in various ways depending on the specific application, including direct drive systems, belt drives, and chain drives.
The Control System
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The control system is responsible for regulating the operation of the supercharger, ensuring that it operates within predetermined parameters. This includes monitoring factors such as engine speed, throttle position, and boost pressure to adjust the impeller's rotation speed accordingly. The control system can be manual or electronic, depending on the sophistication required.
Advantages of Centrifugal Superchargers
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Centrifugal superchargers have several advantages over other types of superchargers. One of the most significant benefits is their low discharge temperature, which means that they pull in air at one temperature and do not increase it significantly as it exits. This makes them an attractive option for engines with intercooling systems.
Another advantage of centrifugal superchargers is their packaging design. They are generally mounted in the front of the engine rather than on top, making them easier to install and less prone to interference from hoods or other components. Additionally, their compact design allows for more flexibility when setting up an intercooling system.
Disadvantages of Centrifugal Superchargers
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While centrifugal superchargers offer several advantages, they also have some disadvantages. One of the most significant drawbacks is their poor low-end torque output. Unless the impeller is spinning at a speed above 3,000 rpm, it will not produce much boost for the engine.
Another disadvantage is that centrifugal superchargers add a parasitic load to the engine, which results in decreased fuel economy. This is because the engine must work harder to drive the supercharger and pull in air, consuming more energy and resulting in increased fuel consumption.
Stress on Engines
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Finally, adding power to an engine through a centrifugal supercharger can put significant stress on the internal components of the engine. This means that engines with high-performance upgrades may have shorter lifespans due to excessive wear and tear. Therefore, it is essential to carefully consider the capabilities of the engine before installing a centrifugal supercharger.
Conclusion
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Centrifugal superchargers are an attractive option for engines seeking increased power output without sacrificing low-end torque. By understanding their design, advantages, disadvantages, and potential drawbacks, enthusiasts can make informed decisions about whether a centrifugal supercharger is right for their vehicle.
"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enHello everyone and welcome in this videowe are going to be talking about how centrifugal superchargers work and this in front of me is aVortec centrifugal supercharger it is out of a science of speed supercharger kitWhich I will be at some point in my life who knows when that will be installing in my s2000and so in this video we're just gonna be talking about how these work and the idea ofA centrifugal supercharger is no different from any otherSupercharger and that the whole purpose is to put more air into your cylindersSo you pack in more air into the cylindersDuring your intake stroke and by doing so you can inject more fuel and of course by burning more air and fuel you can makemore powerThat's the basic idea of a turbocharger or superchargerAny form of them packing more air make more power, and so how does it?Do this well like other superchargers a centrifugal supercharger is engine drivenSo you'll have this pulley hereWhich will be driven by an engine belt that will attach to the supercharger and as it rotates it will forceThe impeller of the supercharger to rotate, so we'll show that a little bit here, but essentiallyThere's a gear box in here so your engine's spinning it a certain rpmAnd then there's a reduction gear in here so this spinsAnd then as this spins your impeller actually spins at a faster rate, so I'm spinning it very slowlyBack here, and as you can see that impeller is spinning, and it's spinning at a much quicker rate even though. It's barely spinningThen I am spinning this back here as a result of that gear reduction so you can change aCouple things you could change that gear reduction if you wanted this to spin faster. That's a design aspectBut from a consumer standpoint you can change the pulley that you useso if you use a smaller pulley it means it's going to spin faster andAs a result this will spin faster through that gear reduction and so you can make more boost simply by changing this pulleySo this impeller sucks in air you'll have an air filter somewhere out thereIt'll suck in air through that air filter into the impeller centrifugal forceI know it's not a real thingBut that how's this thing got its name sends that air outward intoThe piping around the impeller and from thereIt is sent to the engine so it can either go through an intercooler next or go directly to the engineAnd so you'll have that added pressure and can be able to make more power now with this particular kitIt goes through and air to water intercoolerSo it will come in one end of this go out the other and then you can see there are these two little hosesRight here where it can come in and out these two ports, so it'll come inYou'll have coolant coming in one end and then out the otherYou've got this electric pump, so this water pump will flow coolant in one end out the other thiswill beMounted at the front of the vehicleAnd so you'll have that coolant coming in it'll be hot from passing through this intercooler being heated by the air which isPassing through it that'll come to the front of the car air will pass through and cool that coolant that coolant will then return backTo this air to water intercooler which is mounted within the engine bay cool off that air before it passesinto the intake manifold and into the vehicle now you'll notice that this looks very similar to aturbocharger and that's because on the compressor side it is very similar to the compressor side of aTurbocharger the biggest difference is the fact that this is driven by the enginerather than driven from exhaust gasses now the difference between a centrifugal supercharger andFor example a twin screw or a root style supercharger is basically how it supplies air to the engineSo these are going to be more effective at higher rpm at lower rpmthey're not going to be as effective as something like a root style or atwin-screw superchargerThese are more designed for that top-end the faster this spinsWhich means the faster your engine is spinning because this is a result of how fast your engine is spinningMultiplied by the gear ratio within it the faster this thing spins the more boost you make it's not consistent across the entire rpm rangesimilar to like a twin screw or root style superchargerWhich may have a more linear boost curve than this this boost curve will look seriously just kind of like a lineIncreasing as your engine rpm goes up there might be a slight curve to itBut essentially you're gonna have that peak boost will be achieved at peak engine rpmthat's when this thing's going to be pulling the most air in andsimilar to Honda S2000'sI mean that's kind of the style of the engine it has all its power all its torque above 6,000 rpmSo that's when this is going to be most effectiveThat's when that engines going to be most effective until it's gonna be a very noticeable difference inTorque as you get into the higher rpm kind of maintaining the characteristics of this car's engineSo that you know low rpm not all that much power as you get up into the higher rpmThat's where you start to actually feel the torque from the engine.So what are the advantages of a centrifugal style supercharger?Well one of them is the fact that it has a low discharge temperatureSo it pulls in air at one temperature and the temperature of that air going out isn't increased all that much still upWe're you know using an intercooler is a smart thing to do, but the thermal efficiency of centrifugal styleSuperchargers is pretty good the other thing is from a packaging standpointThese are generally going to be mounted in the front of the engine rather than on top like a root style or twin-screw superchargerSo you don't have to worry about you know the hoodgettinginterfering with space andInstead it's mounted in front of the engine and as so long as there's space in front of the engine to mount it you don'tHave to worry about manipulating the hood in any way so from a packaging standpoint they can be easy to installThey're also a design which allows for you to pretty easily set upintercooling so rather than a root style or twin screw where it's mounted on top of the engine and then wants to flow into theEngine it's difficultIt is done of course even with factory style superchargersBut it's more difficult to put in that air to water intercooler within that setup it has to be much more compactIt's not quite as flexible of a design whereas with a centrifugal setupYou can have that anywhere after this this doesn't have to feed directly to the engine so you're more flexible and setting up your intercoolerSetup, so what are the disadvantages of a centrifugal styleSupercharger? well the biggest one is that it doesn't have a great low-end torque, so unless this thing is spinningYou know 3,000 rpm and aboveIt's really not producing hardly any boost for your engineSo it's not doing a whole lot for you until it really starts to spin up now in engines like thisS2000 f20c which spins to 9,000 rpmThat's not a huge dealThe car is designed to be revved high and that's where this thing operates in its sweet spotBut it is important to note that you're not going to have that low-end grunt from installing a centrifugal superchargerAt the low end it'll operate very similar to stock, and then as you get into the higher rpmYou'll start to build boost another disadvantage of course adding a supercharger adds a parasitic loadSo your fuel economy will go down as a result not only of producing far more power and using more fuelBut as a result of having a parasitic loadAsking your engine to drive this on top of anything else so it takes energy to spin this thing it takes energy to pull inThat air and that energy all comes from your engineSo you're going to get worse fuel economy of course when you're modifying your carThat's probably not the first thing you're thinking about when you're thinking about adding more powerAnd then finally of course if you add power to an engine that means you're putting more stress on that engine and very simplyThere is a correlation between how much stress you put on the engine and how long that engine lastsSo if you ask your engine to make more horsepowerIt can do that. You know will it do it reliably? that is questionableAnd so you want to make sure you know that you have the internals to accompany what you're doing and you know regardlessOf how well-built it is the more power you put into an enginegenerally speakingThe shorter duration that engine is going to last because you are stressing those internalComponents more so if you guys have any questions or comments feel free to leave them below. Thanks for watching\n"
