Darshan Patel
Thermodynamics
Alexander Alexeev
December 05, 2008
Race Engines and Engine Modifications
The most common modifications and which all race engines use to gain the most power out of the engine are by the means of force induction. Force induction is when you are compressing the air and sending it into the engine. By sending in more air into the engine creates a greater amount of engine combustion which generates the extra horsepower. The typical boost that is provided by a turbo charger is nearly around 6 to 8 PSI, which is adjustable and you use almost 20 PSI if you have a heavily modified engine which and handle the great amount of boost.
The way a turbo charger works is that it collects ambient air from near the engine bay, collects it through the compressor wheel and then through large piping it is sent to the intercooler which is usually mounted in the front of the car which turns the ambient air into cold air. After the air is cooled it is then sent to the engine cylinder where it combusts and then gets released through the turbine wheel of the turbo charger and out the exhaust outlet and some being released through the waste gate. When waste gate opens and closes it is releasing pressurized air which generates a noise (psssh), the waste gate is generally opened and closed during each gear shift.
Through technology today, the most powerful turbocharger which was designed for a 2-stroke engine, outputs nearly 20,000 to 25,000 kW. This large turbo charger has an efficiency of 70% which is really efficient, and with the compact construction it has a low noise level and a compression ratio of 4.2. From the most powerful turbocharger to the fastest production car would have in common? Well both uses the means of force induction, the fastest production car is the Bugatti Veyron 16.4. The Bugatti’s engine is composed of 4 turbochargers which power the W16 engine with 16 cylinders producing a 1001 HP (736 kW). Through all 4 turbochargers powering the engine and generating 1001 horsepower this vehicle and reach a top speed of 253 mph, and does 0-62 in just 2.5 seconds.
Generally turbochargers are usually put on cars only, but I have a video where someone has put a turbocharger on a motorcycle. This is very unique because the motorcycle engines are usually already having a low compression. When adding the turbocharger to the motorcycle it then generates about 500 horsepower just from a 4 cylinder engine which only has two wheels. During each gear shift because the motorcycle is producing so much power the bike does a wheelie (which makes the front wheel come off the ground).
Not many cars come with turbochargers but they are added on which and produce great amount of power through the use of your same engine, they do burn a lot of gas only if you are hitting boost during every gear shift. But if driven properly they can also save you a lot of gas mileage because the engine is producing greater amount of power necessary to move the car.