How does the revolutionary new e-Turbo work?
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Externally, a turbocharger from the American company BorgWarner is no different from a conventional turbine. But after you connect it to the electrical system of the car, everything changes dramatically. Consider the features of the revolutionary technology.
Feature of the new turbocharger
eTurbo is yet another innovation for the F-1. But today it is gradually starting to be introduced into ordinary cars. The "e" symbol indicates the presence of an electric motor that drives the impeller when the motor has not reached the required speed. Goodbye turbo pit!
The electric motor stops running when the crankshaft rotates at the required speed for normal turbocharger impeller operation. But its function does not end there.
How e-Turbo works
In conventional turbines, a special valve is installed that lets gases into the blower impeller. The eTurbo eliminates the need for this valve. In this case, the impeller continues to operate at high speeds of the internal combustion engine, but the electrical system changes the polarity of the motor, due to which it turns into a generator.
The generated energy is used to feed additional devices such as heating the passenger compartment. In the case of hybrid vehicles, at this stage, the device recharges the battery. As for the bypass channel, eTurbo also has one, but its function is completely different.
The electric turbo eliminates the need for a variable geometry mechanism that regulates compressor pressure. In addition, the innovation affects the engine's emissions.
Environmental standards
When starting a conventional turbo engine, the compressor takes up a decent amount of heat from the exhaust. This affects the operation of the catalytic converter. For this reason, actual tests of turbine engines do not provide the eco-standards that are specified in the technical literature by the manufacturer.
In the first 15 minutes of operation of a cold engine in winter, the turbine does not allow the exhaust system to warm up quickly. The neutralization of harmful emissions in the catalyst occurs at a certain temperature. ETurbo technology drives the compressor shaft using an electric motor, and the bypass cuts off the access of exhaust gases to the turbine impeller. As a result, hot gases heat the active surface of the catalyst much faster than in conventional turbo engines.
The system is actively used in many race cars participating in Formula 1 races. This turbocharger increases the efficiency of the 1,6-liter V6 engine without losing power. Production models equipped with an electric turbocharger will soon appear on the global car market.
Turbine classification
BorgWarner has developed 4 modifications of the e-Turbo. The simplest one (eB40) is designed for small cars, and the more powerful (eB80) will be installed in large vehicles (trucks and industrial cars). The electric turbine can also be installed in hybrids with a 48-volt electrical system, or in plug-in hybrids that use 400 - 800 volts.
As the developer notes, this eTubo system has no analogues all over the world, and has nothing in common with the electric compressors used by Audi in the SQ7 model. The German counterpart also uses an electric motor to rotate the compressor shaft, but the system does not control the exhaust system. When the required number of revolutions is reached, the electric motor is simply turned off, after which the mechanism works like a conventional turbine.
e-Turbo from BorgWarner works with great efficiency, and the mechanism itself is not as heavy as its counterparts. It remains to be seen which vehicles will use this technology exactly. However, the manufacturer has hinted that it will be a supercar. There are speculations that it could be a Ferrari. Back in 2018, Italians applied for a patent for an electric turbo.
