What's The Best Supercharger? Roots vs Centrifugal vs Twin-Screw vs Electric

Summary by Krater

This video explains the mechanics, differences, pros, and cons of four types of superchargers: Roots, twin-screw, centrifugal, and electric.

From the video

Answers: What are the different types of superchargers and how do they work?

• Roots supercharger mechanics
• Twin-screw supercharger mechanics
• Centrifugal supercharger mechanics
• Electric supercharger mechanics
• Positive displacement superchargers
• Supercharger torque curves and efficiency

What it concludes

• Roots and twin-screw superchargers are positive displacement superchargers, providing a wide torque curve across a wide range of engine RPM.
• Twin-screw superchargers compress air within the supercharger itself, whereas Roots-style superchargers simply provide more air below it to build pressure in the manifold.
• Twin-screw superchargers tend to be more efficient than Roots superchargers, though modern advancements have allowed Roots-style superchargers to reach thermal efficiencies above 70%.
• Centrifugal and electric superchargers are not positive displacement pumps, requiring high RPMs to build boost and shifting the torque curve to the top end.
• Electric superchargers can use stored energy in a battery to spool up the motor whenever desired, overcoming the low-end boost limitations of traditional centrifugal superchargers.