CI ENIGNE ENGINE COMPONENTS 2015

ENGINE MAIN COMPONENTS

The main components of a basic four cylinder engine may be considered under the
following:

ENGINE BLOCK

The engine block forms the main body of the engine. Other parts bolt or fit inside
the block. It has two components cast together to form a single unit which is known
as a ‘monobloc’. Or can be casted into two separate units the top part being the
cylinder block and the low part being the crankcase which are bolted together to
form an engine block. This is not common in use nowadays. The engine block is
made from grey cast iron or aluminium alloy.

The cylinders are large round holes machined through the block from top to bottom.
The pistons fit into the cylinders. The cylinders are slightly larger than the pistons.
This allows the pistons to slide up and down freely.

The block face is the top of the block. It is machined perfectly flat. The cylinder
head bolts to the face. Oil and coolant passages through the block face allow
lubrication and cooling of the cylinder head parts. Water jackets are passages
through the block. They allow a coolant to cool the cylinder. Core plugs, or Welch
plugs are round metal plugs on the side of the engine block. They seal holes left in
the engine block after casting. The plugs prevent coolant leakage out of the water
jackets. The main bearing bores are holes machined in the bottom of the engine
block for the mounting of the crankshaft. Removable bearings fit into the bores.
Main bearings caps bolt the bottom of the engine block and hold the crankshaft in
place. Two or four large bolts normally secure each cap to the engine block. The

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caps and block together form the main bearing bore (parent bore). The crankcase is
the lower part of the engine block and the crankshaft rotates inside it.

CRANKSHAFT

The crankshaft converts the reciprocating motion of the piston through the
connecting rods into rotary motion. The crankshaft fits into the bottom of the engine
block. The crankshaft main journals are precisely machined surfaces. They fit into
the block main bearings. The crankshaft connecting rod journals or crankpins are
machined and polished surfaces, but they are offset from the main journals.

The connecting rods bolt to the connecting rod journals or crankpins. With the
engine running, the connecting rod journals/crankpins circle around the centerline
of the crankshaft. Counterweights are formed on the crankshaft to prevent
vibrations. The weights counteract the weight of the connecting rods, pistons, rings
and connecting rod journals/ crankpins offset.

The crankshaft extension protrudes through the front of the engine block and the
flange on the back of the crankshaft. It provides the mounting of the camshaft drive
mechanism, front damper, fan belt and the flywheel. The centre of the flange has
pilot hole or bushing for the transmission torque converter or input shaft.

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Motor car engine normally have 4, 6 and 8 cylinders even though in some case 1, 3
or 5 cylinders are used. The crankshaft connecting rod journal / crankpins are
arranged such that there is always one cylinder on power stroke.

FLYWHEEL

The purpose of the flywheel is to store energy for the crankshaft to overcome
reciprocating forces and fluctuations in torque. A flywheel is a large wheel mounted
on the rear of the crankshaft. A flywheel can have several functions;

i. A flywheel for a car with a manual transmission is very heavy and helps to
smooth engine operations.
ii. The flywheel connects the engine crankshaft to the transmission or transaxle.
Either the manual clutch or the automatic transmission torque converter bolts
to the flywheel, which is usually called a drive plate on automatic
transmission models.
iii. A large ring gear usually on the flywheel is used to start the engine. A small
gear on the starter motor engages the flywheel ring gear and turns it.

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CONNECTING ROD

The connecting rod connects the piston to the crankshaft. It transfers piston
movement and combustion pressure to the crankshaft connecting rod journals. The
connecting rod also causes piston movement during the powerless stroke (intake,
compression and exhaust).

The connecting rod small end encircles the piston pin (gudgeon pin). It contains a
one piece bushing or not. If a bushing is used, it is pressed into the small end of the
connecting rod. The connecting I-beam is the centre section of the rod. The I-beam
shape has a very high strength-to-weight ratio. It prevents the rod from bending,
twisting and breaking. The connecting rod cap bolts to the bottom of the connecting
rod body. It can be removed for dismantling of the engine. The connecting rod big
end is a hole machined in the rod body and cap. The connecting rod bearing fits into
the big end.

Connecting rod bolts and nuts secure the connecting rod and cap together. They
are special high tensile fasteners or cap screws without a nut. The cap screw
threads are into the connecting rod itself. This reduces connecting rod weight.

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Connecting-rod construction

For providing maximum support to the bearing liner, the bolts or studs should be
located as near to the bore wall edge as possible without any interference with the
fitted shell. Big-end-housing bore alignment can be achieved by a number of
methods as follows.

i. DOWEL-LOCATED JOINT: Pieces of rod or tube is forced into small blind

holes drilled in the joint faces of the shank and cap, furthest from the housing
bore to provide space for the bolt holes.
ii. COLLAR-LOCATED JOINT: Tubes or collars are slipped over the studs or
bolts with a clearance gap, which are countersunk into each half of the bore
housing at the split joint face.
iii. FITTED-BOLT JOINT: Fitted bolts have reduced diameters along their length
except at the ends and in the centre region where they intersect the split
joint. This profile of the bolt provides a close fit at the joint faces and tends to
reduce the stress concentration at the bolt head and in the threaded nut
region.
iv. STEPPED JOINT: Connecting rod caps are machined with lips at the end of
the split joint face. These projections slot tightly over adjacent flats machined
on the shank perpendicular to the joint face. This arrangement provides
positive alignment of the two bore half-housings. For least distortion of the
big-end bore, the bore housing is generally split perpendicular to the
connecting-rod centre line, forming the straight-cut caps. Connecting-rods
also use split joint cut at an oblique angle to the cylinder axis, to allow the
big-end part to pass through the cylinder bore, so that the piston-and-rod

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assembly can be removed through the top of the cylinder bore. The oblique-
cut cap gives rise to additional loading on the clamping bolts and joint so that
some form of extra support is required at the joint face.

Two most commonly used oblique-cut connecting-rod joints are as follows:

i. SERRATED JOINT: This joint has V-shaped grooves cut across both joint
faces. When two halves are positioned and tightened together, they form a
firm multi-wedge type of joint without any relative movement.
ii. GROOVE-AND-TONGUE JOINT: This joint faces are machined providing a
rectangular projection on the shank joint faces and corresponding slots on
the cap joint faces so that they form a groove and tongue joint when both
halves are tightened together.

CONNECTING ROD BEARINGS

The connecting rod bearings ride on the crankshaft rod journals. They fit between
the connecting rods and the crankshaft. The connecting rod bearings are also
removable inserts. Connecting rod bearing clearance is small space between the
connecting rod bearing and crankshaft journals. As with the main bearings, it allows
oil to enter the bearing. The oil prevents metal-to-metal contract that would wear
out the crankshaft and bearings.

Big-end connecting-rod cap and shell liner.

PISTONS

Modern vehicle engines employ varying types of piston. However the main
mechanical functions performed by the actual piston are as follows:

i. Piston forms a sliding gas-tight seal in the cylinder.

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ii. The piston transmits the energy which results from the burning of an air/fuel
mixture in the combustion chamber to the connecting rod.
iii. In practice, the piston provides a guide and bearing for the small end of the
connecting rod.

Pistons were originally constructed from the cast iron, but during the ‘twenties
aluminium alloy became more generally used and is still the main piston material
employed in modern engines.

Piston head is the top of the piston. It is exposed to the heat and pressure of
combustion. This are must be thick enough to withstand these forces.

It must be shaped match and work with the shapes of the combustion chamber for
complete combustion. Piston ring grooves are slots machined in the piston for the
piston rings. The upper two grooves hold the compression rings. The lower groove
holds the oil ring. Oil holes in the bottom grooves allow the oil to pass through the
piston. The oil then drains back into the crankcase. The ring lands are the areas
between and above the ring grooves. They separate and support the piston rings as
they slide in the cylinder. A piston skirt is the side of the piston below the last ring.
It keeps the piston from tipping in its cylinder. Without a skirt, the piston could cock
and jam in the cylinder.

The piston boss is reinforced area around the piston pin hole. It must be strong
enough to support the piston pin under severe condition. A piston pin hole is
machined through the piston pin boss for the piston pin. It is slightly larger than the
piston pin. Pistons must be made strong enough to withstand the high temperatures
and pressure developed within the cylinders. In addition, they must be as light in
weight as possible. The full force of combustion should act on the top or crown of
the piston and it is, most important that no leakage of gas between the piston and
cylinder should occur. If the pistons are too tight a fit in the cylinder, excessive
friction would be created, causing an increase in temperature which in severe cases
would cause the piston to ‘seize’ in its bore. The piston must move very freely

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within its cylinder; there must be a pr-determined clearance between the piston and
the cylinder wall.

PISTON PIN

The piston pin (gudgeon pin) allows the piston to swing on the connecting rod. The
piston pin fits through the hole in the piston pin boss and the connecting rod small
end.

PISTON RINGS

Most piston rings are made from fine grey cast iron. The rings are split so that they
can be placed over the ring lands and into the ring grooves on the piston. The rings
are designed to spring outwards, thereby making close contact with the cylinder
wall.

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Piston rings

The main purpose of the piston rings is:

i. To maintain a gas-tight seal between the piston and the cylinder wall, under
all engine conditions.
ii. To maintain the flow of engine lubricating oil into the combustion chamber.
iii. To assist in cooling the piston
iv. To allow correct lubrication of the cylinder.

Most pistons use three rings: two, upper compression rings and one, lower oil ring.

The compression rings prevent blow-by (combustion pressure leaking into the
engine crankcase). On the compression stroke, pressure is trapped between the
cylinder and piston grooves by the compression rings.

Combustion pressure pushes the compression rings down in their grooves and out
against the cylinder wall. This produces an almost leak proof seal. Also controls the
flow of exhaust out of the engine.

CYLINDER HEAD

The main purpose of the cylinder head is to enclose the top of the engine cylinders,
forming the combustion chambers in which the mixture of air and fuel can be burnt.
Combustion chambers are small pockets formed in the cylinder heads. The
combustion chambers are located directly over the pistons. Combustion occurs in

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these areas of the cylinder head. Spark plugs (petrol engine) or (diesel engine)
injectors protrude through holes and into the combustion chambers.

Intake and exhaust ports are cast into the cylinder head. The intake ports routes air
(diesel engines) and air and fuel (petrol engine) into the combustion chambers. The
exhaust port allows burned gases out of the engine.

Valve guides are small holes machined through the cylinder head for the valves.
The valves fit into and slide in these guides. Valve seats are round, machined
surfaces in the combustion chamber port opening. When a valve is closed, it seals
against the valve seat.

VALVE TRAIN

The engine valve train consists of the parts that operate the engine valves. This
includes the camshaft, lifters, push rods, rocker arms, valves and valve spring
assemblies.

The valve train must open and close the engine valves at the correct time. Note:
the specific parts of a valve train vary with the engine design. In the conventional

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four stroke overhead valve petrol engine, the valve operating mechanism
comprises;

i. Cam and camshaft

ii. Push rod
iii. Rocker arm
iv. Valve spring.

CAMSHAFT

The camshaft has lobes that open each valve. It can be located in the engine block
or in the cylinder head. The cam lobes are egg-shaped protrusions (bumps)
machined on the camshaft. One cam lobe is provided for each engine valve. A 4-
cylinder engine camshaft would have eight cam lobes, a 6-cylinder twelve lobes.

The camshaft sometimes has a drive gear for operating the distributor and oil
pump. A gear on the ignition system distributor may mesh with this gear. An
eccentric (oval) may be machined on the camshaft for the mechanical (engine –
driven) fuel pump. It is similar to a cam lobe but it is more round. As the cam turns,
the eccentric moves the fuel pump arm up and down. Camshaft journals are
precisely machined and polished surfaces for the cam bearings. Like the crankshaft,
the camshaft rotates on its journals. Oil separates the cam bearing and cam
journals.

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VALVE LIFTERS

A valve lifter, also called a tappet, usually rides on the cam lobes and transfer
motion to the rest of the valve train. The lifters can be located in the engine block of
cylinder head. They fit into machined holes termed lifter bores.

When the cam lobe turns into the lifter, the lifter is pushed up in its bore. This opens
the valve. Then, when the lobe rotates away from the lifter, the lifter is pushed
down in its bore by the valve spring. This keeps the lifter in constant contact with
the camshaft.

PUSH RODS

Push rods transfer motion between the lifters and the rocker arms. They are needed
when the camshaft is located in the cylinder block. They are NOT needed when the
camshaft is in the cinder head.

Push rods are hollow, metal tubes with balls or sockets formed on the ends. One
end of the push rod fits into the lifter. The other end fits against the rocker arm. In
this way, when the lifter slides up, the push rod moves the rocker arm.

ROCKER ARM

Rocker arms can be used to transfer motion to the valves. They are mounted on top
of the cylinder head. A pivot mechanism allows the rockers to rock up and down,
opening and closing the valves.

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A. SIDE CAMSHAFT WITH PUSH-ROD AND ROCKERS

This type of valve-operating mechanism uses:

i. camshaft,
ii. cam follower (tappet),
iii. push-rod,
iv. rocker-arm,
v. rocker-shaft,
vi. return-spring, and
vii. poppet-valve.

The operating mechanism between the camshaft and the poppet-valve is known as
the valve train.

ADVANTAGES

i. A comparatively simple short timing chain or simple gear train can be used.
ii. The rocker arm leverage provides a degree of cam-profile lift multiplication
which can be transferred to the valve stem so that a smaller cam lobe can be
used.
iii. Adjustment and maintenance is easy and can be carried without dismantling
any working engine components.

DISADVANTAGES

i. During acceleration or operation at high engine speeds, the push-rod-and-

rocker assembly does not relay the exact cam-profile lift to the valve,
because of the elasticity of the system and the resulting vibrations.
ii. Larger tappet clearances are required for the expansion and contraction of
very long valve-train mechanism during operation.
iii. Due to the large number of contacting interface joints, the system develops
more wear as well as more noise.

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OVERHEAD CAMSHAFT WITH A SLIDING INVERTED BUCKET FOLLOWER

This type of valve operating mechanism uses:

i. A camshaft,
ii. a sliding inverted bucket cam follower
iii. A return-spring, and
iv. A poppet-valve.

ADVANTAGES

i. This is the most compact and rigid cam-to-valve mechanisms, which directly
relay the designed input cam-profile lift to the valve.
ii. If adequate lubrication is provided, very little wear takes place since the
valve stems are not subjected to side-thrust.
iii. Tappet clearances are generally small and, once adjusted, are maintained for
a very long period.

Overhead camshaft with direct Overhead valve side cam- shaft

acting inverted-bucket followers with push-rod and rocker

DISADVANTAGES

i. A much more elaborate drive between the crankshaft and the camshaft is
necessary.
ii. Lubrication has to be more accurately controlled and directed than for other
actuating mechanisms.
iii. Adjustment of tappets is relatively more difficult than in other mechanisms.

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OVERHEAD CAMSHAFT WITH PIVOTED ROCKER-ARM

This type of valve operating mechanism uses:

i. a camshaft,
ii. a pivoted rocker-arm cam follower,
iii. a return-spring, and
iv. A poppet-valve.

ADVANTAGES

i. The use of the rocker-arm follower provides a leverage ratio permitting a

smaller cam profile in the system.
ii. The pivot-arm follower has less inertia than that of the sliding-bucket
follower.
iii. A single overhead camshaft can operate two separate rows of inlet and
exhaust valves.
iv. Adjustment of the tappet is normally simple and straight-forward.

DISADVANTAGES

i. Motion from the cam to the valve tends to bend the rocker-arm; therefore the
system has to be relatively stiff, and however this characteristic does not
match with the direct-acting bucket-follower arrangement.
ii. Contact between the valve and rocker provides a degree of side-thrust to the
valve stem and guide.
iii. Wear and noise is relatively more than in the sliding bucket follower due to
an extra pivot joint in addition to the other two contact interfaces.
iv. This configuration requires very accurate lubrication.

THE POPPET-VALVE

The poppet-valve head is the highest loaded part as it is subjected to uneven

impact stresses across its diameter when the valve comes down on its seat. Also
the head has to withstand thermal stresses due to the temperature variation over
the head and between the head and the stem. The maximum stress concentration
occurs on the surface of the valve’s conical seat and in the region where the
diameter changes from the head to the stem. During operation, the temperature in
the centre of the exhaust valve may be between 750 and 850ºC and in the inlet
valve between 450 and 550ºC. As the mechanical and thermal stresses are cyclic, if
failure takes place it is of a fatigue nature. Due to exposure to both dynamic inertia
loads and the products of combustion at these high working temperatures, the
surfaces of the valve may oxidize and corrode faster.

The exhaust valve should have:

i. sufficient strength and hardness of resist stretching and rubbing wear of the
valve stem,
ii. adequate hot strength and hardness to resist cupping of the head and rapid
seat wear,

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iii. good fatigue resistance to combat the repeated cyclic stress loading,
iv. good creep resistance to prevent the head from permanently deforming
when operating at high temperatures and under alternating loads,
v. good corrosion and oxidation resistance at high operating temperatures and
tresses and in an active corrosive environment,
vi. a moderate coefficient of thermal expansion to limit the thermal stresses due
to the large temperature gradient over the head, and
vii. good thermal conductivity from the valve’s head, so that the heat from
combustion can be dissipated readily.

Overhead camshaft with direct-acting Identification of a poppet valve

end-pivoted rocker-arm

The disc head is initially provided with an angle of 10 to 15 degrees relative to the
horizontal followed with a small radius, r, to match to stem. To improve heat
transfer the stem diameter of the exhaust valve is 10 to 15% greater than that of
the inlet valve. For the maximum flow of fresh charge or exhaust gas between the
valve head and its seat, the annular valve-opening area must equal the valve or
port throat area. To achieve this, the valve lift should be equal to about one quarter
of the valve head diameter. The valve lift, if less than this value restricts the
engine’s volumetric efficiency, and if much more, increases the inertia of the valve
operating mechanism causing noise and rapid wear.

VALVE SEAT AND CONICAL ANGLES

The valve face angle is chosen for the best possible compromise between valve
opening and valve sealing. Valve opening is maximum at zero face angle, and
sealing force on the valve increases as the angle increases. Poor sealing causes
valve burning leading to short useful life. Generally valve-seat conical angles of 45
degrees or 30 degrees are used. For a given valve lift, as the angle is decreased the
effective flow area around the valve can be increased,
but the pressure on the seat for a given spring stiffness is reduced. To have high
seating pressure arid minimum deposits on the face, a conical valve-seat angle of
either 45 degrees or 30 degrees is recommended for the inlet valve, and only 45
degrees for the exhaust valve because of batter heat dissipation.

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Valve and seat conical face angles

VALVE OPERATING CONDITIONS

VALVE-HEAD LOADING: During operation the valve head and neck are subjected to
longitudinal stresses due to the return-spring load and the valve assembly’s inertia
response. Additionally, large thermal hoop (circumferential) stresses are developed
in its head due to the large temperature gradient from the centre of the head to its
rim and from the crown to the parallel portion of the stem. The strength of the valve
material is sufficient to withstand the combination of these two stresses provided
that the contact portion of the seats are not distorted or carbon particles are not
trapped in between. Any unevenness around the circumferential seat interfaces
causes severe local stress concentrations, which may lead to valve failure in a short
period.

VALVE HEAD AND NECK: During closure of the exhaust valve its crown is directly
exposed to the combustion process. As the valve opens, the escaping and still
burning gases flow around the rim of the head and underneath, encircling the
valve’s neck. Subsequently they flow through the port passages to the exhaust
system.

When the valve is closed, most of the heat is transferred to the valve seat and the
coolant circulating in the cylinder head, but when the valve opens, the heat travels
only through the valve stem. Therefore the hottest part of the valve is its neck, the
next hottest zone is the centre region of the crown down to its neck, and the coolest
zone is around the valve-head rim and the parallel region of the stem as it enters its
guide. Thus the valve-head temperature may be as low as 500ºC around the head
rim, increasing at the neck under full-load conditions to around 800ºC and it may
rise to 900ºC under abnormal conditions.

VALVE STEM AND TIP

The valve stem operates in a guide sleeve and is subjected to a to-and-fro sliding
motion added to a rotary oscillating one in certain cases. The guide sleeve may
reach a temperature of 400ºC at the mouth of the exhaust port, progressively
decreasing to around 200ºC at the valve-spring end. Therefore the stem and guide

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should have compatible materials to function effectively for a long time with very
little wear under mostly boundary-lubrication conditions.

The valve-stem tip must be sufficiently hard to withstand the tappet impact and in
some designs must resist any scuffing due to relative rubbing between the valve-
stem tip and the rocker-arm pad.

Heat path and temperature distribution for an exhaust valve

POPPET-VALVE MATERIALS

The three basic alloys used in exhaust valves are:

i. Silicon-chromium steels,
ii. Austenitic chromium-nickel steels,
iii. Nimonic nickel-base alloys.

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VALVE GUIDES

Normally the valve seat is integrally formed in the head‘s casting of automotive
engines. Insert seats are also used in some engines, which allow for easy repair of
valve seats. Valve seat distortion is one of the major causes of poor valve service
life. Distortion may be transient or permanent. The former is due to pressure and
thermal stress and the latter as a result of mechanical stress, so that proper care
must be taken during assembly of the engine. A guide hole in the cylinder head
supports and guides the sliding action of the valve stem, so that the head is
maintained in a central position relative to the valve seat while opening and closing.
Such holes are known as valve guides. The guide sleeve or bush is made from good
quality pearlitic cast iron, to minimize stem-to-guide wear, or from bronze to
improve the heat flow to the cylinder-head coolant passages. Although the plain
sleeve is adequate for most applications, but sometimes shouldered bushes are
used to position the guide in the cylinder head. The guide generally protrudes
slightly above the spring-seat in the cylinder head, to prevent excessive oil draining
down the stem. Seals of suitable design made of synthetic rubbers and plastics are,
therefore, used to arrest this leakage.

Valve guides- Shouldered sleeve

VALVE-SEAT INSERT RINGS

For heavy-duty applications with cast-iron cylinder heads, or for aluminium alloy
cylinder heads, valve inserts are used to withstand the high operating temperatures
and the corrosive atmosphere around the valve seat porting. Also use of insert
material with improved impact strength and hardness resists wear. These inserts
form a rectangular-section ring having a conical seat on one of the inside edges.
The insert must be rigid to withstand the continuous hammering and be able to
dissipate the heat from the poppet-valve head to the cylinder-head coolant system.
Valve inserts are force fits in recesses machined into the cylinder head. The
interference in cast-iron heads is of the order of 0.0003 times the exhaust valve
stem diameter.

For certain aluminium-alloy cylinder head a screw-type joint is used to provide a

more

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positive grip in the cylinder head and to compensate for the large differential
expansion, which usually exists between the insert and its recessed bore.

SEAT-INSERT MATERIALS

For moderate to high duty cast-iron cylinder head, a low-alloy pearlitic cast iron is
used as insert material. For moderate to high duty aluminium cylinder head,
suitable insert material is a high nickel-copper austenitic grey cast iron having a
high coefficient of expansion as well as good corrosion resistance. For very-heavy-
duty and high-temperature cast-iron cylinder head the insert can be made from a
high-chromium alloy cast-iron.

VALVE RETURN SPRINGS

The valve return-spring (or springs) ensures that the valve lift or fall follows
precisely the corresponding cam-profile motion imparted to the follower under both
acceleration and deceleration operating conditions. Normally helical-coil springs are
used, which work under load in compression.

VALVE SPRING SURGE: Resonance occurs when the natural frequency of vibration of
the spring or its multiples synchronizes with disturbing vibrations produced by the
action of the cam against its follower. During resonance, the coils at the stationary
end of the spring completely or almost completely close together in the initial
stages of valve lift, because of their inertia, and successive coils away from this end
close up to a lesser extent. The coils furthest from the cam follower close up most
during the final stages of valve opening.

VARIABLE-PITCH SPRINGS: To reduce spring surge, a variable-pitch spring is

incorporated in which the pitch between adjacent coils from the valve-stem tip to
the stationary valve guide and seat is progressively made smaller. As the valve
opens, the coils are progressively compressed solid, starting from the close-pitch
cylinder-head end, due to which the number of active coils is reduced.

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DOUBLE SPRINGS: The double nests of springs in the system provides high spring
loads on the valve for a given valve-spring space. To exert the same total force, the
stiffness of each spring in the nest has to be lower than that of a single spring.
Therefore, the natural frequencies of the nested springs is also be lower (since a
spring’s natural frequency is proportional to the square root of its stiffness), which
encourages surge. One advantage of using double springs is that, under favorable
conditions, resonance in one spring may be partially damped out by the no resonant
action of the other.

VALVE SPRING MATERIALS

Either a plain high-carbon steel or a low-alloy chromium-vanadium steel is used to

manufacture valve springs. The steel wire is supplied in the softened state. It is
ground all over to a good surface finish, followed by cold drawing to impart the
necessary high tensile properties. The wire is coiled into the spring shape and is
then given a bluing, a stress-relieving treatment.

VALVE SPRING RETENTION (LOCKS)

The return-spring (or springs) keeps the valve in the closed position until actuated
by the camshaft. It acts against a spring-retaining plate fixed to the end of the valve
stem. This retaining plate contains a central tapered hole which, when in position,
fits over a shallow circular groove machined near the end of the stem.

Poppet-valve spring retention

VALVE-ROTATORS

Valve-rotators may be non-positive or positive types. The former type has a non-
positive action which enables the valve to rotate at random when it is opening and
closing. The latter type has a positive action which directly rotates the valve as it
operates. The objective of valve rotation is to improve valve seating by clearing the

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seat faces of carbon particles, which might otherwise become attached to them.
The gradual reposition of valve relative to its seat improves valve and seat life.

NON-POSITIVE VALVE-ROTATORS

Out of the two common designs used in non-positive arrangement one method
incorporates loose-fitting collets, while the other adopts a thimble which fits over
the valve-stem tip.

SPLIT-COLLETS VALVE-ROTATOR

The specially designed collects in this approach permit the valves to rotate under
certain conditions. The stem of the valve has three annular grooves of semi-circular
section and the inner surface of each collet has three semicircular ribs. These press
against each other providing a small radial clearance between the valve and the
collets. The vibration of the valve gear rotates the valve at between 15 and 25 rpm
at engine speeds above 1500 rpm.

ROCKER-SHAFT

Rocker-shaft provides a rigid pivot support for the rocker-arms. These shafts are
machined from hollow steel tubing. These are mounted and clamped on cast-iron or
aluminium-alloy pedestals, which are generally fitted between each pair of rocker-
arms. Therefore, a four-cylinder engine has four pedestal support brackets. For
lubrication purposes radial holes are drilled through the rocker-shaft to align with
each rocker-arm, and both ends of the shaft are plugged to prevent the oil leakage.
One of the support pedestals normally incorporate a vertical drilled hole to supply
the oil from the camshaft to the hollow rocker-shaft. This hole matches with a
corresponding radial hole in the shaft. When reassembling the rockers and shaft,
these two holes must align, to restore oil supply to the shaft.

ROCKER-ARM

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A rocker-arm rocks or oscillates about its pivot and relays the push-rod up-and-
down movement to the stem of the poppet-valve. Therefore this arm acts as a
rocking beam.
The pivot (either a shaft or a spherical fulcrum post) is offset and positioned in the
push-rod so that for a given cam lobe rise, the corresponding valve life is about 1.4
times greater. This allows lobe profile of 40% smaller than is otherwise necessary.

The actual rocker-arm pivot ratio and therefore the cam lobe size vary to certain
extent depending on design requirements.

PUSH-ROD

The push-rod is a strut which transmits the to-and-fro cam-follower movement to

one end of the pivoting rocker-arm. Both ends of the push-rod constitute part of pair
of semi-spherical ball-and-socket joint, which permits the rod to tilt slightly and
revolve when the rocker-arm oscillates about its pivots. The bottom of the rod is
convex that fits in a matching recess in the follower. The top of the rod is expanded
to support a concave-recess seat that locates with the adjustable tappet screw on
the end of the rocker-arm. For medium capacity engines the push-rod in general is
solid, but for large engines hollow rods with hardened end-pieces forced into the
tubing are used.

CAM FOLLOWER (TAPPET) AND LIFTER

The cam follower through its eccentric lobe converts the angular movement of the
camshaft into a reciprocating movement.
This movement is directly proportional to the amount the lobe profile that is
deviated from the base circle. Two common forms of sliding followers are the
mushroom follower and the bucket or barrel follower.
The mushroom follower uses a relatively small diameter solid cylindrical guide stem.
The stem has a large disc- or mushroom-shaped head formed at one end to contact
the cam profile. Its other end is of concave shape recessed to form a semi-ball-and-
socket joint with the bottom of the convex push-rod end. The bucket or barrel
follower is a hollow cylindrical sleeve with an enclosed bottom. Its top side is
concave recessed to position the push-rod semi-spherical end.

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Roller followers are used for some heavy-duty applications. However these followers
must be prevented from rotating for which a slot guide-screw is always provided.
The latest model engines have hydraulic tappets (lifters), which are very quiet and
have no valve clearance.

The major parts of hydraulic tappets consist of a hollow cylinder body enclosing a
closely fit hollow plunger, a check valve, and a push-rod cup. Engine oil pressure is
fed by an engine passage to the exterior tappet body.

METHODS OF DRIVING CAMSHAFTS

In conventional four-stroke engine practice one or more camshafts, according to

valve train requirements and arrangement of the cylinders, are driven from the
front end of the crankshaft. Since the axes of crankshaft and the camshaft(s) are
parallel to one another, a positive drive (non-slipping) between them may be
afforded by any of the following means of power transmission: gear, chain, and
toothed belt.

GEAR TRAIN

Gear drives were once widely favoured for both crankcase and cyclinder-head-
mounted camshafts.

Except in the case of competition engines their use is now confined to the formal
application, helical teeth being generally specified in the interests of smooth and
quit operation. To reduce further any noise from gear-type drives, a non-ferrous
acoustically dead material such as such as aluminium alloy may be specified for the
camshaft gear.

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CYLINDER LINER

The liner increases cylinder bore life, as this can be made of an iron suitable more
for its wearing properties than for its casting properties. A single grade of cast iron
used to cast cylinder block cannot have all the optimum individual mechanical
properties such as strength, toughness, hardness, and corrosion and wear
resistance. Separate cylinder liners are therefore used. These provide prolonged
cylinder life, which outweighs the extra cost. The liners can be made from lightly
alloyed cast iron. They are centrifugally cast into the cylindrical sleeve, machined,
the then heat-treated to produce the optimum wear-resisting properties.

These liners are of two classes:

i. Those, which are in direct contact with the cylinder bore walls of the cylinder
block,
are known as dry liners.
ii. Those, which are supported only at each end in the cylinder block and are
elsewhere in direct contact with the engine coolant, are known as wet liners.

DRY LINERS

Normally dry cylinder liners are provided under the following circumstances:

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i. When the cylinder block is made from aluminium alloy, the cylinder bore wall
should
be stronger and of much harder wear resistant material.
ii. For heavy duty operating conditions, the normal wear resistance of a cast-
iron cylinder block can be improved through sleeves with superior properties.
iii. When the cylinder block is designed with siamesed adjacent cylinder bores in
order to reduce the over all length, then only dry liners are suitable.
iv. When a cylinder block has been rebored two or three times, then dry liners
are used
to restore to the original size of the cylinder bore.
v. If both bending and torsional rigidities are of concern, a cylinder block with
cast-in
coolant passages and cylinder bores fitted with dry liners is more suitable
than a block
using wet liners.

The three basic fits used with dry liners are:

i. cast-in fit,
ii. force (press) fit, and
iii. slip fit.

i. Cast-in-fit Liner.

For using dry cylinder liners in aluminium-alloy cylinder blocks, the

outside cylindrical surface of the liner is machined to form a helical groove running
from top to bottom. The liners are generally preheated to 200ºC and are then
placed correctly in the cylinder-block casting dies before casting starts. This forms a
strong metallic bond between the aluminium-alloy block and the cast-iron sleeve
after solidification.

ii. Force-fit (Press-fit) Liner.

This liner is a plain cylindrical sleeve. The liner is positioned by drawing or pushing
the sleeve into the cylinder block with force. This operation requires suitable end-
plates and guides, and either a screw-and-nut draw-bar attachment or a hydraulic-
press set-up. Typical interference fits between the sleeve and cast-iron cylinder
block are 0.050 mm and 0.075 mm for bore diameters of 75 to 100 mm and 100 to
150 mm respectively.

iii. Slip-fit Liner.

This liner is a cylindrical sleeve, flanged at one end for positioning and securing in
its location. There is little or no contact between the liner and the block walls. The
liner is inserted by hand pressure. The flange projects above the block face by 0.05
to 0.125 mm to prevent vertical movement relative to the block while in use.

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WET LINERS

Wet cylinder liners provide the following advantages if used in petrol engines
with aluminium alloy cylinder block having a high coefficient of expansion:

i. Due to isolation of the bulk of the sleeve from the block, difficult expansion
problems can be resolved at one or two locations only.
ii. The use of wet liners simplifies the casting of the cylinder block. Also,
castings of
suitable material can be used with an appropriate heat treatment for
structural
requirements, rather than the cylinder-bore wear-resistance treatments.
iii. With better outside surface finish and constant wall thickness the liner
improves the
thermal conductance and uniformity of cylinder cooling.

The wet liner is more rigid than a dry liner as the normal cylinder wall is eliminated
in this case. Wet liners fit into the cylinder block at the top and near the bottom,
and the remaining portion of the sleeve is unsupported. O-rings are used to prevent
leakage of the coolant. Some wet liner sleeves have a flange at the top, which sits
into a recess machined in the upper deck of the block. Sometimes a soft copper-
asbestos or composite gasket is fitted between the flange and the block recess. To
hold in position, the sleeve flange protrudes above the block’s top join face by 0.05
mm for bores up to 100 mm diameter and by 0.175 mm for cylinder diameter
ranging from 100 to 150 mm. The liner is sealed at the bottom by one or more
rubber O-rings, usually fitted in grooves. Sometimes an inspection drain hole as
shown in the figure is provided in the side of the block between the seals, to check
any leakage through the seals. In another wet liner-sleeve arrangement, only the
lower crankcase end of the liner is supported, which is flanged to have contact with
the corresponding machined face in the block.

A flat gasket is used between these two joint faces. Since the top of the liner sleeve
has no side support, it depends totally on vertical compression of the liner caused
by the cylinder head and gasket during tightening down. For correct compressive
support, the liner’s top face projects above the cylinder block’s deck by 0.03 to 0.10
mm, depending on the diameter of the cylinder bore, and the tightening-down
torque.

LINER MATERIALS

Some commonly used liner materials are nitrided steels, nitrided cast irons, and
heat treated chromium and other alloy cast irons. The wear resistance of these
metals is at least 50% more than the cylinder block material.

VIBRATION DAMPERS

Vibration dampers used on diesel engines are designed to help dampen the
tortional vibrations created within the crankshaft when the engine is running. The
vibration damper is usually connected or mounted onto the free end of the

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crankshaft opposite the flywheel. It may be made up of two round steel cast rings
bolded together by a rubber element or employ a flywheel encased within a viscous
silicon fluid.

BONDED RUBBER DAMPERS

The inner hub unit of the damper construction is hub like to fit the crankshaft, while
the outer unit or ring is designed to fit over the hub with the rubber element in
between. The entire assembly is held together by the molded rubber.

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VISCOUS DAMPERS

The viscous damper is of a two-piece design. The fluid in the housing provides the
resistance so that the flywheel unit absorbs the twisting motion of the crankshaft.
During operation, the outer damper shell, which is bolted to the crankshaft, rotates
at the same speed. The rotating motion is transferred to the internal flywheel
through the highly viscous fluid.

GASKETS

Gaskets or static seals are used between attaching engine parts to seal the joints
for

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preventing either internal or external leakage. A gasket must withstand the high
pressure and temperature of the engine.

Therefore, the gasket:

i. must be impermeable to the fluids in contact,

ii. must conform to any existing surface imperfections,
iii. must be resilient to maintain sealing pressure, even when the joints are
slightly
loosened as a result of temperature changes or vibration,
iv. must be resistant to all expected changes in its environment due to
temperature,
pressure variations, and age, and
v. must be stable under compression conditions, avoiding excessive setting.

The essential considerations of a gasket are:

i. adequate shear and tensile strengths, particularly for use with narrow
sections,
ii. adequate provision for the cooling of the mating surfaces specifically the
cylinder head and for minimizing the effect of differential thermal expansion,
iii. maintenance of a gasket-thickness tolerance, and
iv. a gasket of simple construction, easy to assemble, and not readily damaged.

The gasket thickness and hardness must be chosen to match the degree of
unevenness of either joint face due to large tolerances, distortion, surface
roughness, or other factors such as lack of uniformity of bolt or stud loading.

The following gaskets are commonly used in automobile engines:

i. Copper-asbestos gasket.
ii. Steel-asbestos gasket.
iii. Steel-asbestos-copper gasket.
iv. Single steel ridged or corrugated gasket.
v. Stainless steel gasket.
vi. Asbestos-coated steel sheet with separate steel beading around bore.
vii. Laminated steel and graphitized asbestos sheet with formed steel bore bead.
viii. Asbestos impregnated rubber bonded with reinforced ferrule bead.
ix. Asbestos/steel wire-reinforced tissue.

The material used for gaskets depends on the sealing requirement and cost. Cork,
one of the oldest gasket materials, has limited use only to lightly loaded joints
having uneven surfaces such as rocker covers and oil pans. Aluminium coatings on
cork gaskets help reduce heat deterioration. In some cases cork gaskets are rubber
coated. Cork gaskets are often replaced by gaskets made of fibers such as cellulose,
asbestos, or a mixture of two. Gasket fibers are bonded together with a binder, and
the binder is impermeable to oil in some cases and other cases it swells on contact
with oil, depending upon the use. Fiber gaskets require a better parting surface
smoothness than is needed by cork gaskets. Molded oil-resistant synthetic rubber is

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often used where the sealing requirements dictate special seal designs such as oil
pan corner joints and intake manifold ends. A new approach to gaskets is a plastic
gasket material in a tube used in place of paper and fiber-based gaskets.

Head gasket with a fire ring

Sealing of the cylinder head at the block parting surface is one of the most difficult
sealing jobs. Earlier head gaskets were copper-coated asbestos. As engine design
improved, copper on the gaskets was replaced by steel to withstand the higher
pressures and temperatures. Steel rings, called fire rings, were applied to the
gaskets around the cylinder openings to seal the combustion chambers. A more
recent head gasket development uses a thin steel core with a thin coating of
asbestos rolled on the outside.

This provides the gasket the desired resilient properties needed to withstand the
head and block temperature changes and the pressure variations within each cycle.
Most head gaskets must be installed in a specified direction because the gasket is
often used to help control engine coolant flow.

When this is required the gasket is marked top or front. Timing cover gaskets are
usually made of thin fiber or paper. Cork, fiber and synthetic rubber are used in
different parts of the oil pan. The intake manifold uses embossed steel or reinforced
fiber gaskets. Cork or synthetic rubber sections are used on the lifter valley cover
portion of the intake manifold. After use, a gasket loses most of its sealing
properties. It is common practice to use a new gasket each time a part is
assembled. Often, the gaskets are coated with a special varnish, which melts and
seals all the smaller intersticks between the meeting surfaces when the engine
warms up.

MAIN BEARINGS

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The main bearings are removable inserts that fit between the block main bore and
crankshaft main journals. One –half of each inserts fit into the engine block and the
other half into the main bearing caps.

Oil holes in the upper bearing insert line up with oil passages ways in the engine
block. This allows oil to flow through the engine block, main bearing and into the
crankshaft to lubricate the main bearings and connecting rod bearings. This
prevents metal –on –metal contact.

A main thrust bearing limits how far the crankshaft can slide forward or backwards
in the engine block. Flanges are formed on the main bearing. The flanges almost
touch the side, thrust surfaces of the crankshaft. This limits crankshaft endplay.
Normally only one of the main bearings serves as a thrust bearing. In some case the
thrust washers are separate from the main bearing shells and are in four pieces.

BEARING MATERIALS

SELECTION OF BEARING MATERIALS

The properties required in a bearing material include the following:

i. High Fatigue Strength: This permits the bearing to resist the high fluctuating
pressure in the lubricant film due to the periodic reciprocating-inertia and gas
loads.
ii. High Melting Point and Hot Strength: This resists damage by high
temperature lubricant films and the reduction of yield strength of bearing
alloys at elevated temperatures. The oil temperatures in big-end bearings
can reach around 150ºc.
iii. High Resistance to Corrosion: This permits the bearing surface to resist
attack from degraded acidic lubricants at elevated temperatures.
iv. Adequate Hardness: This allows the relatively soft bearing surface to resist
abrasive wear and cavitations erosion caused by high-velocity oil and to
sustain static and dynamic loads, but without sacrificing conformability and
embeddability.
v. Good Conformability: This is the ability of the bearing surface to tolerate
misalignment between the bearing and the crankshaft. In general,
conformability is inversely related to bearing hardness.
vi. Good Embeddability: Due to this property the bearing surface absorbs dirt
particles being carried round by the lubricant and prevents scoring of the
journal under high loads.
vii. Good Compatibility: This property provides resistance to steel journal against
local welding or pick-up from the bearing when loaded under boundary-
lubrication conditions, but with a rotational speed insufficient to provide a
thick hydrodynamic oil film.

CLASSIFICATION OF PLAIN-JOURNAL-BEARING MATERIALS

Journal bearing material can be categorized into three broad groups:

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i. Lead- or tin-based white metal (Babbitt metal),

ii. Copper-based alloys, and
iii. Aluminium-based alloys.

WHITE (BABBITT)-METAL BEARINGS: White metals are basically either antimony-tin

or antimony-lead alloys having excellent conformability, embeddability,
compatibility, and corrosion resistance. However their fatigue strength is not
sufficient for the loads experienced by main and big-end bearings of today’s
engines. Although the load-carrying capacity is slightly improved by reducing the
thickness of these bearing materials, still not high enough to meet the requirements
of today’s high-compression-ratio engines. White metal is mostly used for camshaft
and thrust bearings. The lead-based alloy has slightly superior hot strength to the
tin-based alloy. Typical compositions are as follows:

COPPER-BASED BEARING ALLOYS: These alloys exhibit higher hardness and have
higher fatigue strength than the white-metal alloys, but have comparatively less
conformability, embeddability, compatibility, and corrosion resistance.

The copper-based bearing alloys fall into three main groups:

i. Copper-lead 70%: 30% alloys, used for low to moderate-duty petrol engines.
ii. Lead bronze with 24% lead, 1.5% tin, and 74.5% copper, used for heavy-duty
petrol
engines.
iii. Lead bronze with 8% lead, 5% tin, and 87% copper, used for heavy-duty
naturally
aspirated and turbo-charged diesel engines.

To improve the poor conformability, embeddability, compatibility, and corrosion

resistance, a soft overlay of either lead-tin-copper or lead-indium alloys are used.
Since the latter overlay has better fatigue strength than the former, slightly thicker
lead-idium overlays is used, to improve the properties of the complete bearing.
Typical overlays compositions are 10% tin, 1% copper and 89% lead; or 5 to 10%
indium and the remainder lead. An average overlay thickness is 0.02mm, which can
vary depending upon the applications.

ALUMINIUM-BASED BEARING ALLOYS: These bearing alloys cover a similar

application range to the copper-based alloys and are suitable for medium- to heavy-
duty operating conditions with both petrol and diesel engines.

These alloys fall into three main groups:

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i. 20% tin, 1% copper, and 79% aluminium. These alloys are used un-plated
for moderate-duty petrol engines.
ii. 6% tin, 1% copper, 1% nickel, and 92% aluminium with a lead-tin overlay.
These alloys are used for moderate-to high duty petrol and diesel engines.
iii. 11% silicon, 1% copper, and 88% aluminium with a lead-tin overlay of
0.025 mm standard thickness.

These alloys are used in turbo-charged heavy-duty diesel engines. The tin-
aluminium alloys are roll-bonded to a steel backing using a pure-aluminium-foil
bonding layer. The silicon-aluminium alloys are directly cold-roll-bonded on to their
steel liners. The high-tin-content aluminium alloy exhibit desirable bearing
properties, hence does not require an overlay. The low-tin and silicon alloys are
harder and hence are overlaid. Aluminium-based alloys do not suffer from corrosion
attack unlike the copper-based bearing alloys.

CRANKSHAFT OIL SEALS

Crankshaft oil seals keep oil from leaking out of the front and rear of the engine.
Seals are placed around the front and rear of the crankshaft to contain this oil. The
oil pump forces oil into the main and connecting rod bearings. This causes the oil to
spray out of the bearings under pressure.

The rear oil seal can be a one piece or a two piece. The seal lip rides on a smooth,
machined and polished surface on the crankshaft.

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