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Read on to understand what he sees as the biggest opportunities for those working in this field and what he is looking forward to at this year’s conference.
Q: Please can you briefly explain your role and previous involvement with the Institution’s International Conference on Turbochargers and Turbocharging.
Peter Davies (PD): This year I have the honour to be co-chair of the IMechE Turbo Conference. I’ve been a member of the organising Committee since 2016 and before that I attended regularly since 2000.
Q: With the phasing out of ICE vehicles, where do you see the future direction of turbochargers and boosting solutions going?
PD: I see a lot of runway for improved boosting systems for all forms of ICE ahead of us. At the world scale there is still growing demand for all forms of Turbos in both conventional and hybrid powertrains. Beyond that there is growth in the need of Turbomachinery for Fuel Cell and H2 ICE.
Q: With the growth of hybrids and fuels cells, what opportunities are there for the turbocharger market?
PD: Hybrid powertrains give us the chance to optimise for different operating conditions and make real progress on brake thermal efficiency of all engines. Some hybrid powertrains will also have electrified boosting systems which will make those engines even more fuel efficient and help them reach the evermore stringent emission. There’s technology and skill synergy and economy of scale between these electric boosting systems and electrified turbo machinery demanded by the growing Fuel Cell segment for large passenger cars and commercial vehicles.
Q: With the conference taking place online for the first time, what are you most looking forward to about the new format?
PD: The online experience should be more accessible to all. It will give more people the chance to watch and listen to the lectures and discuss the papers in a vibrant interactive social media environment.
Q: Which topics or speakers on the agenda are you looking forward to hearing at this year’s conference?
PD: The program is a rich blend of subjects ranging from Keynote addresses to System level evaluations to world class studies on all aspects of the sciences behind Turbochargers and electrified Turbomachinery. My personal focus will be on the System papers and Aerodynamic Topics.
Q: Why is it so important for professionals to continue to attend this conference?
PD: We need two basic ingredients “knowledge and motivation” in order to progress. Events like this provide us with both in one package. On one hand they give us the chance to share, to learn and to challenge. While on the other they give us an industry reference and inspiration to push the science even further than its come already since Alfred Büchi first invented the Turbocharger way back in 1905.
The 14th International Conference on Turbochargers and Turbocharging takes place online on 11-12 May 2021.
The Institution’s world-leading Conference returns live and online in 2021 and will address current and novel turbocharging system choices and components with a renewed emphasis to address the challenges posed by emission regulations and market trends.
For more information, full programme and to book your place to get involved, please visit the event website.