Internal combustion engine

"ICEV" redirects here. For the form of water ice, see Ice V. For the high speed train, see ICE
V.

Diagram of a cylinder as found in 4-stroke gasoline engines.:

C – crankshaft.
E – exhaust camshaft.
I – inlet camshaft.
P – piston.
R – connecting rod.
S – spark plug.
V – valves. red: exhaust, blue: intake.
W – cooling water jacket.
gray structure – engine block.

Diagram describing the ideal combustion cycle by Carnot

An internal combustion engine (ICE) is a heat engine where the combustion of a fuel
occurs with an oxidizer (usually air) in a combustion chamber that is an integral part of the
working fluid flow circuit. In an internal combustion engine the expansion of the high-
temperature and high-pressure gases produced by combustion applies direct force to some
component of the engine. The force is applied typically to pistons, turbine blades, rotor or a
nozzle. This force moves the component over a distance, transforming chemical energy into
useful mechanical energy.

The first commercially successful internal combustion engine was created by Étienne Lenoir
around 1859[1] and the first modern internal combustion engine was created in 1876 by
Nikolaus Otto (see Otto engine).

The term internal combustion engine usually refers to an engine in which combustion is
intermittent, such as the more familiar four-stroke and two-stroke piston engines, along with
variants, such as the six-stroke piston engine and the Wankel rotary engine. A second class of
internal combustion engines use continuous combustion: gas turbines, jet engines and most
rocket engines, each of which are internal combustion engines on the same principle as
previously described.[1][2] Firearms are also a form of internal combustion engine.[2]

Internal combustion engines are quite different from external combustion engines, such as
steam or Stirling engines, in which the energy is delivered to a working fluid not consisting
of, mixed with, or contaminated by combustion products. Working fluids can be air, hot
water, pressurized water or even liquid sodium, heated in a boiler. ICEs are usually powered
by energy-dense fuels such as gasoline or diesel, liquids derived from fossil fuels. While
there are many stationary applications, most ICEs are used in mobile applications and are the
dominant power supply for vehicles such as cars, aircraft, and boats.

Typically an ICE is fed with fossil fuels like natural gas or petroleum products such as
gasoline, diesel fuel or fuel oil. There is a growing usage of renewable fuels like biodiesel for
compression ignition engines and bioethanol or methanol for spark ignition engines.
Hydrogen is sometimes used, and can be made from either fossil fuels or renewable energy.
History
Main article: History of the internal combustion engine

Various scientists and engineers contributed to the development of internal combustion

engines. In 1791, John Barber developed a turbine. In 1794 Thomas Mead patented a Gas
Engine. Also in 1794 Robert Street patented an internal combustion engine, which was also
the first to use liquid fuel, and built an engine around that time. In 1798, John Stevens built
the first American internal combustion engine. In 1807, Swiss engineer François Isaac de
Rivaz built an internal combustion engine ignited by electric spark. In 1823, Samuel Brown
patented the first internal combustion engine to be applied industrially.

In 1854 in the UK, the Italian inventors Eugenio Barsanti and Felice Matteucci tried to patent
"Obtaining motive power by the explosion of gases", although the application did not
progress to the granted stage.[3] In 1860, Belgian Jean Joseph Etienne Lenoir produced a gas-
fired internal combustion engine. In 1864, Nikolaus Otto patented the first atmospheric gas
engine. In 1872, American George Brayton invented the first commercial liquid-fuelled
internal combustion engine. In 1876, Nikolaus Otto, working with Gottlieb Daimler and
Wilhelm Maybach, patented the compressed charge, four-cycle engine. In 1879, Karl Benz
patented a reliable two-stroke gas engine. In 1892, Rudolf Diesel developed the first
compressed charge, compression ignition engine. In 1926, Robert Goddard launched the first
liquid-fueled rocket. In 1939, the Heinkel He 178 became the world's first jet aircraft.

Etymology

At one time, the word engine (via Old French, from Latin ingenium, "ability") meant any
piece of machinery — a sense that persists in expressions such as siege engine. A "motor"
(from Latin motor, "mover") is any machine that produces mechanical power. Traditionally,
electric motors are not referred to as "Engines"; however, combustion engines are often
referred to as "motors." (An electric engine refers to a locomotive operated by electri11city.)

In boating an internal combustion engine that is installed in the hull is referred to as an

engine, but the engines that sit on the transom are referred to as motors.[4]

Applications

Reciprocating engine as found inside a car

Reciprocating piston engines are by far the most common power source for land and water
vehicles, including automobiles, motorcycles, ships and to a lesser extent, locomotives (some
are electrical but most use Diesel engines[5][6]). Rotary engines of the Wankel design are used
in some automobiles, aircraft and motorcycles.
Where very high power-to-weight ratios are required, internal combustion engines appear in
the form of combustion turbines or Wankel engines. Powered aircraft typically uses an ICE
which may be a reciprocating engine. Airplanes can instead use jet engines and helicopters
can instead employ turboshafts; both of which are types of turbines. In addition to providing
propulsion, airliners may employ a separate ICE as an auxiliary power unit. Wankel engines
are fitted to many unmanned aerial vehicles.

Big Diesel generator used for backup power

Combined cycle power plant

ICEs drive some of the large electric generators that power electrical grids. They are found in
the form of combustion turbines in combined cycle power plants with a typical electrical
output in the range of 100 MW to 1 GW. The high temperature exhaust is used to boil and
superheat water to run a steam turbine. Thus, the efficiency is higher because more energy is
extracted from the fuel than what could be extracted by the combustion turbine alone. In
combined cycle power plants efficiencies in the range of 50% to 60% are typical. In a smaller
scale Diesel generators are used for backup power and for providing electrical power to areas
not connected to an electric grid.

Small engines (usually 2‐stroke gasoline engines) are a common power source for
lawnmowers, string trimmers, chain saws, leafblowers, pressure washers, snowmobiles, jet
skis, outboard motors, mopeds, and motorcycles.