Co-surge in bi-turbo engines: Measurements, analysis and control

Abstract

In parallel turbocharged V-engines, with two separate air paths connected before the throttle, an oscillation in the flow can occur. If the compressor operates close to the surge line, typically during low speed and high load, and a disturbance alters the mass flow balance, the compressors can begin to alternately go into surge. This phenomenon is called co-surge and is unwanted due to high noise and risk of turbocharger destruction. Co-surge is measured on a test vehicle in a chassis dynamometer and the system analyzed and modeled using a mean value engine model. The investigation shows that alternating compressor speeds have an important role in the prolonged oscillation. A reconstruction of the negative flow from measurements is made and compared to simulation results, showing similar amplitudes, and supports the model validation. A new co-surge detection algorithm is presented, suitable for a pair of sensors measuring either mass flow, boost pressure or turbo speed in the two air paths. Furthermore, a new controller is proposed that uses a model based feedforward for the throttle, together with wastegate actuation to force the compressor speeds together and improve balance at the recovery point. This has been shown to be sufficient for moderate to high pressure ratios over the throttle, and only for zero or very low pressure drop the use of bypass valves is necessary. The advantage of not opening the bypass valves is a smaller drop in boost pressure which also reduces the torque disturbance. The performance of the controller is evaluated both in simulation and in the test vehicle.