Difference between Power and Torque
One of
the attached file shows a bike specification, in which you may see a red box
marked under torque and power. Why Max power and Max torque has to be mentioned
separately even though we know that power is dependent on torque? Here’s the answer:-
There has been a
common formula that is used for finding power of engine:-
Power = 2 x N x Ʈ /60000,
Where Ʈ = Torque produced (units in Nm), N= speed of the engine (units in rpm), Power
produced (units in watts divide by 746 to get hp or ps)
This relation holds well till the point of intersection of curves for torque
and power, since until that point both torque and power kept on increasing together.
After this point, the torque decreases but power keeps on increasing until a
certain limit since power is also dependent on speed also and then power starts
decreasing.
Torque of the engine determines the load taking capacity of the engine and
power determines the acceleration of the engine. The reason for the torque to
increase and decrease after certain limit is that torque is the twisting moment
or rotational force for the shaft to the flywheel (in this case). When it
attains its max rotational force, it means engine is kept at maximum load,
beyond which the engine will stop working. This is why the engine of bikes or
cars moving at 3rd or 4th gear stops when it is
riding uphill and it is always advised to drop the gear to 1st, due
to which it can take maximum load.
The speed of cars and bikes are varied by achieving variation in torque and
power. For example, if we compare the sports car and truck, the sports car will
be having lower torque and higher power compared to truck. Truck is built for
taking heavy loads while sports car are built for achieving higher speeds. This
can be properly explained by taking another example of bodybuilder and
sprinter. When a bodybuilder is being told to run for 100m, he wouldn’t be able
to achieve the speed of sprinter but if both are running 100m with 10kg
weights, the cases may be different, which mainly depends on power and stamina.
Finally, the parameters of power and torque are mainly specified for comparison
of engines of any vehicle (not the vehicle by itself) based on speed and load
carrying capacity.
- To
increase load carrying capacity of any vehicle, the torque needs to be increased.
- To increase speed of a vehicle, the power needs to be increased.
This
case is common not only in vehicles but also in compressors or any machine run
by engines.
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