ENGINE

The internal combustion reciprocating engine

The reciprocating engine is defined by its use of pistons that reciprocate within the cylinder.

Definition: The engine is a machine which takes in combustible mixture of air and fuel, burns it, and
converts the released heat energy into mechanical energy which is then used to rotate the crankshaft

There are therefore three types of energy required to drive a car.

 chemical energy: the fuel
 thermal energy (heat): the combustion
 mechanical energy: the drive power
In the engine, there is therefore first a conversion of chemical to thermal energy. The thermal energy is
then converted into mechanical energy

The engine is made up of three parts From top down, these are:
1. Cylinder head
2. Engine block
3. Crankcase.

(a). Cylinder Head

 Bolted to the cylinder block to seal off the top of the combustion chamber.

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  A "head gasket" between the cylinder block and the cylinder head ensures an air-tight
seal when proper torque is applied to the head bolts.
 Has threaded hole to receive the sparkplug.
 Made of aluminum alloy or cast iron.
 On either side of the cylinder head are the intake manifold and the exhaust manifold

Function of the cylinder head components

(i) Intake Valve :-Opens the intake port to allow the flow of air or air-fuel mix into the
combustion (pg 66 valve seat funda)
chamber during the Intake Stroke. Usually larger diameter than exhaust valve.
(ii) Exhaust Valve :- Opens the exhaust port to allow burnt air-fuel mix out of the combustion
chamber during the Exhaust Stroke.
(iii) Tappets/Cam followers:- Transfer lifting force from the cam lobes to the valve stems.
(iv) Camshaft: - Causes the valves to open as the cam lobes push up on the valve stems via the
valve tappets.
It is driven by the crankshaft, the camshaft turns once for every two crankshaft revolutions.
Usually made of cast iron.
(v) Valve spring:-it rapidly returns the valve to its seat after it has been opened and then hold it
closed until the valve is next open.
Head gasket: it forms a gas-tight, water-tight and oil-tight seal between the cylinder head and
block. It is made from: solid annealed copper, or a thin sandwich of asbestos between copper, or
a thin sheet of stainless steel.

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Types of valve seat
i. integral
ii. screwed
iii. flanged
(b). The engine block
Made of aluminium alloy or cast iron.
Components of the engine block
 Crankshaft
 Connecting rods
 Pistons
 Piston rings
 Gudgeon pin

(i). Crankshaft

 Converts linear (reciprocating) piston motion to rotary motion.

 Power produced by the engine is transmitted via the crankshaft.

(ii). Connecting Rod

 Transfers motion from the piston to the crankshaft.

 Connects to the piston via the "piston pin"
 Rod cap is bolted to connecting rod to secure it to the crankshaft.
 The end connecting the piston is known as small end and the other end is
known as big end.
 Usually made of forged still or aluminum alloy.

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(iii). Piston. It transmit the pressure created by the combustion process to the connecting rod

 Has "ring grooves" that house the piston rings.

 Usually made of aluminum alloy.

(iv). Compression Ring

 Seal between the piston and cylinder wall to prevent "blow-by" (escape of combustion
gasses past the piston).
 Located in the ring grooves closest to the head of the piston.
 Usually made of cast iron.

(v). Oil Control Ring

 Scrapes excess oil from the cylinder walls.

 Usually made of cast iron.

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(vi). Flywheel.
 It maintain uniform engine speed by carrying the crankshaft through the
intervals when it is not receiving power from a piston.
 It also helps in balancing rotating masses.
 It also provides the face on which the clutch is mounted

(d). The crankcase

The crankcase (oil pan) closes off the bottom of the engine block. The crankcase contains the oil for the
engine. It also houses and supports the crankshaft bearing.

[Link]. Name of the Parts Materials of Construction

1. Cylinder head Cast steel, Cast iron, aluminium
alloy
2. Cylinder liner Cast steel, Cast iron
3. Engine block Cast iron, Cast aluminum,
Welded steel
4. Piston Cast iron, Aluminium alloy
5. Piston pin Forged steel, Casehardened
steel
6. Connecting rod Forged steel. Aluminium alloy
7. Piston rings Cast iron, Pressed steel alloy.
8. Connecting rod bearings Bronze, White metal.
9. Main bearings White metal, Steel backed
Babbitt base.
10. Crankshaft Forged steel, Cast steel
11. Camshaft Forged steel, Cast iron, cast
steel,
12. Timing gears Cast iron, Fiber, Steel forging.
13. Push rods Forged steel.
14. Engine valves Forged steel, Steel, alloy.
15. Valve springs Carbon spring steel.
16. Manifolds Cast iron, Cast aluminium.
17. Crankcase Cast iron, Welded steel
18. Flywheel Cast iron.
19. Studs and bolts Carbon steel
20. Gaskets Cork, Copper, Asbestos

Principle of operation of four stroke cycle petrol engines

(Spark ignition (SI)) engines

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In four-stroke cycle engines there are four strokes completing two revolutions of
the
crankshaft. These are respectively, the suction (induction), compression, power
and exhaust strokes

1. induction (Suction)
During the suction stroke, the inlet valve is open and the exhaust valve is closed, when the piston moves
down from TDC a partial vacuum is developed inside the cylinder. As a result, the mixture of air and
petrol is sucked into the cylinder. When the piston reaches BDC, the inlet valve closes. The flywheel
makes half revolution.

2. Compression stroke
During the compression stroke, both the inlet and exhaust valves are closed, the piston rises from BDC to
the TDC and the flywheel makes another half revolution. The mixture which was sucked during the
suction stroke is compressed in the combustion chamber. The heat produced during compression
vapourizes the mixture. When the piston reaches near the TDC, a spark is produced in the spark plug.
This spark ignites the mixture.

3. Power stroke
Both the inlet and exhaust valve remain closed during power stroke. The burning gas expand and pushes
the piston down the BDC. When it reaches near the BDC, the exhausted valve opens, the flywheel turns
by another half revolution

4. Exhaust stroke
During the exhaust stroke, the inlet valve is closed and the exhaust valve is opened. The piston rises up
from the BDC to the TDC. When the burned gases are pushed out of the cylinder, the exhausted valve
closes and the inlet valve opens with the flywheel making another half revolution.

The piston moves down again and a fresh mixture of air and petrol is a gain drawn into the cylinder.
The cycle of suction, compression, power and exhaust stroke is then repeated.

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For every cycle of operation, the flywheel rotates twice.

Principle of operation of four stroke cycle diesel engines(Compression ignition (CI))

1. Suction (induction)

During this stroke, the piston moves from down from TDC to the BDC, the inlet valve open and fresh air
is drawn in while the exhaust valve remains closed.

2. Compression stroke
During the second stroke of the compression stroke, the inlet and exhaust valve remain closed. The piston
move upward to the TDC and the air is thus compressed. The temperature of the air is increased. At the
instant when the piston reaches the TDC, diesel fuel is injected into the compression chamber through
injector and the diesel mixes with the hot air. The diesel the burns and the piston is pushed down.

3. Power stroke
The inlet and the exhaust valves are closed
The burnt gas pushes the piston downwards to the BDC

4. Exhaust stroke
During the exhaust stroke, the piston moves up from BDC to the TDC. The inlet valve is closed while
exhaust valve is open and the exhaust gas leaves through the exhaust manifold into the atmosphere.

Two stroke cycle petrol engine

In two stroke petrol cycle petrol engine, there is one power stroke for every one revolution of the flywheel

First stroke(suction and compression)

During the first stroke as the piston moves up from the BDC, it closes all the three ports. The piston
compresses the mixture of petrol and air inside the cylinder.

When the piston is near the TDC, the petrol mixture is fully compressed. The spark plug then ignites the
mixture. Power is produced with the burning of this mixture. This power is transmitted to the crankshaft

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through the connecting rod. During this stroke, partial vacuum is produced inside crankcase. The inlet
port is opened and the petrol mixture enters through it into the crankcase.

Second stroke(power and exhaust)

During the second stroke, piston moves down from the TDC and the inlet port is closed the fuel mixture
is compressed by the bottom of the piston and the crank. It then gets pushed into the cylinder through the
transfer port.

Since the exhaust port is open, the exhaust gas leaves the cylinder through it, some exhaust gas may,
however, remain inside the cylinder. The special shape of the piston head deflect the fresh chargeof the
fuel mixture up into the cylinder. The mixture then flows down and pushes the exhaust gas through the
exhaust port. And the cycle is repeated.

Cams and cam shaft drives

The camshaft is made of either forged steel or cast iron. The shaft is hardened to resist wear. The
camshaft for 4 cylinder engine has got 8 cams in the camshaft. 4 cams lift the inlet valves against the
pressure of the valve spring another 4 valves lift the exhaust valves against the pressure of the valve
spring.

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Principle of operation

In 4 stroke cycle engine, the cycle event of inlet and exhaust valve opening and closing is performed by
camshaft in one revolution. But the 4 piston strokes ie induction, compression, power and exhaust are
completed in two crankshaft revolution.

The crankshaft to camshaft drives may be transmitted by three different methods: Gear, chain, belt

Gear drive cam shaft Chain drive cam shaft

Belt drive camshaft

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Camshaft location

In earlier designs of engine, camshafts are located in the cylinder block. This allowed the use of short
chain and sprocket system since the crankshaft is close to the camshaft.

Pushrod overhead valve engine (camshaft located in the cylinder block)

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Overhead camshaft

Since the use of push rod and rocker system added some complication to the valve opening mechanism,
new development in engine design resulted in overhead camshaft which gives the accurate control of
valve operation.

(i) overhead cam shaft

(ii) Simple overhead camshaft and rocker shaft

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Practicals on measurements and clearances

Crankshaft balancing

The purpose of crankshaft balancing is to minimize vibrations when the engine is running. Therefore both
the crankshaft and the engine must be balanced separately and tested for balance

Types of balance tests

 Static balance

 Dynamic balance(running balance)

Static balance: an object is said to be static when it is not moving. When a flywheel kept on a flat bar
tends to roll, it indicates that the flywheel is out of balance. To bring about static balance in this flywheel,
small holes are bored to the rim until the flywheel does not roll in any position of the flat bar.

Dynamic balance: For dynamic balance, the engine or its parts should not vibrate while in running. The
flywheel may be in static balance, but dynamically unbalanced, likewise the crankshaft my be in a static
balance but dynamically unbalanced. When a weight is not put directly opposite to another weight which
balances it, it will be dynamically unbalanced.

In static balance dynamically unbalanced

To minimize vibrations in the crankshaft, counter weights are mounted exactly opposite the crank throws.

Large main bearings are placed between each crank throws which support the crankshaft

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Crankshaft vibration damper

During power stroke of each cycle, force is developed inside the engine cylinder. This force acts directly
on the crank pin and the crankshaft is twisted by this force. When the cycle is completed, the crankshaft is
untwisted, thus the crankshaft is twisted and untwisted for each cycle of operation which develops
torsional vibration and may break the crankshaft. A vibration damper is fitted in the front end of the
crankshaft in order to minimize this vibration.

The vibration damper consist of the following

a. Damper flywheel

b. Crankshaft pulley

c. Driving flange

This damping of vibration takes place due to the dragging effect produced by the inertia of the damper
flywheel.

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DIESEL ENGINE COMBUSTION CHAMBERS
For combustion to be effective, the fuel and air should be mixed properly inside the combustion chamber
in a short span of time. Air is produced inside the combustion chamber of diesel engine to facilitate
combustion.

General principle of combustion chambers designs

The power that can be obtained from an engine depends on:
Volumetric efficiency: The amount of air that can be passed through the engine per minute
Thermal efficiency: Efficiency with which air can be mixed with fuel and burnt to release heat
Mechanical efficiency: the efficiency with which the energy released by burning fuel can be converted
into mechanical work
There are two types of combustion chambers.
 Direct-injection combustion chambers
 Indirect-injection combustion chambers

Direct-injection / Open combustion chambers (DI)

-The fuel is injected through a multi-hole injector nozzle directly into the combustion chamber, which is
usually formed in the piston crown.
-To facilitate thorough mixing, fuel is injected into a swirling air created by the shape of piston crown
-The basic idea of the bowl-shaped cavity in the piston head is to promote agitation (shaking/stirring) of
the cylinder air charge towards the end of the compression stroke
-The raised rim of the piston head prevents the fuel sprayed from reaching the cooler cylinder walls.

Advantages of Direct injection

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  Compact combustion space that reduces heat loss and power loss
 Due to low heat loss there is high thermal efficiency and low fuel consumption.
 Easy starting.
 Used in both light and heavy commercial vehicles
 No electrical cold start aid

Disadvantages
 Noisy operation
 Combustion knock occurs more frequently.
 High injection pressure required since combustion chambers are larger.
 Due to high pressures, injection pump and injectors are therefore subjected to greater stresses and
absorb more power

Indirect-injection combustion chambers

For indirect-injection diesel engines the fuel is sprayed from a single-hole injector nozzle into a divided
type of combustion chamber,
It is sometimes referred to as pre-combustion chamber
The engine requires glow plugs.
Because there is larger surface area with the indirect engine, there is more heat loss.

Advantages of indirect injection combustion chambers

 Smaller diesel engines can be produced.

 The injection pressure required is low
 The injection direction is of less importance.
 Higher engine speeds can be reached, since burning continues in the pre-chamber.
 Good swirl characteristics
 Smooth running and operation

Disadvantages

 Greater heat loss due to large exposed areas

 Glowplugs are needed for a cold engine start.
 High compression ratio

Valve timing diagram

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 The inlet valve remains open after the piston has past BDC at the end of the induction stroke
(inlet valve closing lag)

Exhaust valve open before the piston reaches BDC at the end of the power stroke

(exhaust valve opening lead)

The exhaust valve usually remain open after TDC at the end of the exhaust stroke

(exhaust valve closing lag)

The inlet valve usually opens before the exhaust valve has closed (valve overlap) and usually
before TDC (inlet valve opening lead)

The amount of lead or lag of valve opening or closing will depend upon the design of the engine

Causes of engine power loss

i. Clogged air filter

ii. Loose throttle cable
iii. Clogged catalytic converter
iv. Worn piston ring
v. Valve deposit: loss of compression, backfire, affect air fuel ratio
vi. Spark plug

Torque vs Horse power

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Torque is the turning force

Torque = Force x Distance

Horse power = Torque x RPM

Small car

100 Hp / 200 T

Big car

200 Hp / 100 T

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