Stage 2
LMS guide
The Internal Combustion Engine |
The Internal Combustion Engine
The internal combustion engine is the most common way of powering vehicles which harnesses the chemical energy of a fuel to power and transform this energy into kinetic energy. These engines can be found in aircraft, cars, motorbikes and trains.
How
it works
There are two types of internal combustion
engines, one is spark ignition (SI) engines and the other is compression
ignition (CI) engines. Petrol engines are spark ignition engines and diesel
engines are compression ignition engines. We will be looking at the spark
ignition engine.
Spark
Ignition Engine
A mixture of fuel from a fuel tank and air taken in through an intake is sprayed into a combustion chamber in a cylinder where it catches fire from a spark generated by spark plugs. Once it catches fire it forms a gas and expands. The pressure created as a result, forces a piston to move downwards to the bottom of the cylinder and the resulting force from the downwards movement of the piston creates kinetic energy which is then transferred through a connecting rod and crankshaft, to the final transmission system. The piston then retracts back to its original position, releasing exhaust gases (consisting of various carbon chemicals including, CO2 and CO). This cycle repeats.
Last Modified 4/16/05 10:43 PM