VanDyne SuperTurbo Increases Power and Efficiency

Supercharging and turbocharging are now widely used to obtain big engine-style performance from fuel-sipping smaller displacement engines. While superchargers provide lots of low speed torque for great acceleration and instant throttle response, they are fuel-thirsty and heavy. In contrast, turbochargers are lighter and more fuel efficient, but can suffer from turbo lag and provide little low speed torque.

Developed by VanDyne SuperTurbo in Fort Collins, Colorado, the SuperTurbocharger combines the best features of both the supercharger and turbocharger. The SuperTurbo also adds ‘turbo-compounding’ to extract waste energy from an engine’s exhaust gases, turning it into mechanical power that’s delivered to the crankshaft to augment output of the piston engine. This increases engine power without a corresponding increase in fuel consumption, with power increased over the entire engine rpm band with virtually no turbo lag.

The SuperTurbo is mechanically connected to the engine crankshaft with two interconnected transmissions. The first transmission reduces high speed turbo shaft output to a lower speed, with the second continuously variable transmission (CVT) varying rpm between the engine and the turbo shaft. Once the turbine side of the compact unit has been spun up, the power it recovers beyond that required to spin the unit is directed back to the drivetrain rather than opening a wastegate, as is the case with a conventional turbocharger.

In computer simulations done by researchers at Southwest Research Institute, a 2.0-liter, four-cylinder engine using a SuperTurbo exceeded the torque curve of a 3.2-liter V-6 engine and met the torque curve of a 4.2-liter V-8. By delivering increased low-end torque, the SuperTurbo permits downsizing a gasoline engine up to 50 percent with no loss in performance. The technology can also capture approximately 30 percent of the exhaust gas energy that is now wasted. Together, this adds up to a net 25 to 30 percent increase in efficiency compared to a non-turbocharged gasoline engine.

VanDyne is currently working with an undisclosed automotive manufacturer to develop the Super-Turbocharger for use on gasoline engines. It expects to launch the first application in 2012. The projected added per-unit cost would be $350 when produced in volumes of over 200,000 annually, which could result in $450 annual savings in fuel costs.

The SuperTurbocharger can also be used with diesel engines. For example, the company plans to offer a SuperTurbo retrofit kit for on-highway trucks starting in 2012. These can produce a 7 percent reduction in fuel consumption that can translate into an annual $4,000 plus savings in fuel costs.

VanDyne SuperTurbo has received funding from the U.S. Army to further develop the SuperTurbo for diesel-powered military equipment. Besides decreasing fuel usage and increasing power output, the technology can reduce the visual soot signature of military vehicles on the battlefield.