Engine
A Full Overview
Engine
The term “engine” normally refers to machines, like steam engines and
internal combustion engines, that burn or consume fuel to perform
mechanical work by exerting a torque or linear force (usually in the form
of movement of a piston). A Heat Engine is a machine that converts the
energy stored in the fuel i.e., Chemical Energy into Useful energy i.e.,
thermal or Mechanical energy to do work. As engines work by burning
fuels to generate heat, they are called Heat engines. Engines are a
general term for devices that use heat energy to create motion. An engine
is a machine made to transform a variety of energy sources into
mechanical energy. An engine is also known as a motor. There are many
energies available in our surroundings like Electrical energy,
electromagnetic energy, thermal energy, potential energy, kinetic energy,
chemical energy, sound energy, hydraulic energy, heat energy, nuclear
energy, and so on. All these energies generate heat as an intermediate
energy form, and the Heat engine uses these energies to execute a
working cycle. Mechanical heat engines use a variety of thermodynamic
methods to transform heat into work. Perhaps the most prevalent
example of a mechanical heat engine is the internal combustion engine,
in which heat from the combustion of fuel causes the gaseous
combustion products in the combustion chamber to quickly pressurize,
causing them to expand and drive a piston, which turns a crankshaft.
Although an internal combustion engine-driven vehicle may include a
variety of motors and pumps, the power for all such components
ultimately comes from the engine.
an engine that uses thermal energy to accomplish useful work by
converting the chemical energy of the fuel into thermal energy.
Engine
A Full Overview
DIFFERENT TYPES OF ENGINES
Heat engine
Combustion engine
Internal combustion engine
External combustion engine
Reciprocating engine
Steam Engine
Gas turbine
Liquid Air Cycle Engines
And so on.
But The Engines are classified into two types:
I) Internal Combustion Engine (IC) Engine.
II) External Combustion Engine (IC) Engine.
I) Internal Combustion Engine: Internal combustion engines, also
referred to as l.C. engines, are those engines in which the combustion of
fuel occurs inside the engine cylinder. Its name also suggests this
definition. These engines use gasoline, diesel, and natural gas. Although
in the case of Steam engines, the fuel fed into the cylinder is already
heated or superheated and is prepared to work in the working
combustion cycle of the engine in the case of steam engines, internal
combustion engines burn fuel inside the engine cylinder using a spark
ignition, which results in much higher temperatures. The important part
of the engine is the Piston inside it. The piston moves upward and
downward to execute the working cycle of an engine is known as a
Stroke. There are two-stroke and four stroke engines also.
II) External Combustion Engines: It is the type of engine where the
Combustion of fuel takes place outside the engine. It is a heat engine in
Engine
A Full Overview
which an internal working fluid is added and heated through the engine
wall by combustion from an outside source. The fluid then enables the
engine's mechanism to expand, creating motion and useful work. After
cooling, the fluid is compressed and reused (closed cycle) or, less
frequently, dumped, and cool fluid gets drawn in.
Here We will only focus about Internal Combustion Engine and Our
discussion will be limited on this .
COMPARISON OF STEAM ENGINES AND INTERNAL
COMBUSTION ENGINES
There are some important points of comparison of steam engines and
internal combustion engines in the below :
Steam engines I.C. engines
1) The combustion of fuel takes 1) The combustion of fuel takes
place outside the engine place inside the engine cylinder.
cylinder (i.e. in a boiler).
2) Because fuel combustion occurs 2) These engines are quite noisy
outside of the engine cylinder, because fuel burning occurs inside
these engines run smoothly and the engine cylinder.
silently.
3) Inside the engine cylinder, there 3) Inside the cylinder, the working
is a low working pressure and pressure and temperature are both
temperature.. very high.
4) The engine cylinder and its 4) Special alloys are employed to
components are made using create engine cylinders and its
standard alloys because to the low parts due to the extremely high
pressure and temperature. pressure and temperature.
5) To transport energy, a steam 5) There is no need for a boiler or
engine needs a boiler and other other components with a l.C.
parts. As a result, it is large and engine. Thus, it is portable as well
clunky. as lightweight.
Engine
A Full Overview
6) The efficiency of steam engines 6) The efficiency of the l.C.
is between 15 and 20 percent. engines is between 35 and 40
percent.
7) It cannot be started this 7) It is immediately startable.
momentarily.
CLASSIFICATION OF L.C. ENGINES
1. According to the type of fuel used :
(a) Petrol engines, (b) Diesel engines or oil engines, and (c) Gas
engines.
2. According to the method of igniting the fuel :
(a) Spark ignition engines (briefly written as S.I. engines), (b)
Compression ignition engines (briefly written as C.I. engines), and
(c) Hot spot ignition engines
3. According to the number of strokes per cycle :
(a) Four stroke cycle engines, and (b) Two stroke cycle engines.
4. According to the cycle of operation:
a) Otto, cycle (also known as constant volume cycle) engines, (b)
Diesel cycle (also known as constant pressure cycle) engines,
and (c) Dual combustion cycle (also known as semi-diesel
cycle) engines.
5. According to the speed of the engine :
(a) Slow speed engines, (b) Medium speed engines, and (c) High
speed engines.
6. According to the cooling system :
(a) Air-cooled engines, (b) Water-cooled engines, and (c)
Evaporative cooling engines
7. According to the method of fuel injection :
(a) Carburettor engines, (b) Air injection engines, and (c) Airless
or solid injection engines.
8. According to the number of cylinders :
Engine
A Full Overview
(a) Single cylinder engines, and (b) Multi-cylinder engines.
9. According to the arrangement of cylinders:
(a) Vertical engines, (b) Horizontal engines, (c) Radial engines,
(d) In-line multi-cylinder engines, (e)V-type multi-cylinder
engines, (/) Opposite-cylinder engines, and (g) Opposite-
piston engine.
10. According to the valve mechanism :
(a) Overhead valve engines, and (b) Side valve engines.
11. According to the method of governing :
(a) Hit and miss governed engines, (b) Quantitatively governed
engines, and (c) Qualitatively governed engines.
MAIN COMPONENTS OF I.C. ENGINES
There are thousands of parts in a I.C. engines in its construction.
Main parts of IC Engines will be discussed here . An Internal
Combustion Engines (I.C.) Engines consists mainly of Cylinder ,
Cylinder Head , Piston , Piston rings , Connecting Rod , Crank shaft ,
Crank case , Flywheel. Here we will know briefly about these :
Engine
A Full Overview
1)Cylinder : It is part of I.C. engine piston move inward and backward in
order to develop power. The engine cylinder must endure high
temperatures (>2000°C) and pressures (>50 bar). Therefore, the
materials used to construct an engine cylinder should be able to maintain
their structural integrity under conditions of such high pressure and
temperature. The cylinder is built of standard cast iron for regular
engines. However, it is built of steel or aluminum alloys for heavy-duty
engines.
2) Cylinder head: It serves as a cap to seal the cylinder bore and is
attached to one end of the cylinder. For allowing a fresh charge and
releasing the burned gases, the cylinder head has inlet and exit valves.
For lighting the fuel-air combination at the end of the compression
stroke in petrol engines, a spark plug is also located inside the cylinder
head. However, the cylinder head of diesel engines has a nozzle (also
known as a fuel valve) for injecting fuel into the cylinder. Typically, the
cylinder head is cast in one piece and connected to one end by a bolt.
The same material is used to make both the cylinder block and the
cylinder head.
3) Piston: It is regarded as the heart of an internal combustion engine,
and its primary job is to transfer the force produced by the burning of
charge to the connecting rod. The pistons are often made of lightweight
alloys of aluminum. They are stronger at higher temperatures and have
good heat conductivity.
4) Piston rings: These are a type of ring that is circular and composed of
a specific steel alloy that maintains its elastic characteristics even at high
temperatures. The circumferential grooves on the piston's exterior
Engine
A Full Overview
surface are where the piston rings are located. For the piston, two sets of
rings are installed. The upper rings' purpose is to establish an airtight
seal to stop the leakage of burned gases into the lower part. Similar to
the upper rings, the lower rings' job is to effectively seal off the engine
cylinder to avoid oil leaks.
5) Connecting Rod: It acts as a connection between the piston and
crankshaft, transferring force from the piston to the crankshaft as its
primary function. Additionally, during the working stroke, it transforms
the piston's reciprocating motion into the crankshaft's circular motion.
The connecting rod's lower (i.e. bigger) end is attached to the crank,
while the upper (i.e. smaller) end goes on the piston. The creation of
connecting rods involves the use of specific steel or aluminum alloys.
6) Crankshaft : It is thought of as the base of an internal combustion
engine, and its job is to use the connecting rod to transform the piston's
reciprocating motion into rotational motion. This shaft includes one or
more eccentric components known as cranks. The portion of the crank to
which the larger end of the connecting rod is attached is known as the
crank pin. Cranking shafts are made from special steel alloys.
7) Crankcase: The I.C. engine's cylinder and crankshaft are housed in a
cast iron casing. Additionally, it functions as the lubricating oil sump.
Bolts are used to secure the "bed plate," or lower portion of the crank
case.
8) Flywheel: It is a large wheel that is situated on the crankshaft and is
responsible for keeping the engine's speed constant. It is accomplished
by conserving extra energy during the power stroke and releasing it
during subsequent strokes.
SEQUENCE OF OPERATIONS IN A CYCLE
Engine
A Full Overview
There are four different strokes of operation in a engine cycle . these are
Suction stroke , Compression stroke , Expansion and Working stroke ,
and Exhaust stroke. The piston moves up and down inside the cylinder
through the combustion cycle of an engine. The positions of the piston
inside the cylinder are referred to as "top dead center" (TDC) and
"bottom dead center" (BDC). The position closest to the valves is called
TDC, and the position farthest from them is called BDC. A stroke is
defined as the piston's transition from TDC to BDC or the opposite. A
combustion revolution, also known as a combustion cycle, is the full
procedure of drawing gas and air into the piston, lighting it on fire, and
exhaling the exhaust.
Let’s describe about them briefly :
1) Suction stroke : In this stroke, the engine cylinder receives the
proper amount of fuel vapour.
2) Compression Stroke : The engine cylinder's fuel vapour is
compressed during this stroke.
3) Expansion or working stroke : Just before the compression is
finished in this stroke, the fuel vapour is fired. Due to the
expansion of the combustion products in the engine cylinder, it
causes a fast rise in pressure. The piston is pushed hard by this
unexpected rise in pressure, which turns the crankshaft. The
machine attached to the crankshaft is driven in turn.
4) Exhaust Stroke : During this stroke, the engine cylinder's burned
gases (or combustion products) are expelled to make room for the
fresh fuel vapour.
TWO-STROKE AND FOUR-STROKE CYCLE ENGINES
Two stroke cycle Engine : A two-stroke engine's working cycle can be
finished in two piston strokes or one crankshaft rotation. This is
accomplished by performing the operations of suction and compression
in one stroke, an inward stroke, and expansion and exhaust in a second
Engine
A Full Overview
stroke, an outward stroke. Power is generated per two piston strokes, and
the spark plugs ignite once for every complete revolution. Additionally,
the oil must be pre-mixed with the fuel for two-stroke engines.
Four stroke cycle Engine : In a four-stroke engine, the working cycle is
finished in either four piston strokes or two crankshaft revolutions. Each
stroke involves the processes of suction, compression, expansion, and
exhaust. Power is generated per four piston strokes, and the spark plugs
only ignite once every other revolution. Since the oil is stored in a
separate compartment, these engines also do not require the pre-mixing
of fuel and oil.
ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGE OF TWO-STROKE OVER
FOUR-STROKE CYCLE ENGINES
There are some advantages and disadvantages of two stroke engines
over four stroke engine . these are given below :
Advantages :
1) Two-stroke engines have a significantly simpler structure, making
repairs much simpler. They have ports rather than valves. Four-
stroke engines cost more to buy and maintain since they contain
more parts. That’s why , a two-stroke cycle engine appropriate for
light automobiles and marine engines.
2) As A two-stroke cycle engine provides twice the number of power
strokes than the four-stroke cycle engine at equal engine speed.
That’s why a two-stroke cycle engine should develop twice the
power as that of a four-stroke cycle engine but in actual practice
the ratio of power generation between two stroke and four stroke
engine is 1.7 /1.8 .
3) The turning moment of a two-stroke cycle engine is more uniform
because it has twice as many working strokes as a four-stroke cycle
engine. As a result, the flywheel and foundations of a two-stroke
Engine
A Full Overview
cycle engine are lighter. Additionally, a two-stroke cycle engine's
mechanical efficiency is increased as a result.
4) A two-stroke cycle engine's initial cost is significantly lower than a
four-stroke cycle engine.