The electrification process continues unabated, but this does not discourage some industry players from investing in the heat engine, funding research and development activities. Among these is Stellantis, which at the beginning of February registered with the United States Trademark & Patent Office a patent for the making of an internal combustion engine with a turbocharger integrated in the cylinder head. According to the reflections reported in the patent, the solution will make it possible to reduce production costs, noise, vibrations and cold polluting emissions.
The enormous temperatures and vibrations experienced around the turbocharger traditionally require the use of premium materials often enriched with nickel and chromium, driving up costs. This especially concerns all the neighboring components such as gaskets, ducts and screws, made of materials with high thermal resistance. Stellantis, on the other hand, intends to include cylinder head, turbine body, compression body and wastegate in one block, all made by fusion. Inside it would then find the two impellers of the turbo.
The advantages
The benefits of such a production technique would be many. The more intuitive they are the reduction of space and costs, removing part of the components present in a traditional architecture. The reduction in the number of components would also make it possible to shorten assembly times, eliminating some steps in the production chain. Furthermore, since various parts are missing, vibrations and noises would be attenuated to the benefit of passenger comfort.
Last, but not least, is the emissions aspect. The patent highlights indeed a reduction of polluting emissions after ignition, associated with those phases in which the catalyst has not yet reached the correct operating temperature. In fact, by compacting the engine and turbine, the entire exhaust line is shortened, reducing its thermal inertia and promoting faster heating of the catalytic group. At the moment there are no official announcements from Stellantis, but the recent patent opens up the possibility that some future models of the former FCA group may be equipped with an ultra-compact heat engine.
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