The popular phrase "making it worth every penny" cannot be more apt for any other engineering

invention other than the internal combustion engines which have significantly contributed to the
''mobility'' which has been one of the key drivers for the development of human civilization. Just imagine
a world without means of transportation even with all the high tech communication gadgetry and we
feel that we are still in the medieval ages.
We are living in a world with finite resources and ''making it worth every penny'' does apply to every
technological invention. The turbocharger is one such invention which will help us realize this target. The
targets here are very ambitious especially the modern emission legislations for example the
EU(European Union) has demanded CO2 emissions to be 95g/Km by 2020. Some have even put a more
demanding restriction of 80g/Km. Are these targets feasible? Can the present technology meet them?
These are some questio s that o e i o e s i d. O a philosophi al ote, as i ely put y so eo e
ha ge is the o ly o sta t i life . i ilarly, the te h ology should also adapt to the eed of the
hour
And frankly, the turbocharger technology has adapted over time to meet the new technological
challenges which have come up time and again due to environmental legislations. In fact the early
turbocharger technology was thought to be ahead of its times and was lying dormant for around 10
years. Starting with a very in o ati e o ept of hargi g usi g the e gi e po er i its tur o harger
beta version(the superchargers as famously known), turbochargers have come a long way.
Turbochargers 1.0 versions primarily used for piston engine aircrafts of world war-II vintage and its twin
brothers in automobiles suffered from the problem of turbo-lag and were limited in their boosting
capability because of the risk of reaching detonation( or knocking limit) in a gasoline engine. Now
aki g e ery pe y ou t has se eral di e sio s ot just fuel e o o y. If you are a ri h ara
sheikh i o e of the oil ri h ou tries, tur o lag e o es your pro le ut for the lesser fortu ate it s
the do sizi g of the e gi e hi h attersafter all e are getti g the sa e perfor a e i ter s of
po er fro a s aller e gi e ith a etter fuel effi ie y Who ould ot like that deal.
Turbocharger 2.0 version concentrated on the deficiencies of the first generation to address the problem
of turbo lag and detonation/knocking as popularly known. Now we have the waste-gate valve to limit the
boost pressure in the gasoline engine. Initially they were mechanically controlled but now a days, the
engine control unit has taken over this domain also because of advancement and robustness of the
engine electronics and improved sensors and faster processors(3.0 version of course). Since in a diesel
engine, the ignition is spontaneous whereas in a gasoline engines there are lot of control devices such as
the control of the ignition timing and timings of the injections of the fuels, the problem of limiting boost
pressure is being addressed successfully in downsized gasoline engines. The lag is primarily due to
multiple factors primarily from the slow buildup of the exhaust gases to the rotational inertia which
restricts initial speed buildup for the turbines. This has been addressed to a large extent by
improvements in bearing technology, reducing the rotational inertia of the turbines by improving the
materials of the turbines and making them more lightweight hence achieving the required RPM with
lower exhaust pressures.
Turbocharger 3.0 is a taking these solutions to the next level by innovations such as variable geometry
vanes for the turbochargers, direct fuel injection instead of more conventional intercooling for the

compressors, multi staging compressors, using divided scroll casing in order to maintain the pressure
enough to reduce the turbo lag. As we are moving towards hybrid engine technology, hybrid
turbochargers are the way forward with electric motors taking away some of the work of the turbines.
Using stored energy (such as compressed gas) onboard to reduce the lag is also one of the way forward
in future. With the improvement in material technology, probably one will see realisation of non metallic
turbine and compressor components.
The impact of turbocharging technology is considerable especially if we think how much precious fuel we
have saved because of this technology. A 15-30% reduction in fuel consumption is a significant number
and turbo chargers are acting as life savers for the internal combustion engine technology because
without fossil fuels, the technology will be useless. The other spin off is the emission norms which have
been met especially with the incorporation of this technology at a sustainable cost for the car
manufacturers. And the impact can be seen by the all-pervasive use of this technology be it large diesel
engines of a cargo ship or the supersized engines of the mining trucks. The effect is more visible in
marine shipping cargo industry which contrary to popular belief are actually one of the major polluters.
With a daily fuel consumption of 300-320 Metric tonne of 80,000-100,000 gross tonnage ship and with
fuel cost constituting 50-60% of the cost of shipping, an efficiency improvement of 15% on an average in
fuel consumption will be a major cost saver in term of the precious fuel but also in terms of the green
house gases emissions. So a pair of Nike sneakers will cost on an average 10-15% extra in Switzerland
because the ship transporting the cargo would have had consumed approximately 950 tonnes of fuel
extra on its 10 day trip from the port of New York to the port city of Hamburg if there were no
turbochargers.
With the share of trade by sea being the most dominant compared to any other means of transport for
trading, the marine turbochargers are actually helping in saving a sizeable amount of fuel. But the
potential still exists especially with the United States as the turbocharged car constitute only about
40-50% in the existing market compared to a better European penetration of 60-70%. The future of the
turbocharger is bright as it will be one of the key tools in the hand of engine designers for meeting
stricter emission norms. Also, as stated above, it is the availability of fossil fuel which drives the engine
technology and turbocharger technology will give us some extra years in planning an alternative.
By:
Abhishek Jha
MSc(3rd Semester)
Computational Mechanics of Materials & Structures(COMMAS)
University of Stuttgart, Germany