Intercoolers, found in turbo or supercharged engines, provide much-needed cooling that a single radiator can’t. Before we explain how they work, we’ll explain why you might need one.
For the sake of simplicity, we’ll stick to engines that use turbochargers as an example. Turbocharged engines produce a lot of heat while compressing air, a process that helps to squeeze as much air as possible into the engine.
More air equals more power (among various other benefits such as fuel efficiency and reduced waste). That may sound simple enough, but compressed air gets very hot which means it loses density and therefore, oxygen.
Oxygen is vital as it is what aids combustion within the fuel and air mixture. To make use of the compressed air, it needs to be cooled to increase density and oxygen — this is where the intercooler comes in.
Natrad has a large range of intercoolers for performance vehicles or engines that need a little extra ‘oomph’. Get in touch with us for expert advice and fantastic service.
A forced induction engine is not uncommon in high performance vehicle applications. It has a range of benefits while remaining light-weight, which is a big bonus, particularly for racing.
However, all that compressed air can get to over 205 ° C in extreme conditions. As we mentioned before, hot compressed air isn’t great for combustion. That’s where an intercooler comes in.
The intercooler aids this process by cooling the air down before it enters the engine and combustion chamber. Depending on what kind of intercooler it is, the cooling process may be a little different.
An intercooler is a heat exchanger, and — much like a radiator — it processes air through fins and cools it down. There are two main types of intercoolers:
This is the most common application for everyday vehicles as it’s a very simple system where is processed by:
It usually relies on ambient airflow from the front of the car to flow through the intercooler and cool the compressed air down, much like a radiator.
Main benefits:
A liquid to air intercooler is far more complex, but they are becoming increasingly popular in cars these days due to higher efficiency. The process works like this:
Given there are two circuits carrying air or coolant, this usually requires more accessories and fittings such as hoses. As such, it can be a little on the expensive side, but is still a highly effective system — particularly in applications like drag racing vehicles.
One potential problem includes the risk of heat soak, where there is a build-up of residual heat near the engine and not enough cooling ability to reduce the temperature.
This can generally be solved by letting the car run for a period of time before turning off the engine, to allow the cooling system to continue working.
Main benefits:
As discussed above, there a few things to watch out for with intercoolers. Luckily, most of these are easy fixes, but it’s not hard to fit a replacement should you need it. Common intercooler faults include (but are not limited to):
If you’re looking to repair your intercooler, Natrad workshops across Australia can help. If repairing is not a sustainable option, Natrad also has a range of intercooler parts or custom made alternatives.
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