At the beginning of the 2000s, MAN, a pioneer in the field of two-stage turbocharging, developed the MAN ECOCHARGE system, a combination of the low-pressure and high-pressure stages with intercooling, which significantly improves engine performance.
In May 2016, the MAN Diesel & Turbo company sold its 1000th turbocharger for two-stage turbocharging.
The ECOCHARGE system optimally connects the low-pressure turbocharger – usually a TCA or a TCR one – with the high-pressure stage, for which the recently developed TCX series has been designed. The increase of the efficiency of turbocharging, as compared to that of single-stage turbochargers, is mostly related to the intercooler, which significantly reduces the energy required for the compression of incoming air to high pressure. The greater capacity generated by the ECOCHARGE technology provides an opportunity of choosing between a significant increase of engine output or a reduction of the size of the engine without a negative impact on its performance. So far, the ECOCHARGE technology has been implemented in several new four-stroke engines, such as types 12 or 20 V 32/44 CR TSS and 12 or 20 V 35/44G TS, which can also be gas-fired.