Cover of Hot Rod magazine showing Ford Flathead V8 engine with centrifugal supercharger (on top)

The centrifugal type supercharger is practically identical in operation to a turbocharger, with the exception that instead of exhaust gases driving an impeller, there is only a compressor housing, and that is driven from the crankshaft via a belt-, gear- or chain-drive. As such the centrifugal exhibits the same benefits and down-sides. Boost increases with the square of RPM (unlike the linear nature of the positive displacement devices), however low-rpm boost suffers because air can pass back through the supercharger with little restriction until RPMs rise sufficiently to counteract the effect. Of all the belt-driven supercharger types this type exhibits the highest efficiency, and due to its design and lack of low-down boost is often employed on near standard compression engines. The Roots type supercharger and the twin-screw type supercharger, however, produce low-rpm boost and as such feel far more reactive on the road. Detractors of the centrifugal type supercharger note that it combines the worst qualities of a turbocharger and a supercharger, since it doesn't develop appreciable boost at low RPM (Boost Threshold), but still uses up prodigious amounts of engine power to operate. Cover of Hot Rod magazine showing Ford Flathead V8 engine with centrifugal supercharger, uploaded by Gerald Zuckier. ... Cover of Hot Rod magazine showing Ford Flathead V8 engine with centrifugal supercharger, uploaded by Gerald Zuckier. ... Air foil bearing-supported turbocharger cutaway made by Mohawk Innovative Technology Inc. ... Crankshaft, pistons, and flywheel Continental engine marine crankshafts, 1942 For the comic strip about an old, curmudgeonly bus driver, see Crankshaft (comic strip). ... The Roots type supercharger is a positive displacement type device that operates by pulling air through a pair of meshing lobes not dissimilar to a set of stretched gears. ... The twin-screw type supercharger is a positive displacement type device that operates by pulling air through a pair of meshing lobes not dissimilar to a set of worm gears. ...

Many World War II piston aicraft engines such as the Rolls-Royce Merlin and the Daimler-Benz DB 605 utilized single-speed or multi-speed centrifugal superchargers. Because high-performance aircraft engines were typically mated to constant-speed propellers and did not see a great variation in engine speeds, the poor low-rpm performance of centrifugal superchargers was not an issue. Turbosupercharged engines combined a centrifugal supercharger with a turbocharger for better performance across a broad range of altitudes. Combatants Allies: Poland, British Commonwealth, France/Free France, Soviet Union, United States, China, and others Axis Powers: Germany, Italy, Japan, and others Casualties Military dead: 17 million Civilian dead: 33 million Total dead: 50 million Military dead: 8 million Civilian dead: 4 million Total dead: 12 million World War II... The Merlin was a 12 cylinder, 60° V, 27 litre, liquid cooled piston aircraft engine built during World War II by Rolls-Royce. ... Developed from the Diamler-Benz DB 600 first produced in 1937, the 600 series of engines was used mainly in Germanys Messerschmitt Bf 109 and 110 fighters. ... Air foil bearing-supported turbocharger cutaway made by Mohawk Innovative Technology Inc. ...

The Volkswagen G60 supercharger was invented by L.Creux circa 1905, the G in G60 standing for G-Lader (Lader being german for Charger), a supercharger whose interior resembles the letter "G". This supercharger is only mentioned here for completeness as it should not be confused with a centrifugal supercharger since it does not use centripedal force to compress air. The chambers within these superchargers reduce in size as the air heads towards the centrally located exhaust. Hence they are more like the twin-screw type supercharger in that are endowed with internal compression. They also make boost at low revolutions because of this. Volkswagen (pronounced folksvagen; meaning: peoples car; also known as VW or V-Dub) is an automobile manufacturer based in Wolfsburg, Germany in the State of Lower Saxony. ... The twin-screw type supercharger is a positive displacement type device that operates by pulling air through a pair of meshing lobes not dissimilar to a set of worm gears. ...

The G60 engine was available in the VW Corrado but also in limited numbers in the VW Passat and the VW Golf. A similar, but smaller G40 equipped engine was available in the VW Polo during the early 1990s. The 40 and 60 denote the displacer scroll width in mm. 1991 Volkswagen Corrado The Volkswagen Corrado is a 2-door, 4-passenger compact sports car developed by Volkswagen and built by Karmann in Osnabrück, Germany. ... The Volkswagen Passat is a midsized car built by Volkswagen AG. It falls between the VW Golf/Jetta and VW Phaeton in the current VW production line-up. ... VW Golf Mk. ... 1994 VW Polo MK IIF. 1996 VW Polo. ... The 1990s decade refers to the years from 1990 to 1999, inclusive. ...

All supercharger types benefit from the use of an intercooler to reduce heat produced during compression. An intercooler is a device used on turbocharged and supercharged internal combustion engines to improve the volumetric efficiency and increase the amount of charge in the engine, thereby increasing power. ...

See also

• Centrifugal compressor