BYE-BYE TURBO-LAG... the game is rapidly changing:
2013 WRX could get game-changing electric turbo
Quote:
Subaru, which is owned by Fuji Heavy Industries, is said to be working on a revolutionary new electric turbocharger. In 2007, the Japanese company filed a patent for an electrically-powered turbocharger and it is reported by Drive Australia, that the 2013 WRX could have the game-changing technology when it comes out.
The ground-breaking technology being developed by Subaru, would trap heat energy from exhaust gases, generating electricity to power the turbo. The traditional turbo needs complicated piping to generate the extra power, where the new electrically-powered turbocharger would create power more efficiently and also have less turbo lag.
(...)
Would the success of an electric turbocharger in the next generation WRX give good reason for Subaru to apply the same technology to the Subaru BRZ?
|
Audi future engines: Electric turbocharger is coming
Quote:
Audi's electric biturbo technology
In advanced diesel development at Audi’s site in Neckarsulm, engineers developed this new electric biturbo technology that uses a secondary compressor that boosts the main turbocharger at lower engine speeds. All turbochargers use energy from the exhaust to drive the turbo. The problem with conventional turbo’s is the torque needed for power becomes gradually greater only as the exhaust energy increases.
Audi’s new electric biturbo makes it possible, independently of the exhaust energy available, to build up charge pressure quickly and achieve high levels of torque even at very low rpm’s. This eliminates turbo lag and offers an instant increase in torque and power. The biturbo uses both a turbine wheel driven by the exhaust gas stream, and an electrically driven turbine that accelerates to very high speeds in an extremely short time.
Audi says, the electrically driven compressor is placed after the main turbocharger and intercooler in the charge air path. And when the main turbocharger’s energy output is low, the air is directed into the electric compressor and is compressed there a second time thus boosting the power at low revs.
The results of the new Audi electric biturbo are impressive. In preliminary testing, torque buildup occurs significantly earlier, and the driver experiences a distinct boost in performance immediately. Both BMW and Subaru have also been developing their own electric turbochargers with Subaru looking to put the new technology on the next generation WRX engines.
|