Supercharger and Turbocharger

What is Supercharging and Turbocharging?

A supercharger is a turbine that compresses the air supplied to the ICE ( Internal Combustion engine) and thus increases the pressure and density of air supplied to the engine. Therefore more oxygen is supplied to the engine during each intake cycle, letting more fuel burn and there by increasing the power output. The power for the working of turbine is obtained from the working of engine via a belt, gear, shaft or chain.

Supercharger

There are mainly two types of supercharger, namely, Positive displacement and Dynamic compressor .

Positive displacement compressor provides a constant and a fixed amount of air at all speeds. Therefore the power is available during every revolution.. Whereas Dynamic compressors rely on accelerating the air to high speed and then exchanging that velocity for pressure by diffusing or slowing it down. That means, dynamic compressors do not provide pressure at low speeds. As speed increases above a certain rpm the power get delivered( usually called as power lagging).

Whereas, the key difference between turbocharger and supercharger is that the power for the turbine in turbocharger is obtained from the exhaust from the ICE

Turbocharger

A turbocharger is more efficient, provides more power and produce less emission than a naturally aspirated engine. The turbocharger is less responsive than a supercharger. Turbocharger is commonly used in Petrol and Diesel engines but they are also found useful in fuel cells. Because they are smaller in size and less complicated, they are more preferred. 

Apart from these, a twin-charger refers to an engine using both supercharger and turbocharger. 

Supercharging and turbocharging are widely used these days as they are fuel efficient, provides more power and produce less emission.