4 Stroke Ignition System

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PROJECT ON 4 STROKE IGNITION SYSTEM
Introduction
A Four stroke Ignition engine (also known as four-cycle) is an engine

in which the piston completes four separate strokes which constitute a
single thermodynamic cycle. A stroke refers to the full travel of the piston
along the cylinder, in either direction. The four separate strokes are
termed:
Intake: this stroke of the piston begins at top dead centre. The piston
descends from the top of the cylinder to the bottom of the cylinder,
increasing the volume of the cylinder. A mixture of fuel and air is forced
by atmospheric (or greater by some form of air pump) pressure into the
cylinder through the intake port.
Compression: with both intake and exhaust valves closed, the piston
returns to the top of the cylinder compressing the air or fuel-air mixture
into the cylinder head.
Power: this is the start of the second revolution of the cycle. While the
piston is close to Top Dead Centre, the compressed airfuel mixture in a
gasoline engine is ignited, by a spark plug in gasoline engines, or which
ignites due to the heat generated by compression in a diesel engine. The
resulting pressure from the combustion of the compressed fuel-air
mixture forces the piston back down toward bottom dead centre.
Exhaust: during the exhaust stroke, the piston once again returns to top
dead centre while the exhaust valve is open. This action expels the spent
fuel-air mixture through the exhaust valve(s).
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The Four-stroke-cycle spark-ignition (petrol) engine

1. Induction Stroke: The inlet valve is open. The movement of the
piston creates suction pressure that induces (sucks in) fresh charge
of air and atomised petrol.
2. Compression stroke: Both the inlet and exhaust valves are closed.
The piston moves upward. The charge is progressively compressed
to 1/8 to 1/10 of the original volume, increasing the charge pressure
and temperature.
3. Power stroke: Both the inlet and the exhaust valves are closed. Just
before the piston reaches the TDC during the compression stroke, a
spark plug ignites the charge. When the piston reaches the TDC,
the charge begins to burn, rapidly raising the pressure and
temperature and forcing the piston to move downward in the power
stroke.
4. Exhaust Stroke: At the end of the power stroke, the exhaust valve
opens. Because the cylinder pressure is much higher than
atmospheric (about 4 bars). The remaining burnt gases in the
cylinder will be pushed by the movement of the piston upward in
the exhaust stroke.
The Four-stroke-cycle compression-ignition (diesel) engine
The induction and exhaust strokes are the same.
Compression Stroke: Both the inlet and the exhaust valves are closed.
The piston moves upward. The charge is progressively compressed to
1/12 to 1/24 of its original volume, raising the pressure to 30-50 bars.
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Power Stroke: Just before the end of the compression stroke, diesel fuel is
injected, vaporised by the heated charge. The mixture is ignited. The
burning of the mixture raises the pressure inside the cylinder very rapidly
and forces the piston to move away from the cylinder head.
Comparison between the spark-ignition and compression-ignition
engines
Thermal efficiency: Petrol engines can have thermal efficiency ranging
between 20% and 30%. Diesel engines have improved efficiencies,
between 30% and 40%.
Noise: Diesel engines are noisier. The combustion process is quieter in
the petrol engine and it runs smoother than the diesel engine.
Cost: Due to their heavy construction and injection equipment, diesel
engines are more expensive than petrol engines.
The two-stroke-cycle petrol engine

1. Induction and exhaust stroke: The piston moves down the cylinder
and initially uncover the exhaust port (E) releasing the burnt gases
to the atmosphere. Such a movement also compresses the charge in
the crankcase. Further movement of the piston uncover the transfer
port (T) allowing the compressed mixture to be transferred to the
inside of the cylinder pushing out any remaining of the burnt gases.
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2. Compression and power stroke: The piston moves in the direction

of the cylinder head, sealing off all ports and compressing the
mixture. Further movement of the piston increases the volume in
the crankcase, creating suction so when the inlet port is uncovered
fresh charge is sucked in the crankcase. Just before reaching the
TDC, a spark plug ignites the compressed mixture, raising the
pressure and temperature of the mixture very rapidly. The burnt
gases expand forcing the piston to move down the cylinder.
Comparison of the two and four-stroke cycle petrol engines
Theoretically, the two-stroke engine should develop twice the power of
the four-stroke engine for the same cylinder size but actually the factor is
1.3 because the induction exhaust stroke of the two-stroke engine is less
effective. The cooling load is greater for the two-stroke engine and it is
thermally less efficient than the four-stroke engine. The two-stroke engine
has fewer working parts so it is cheaper to manufacture.
Two-stroke cycle diesel engine:

The piston moves away from the cylinder head and when it is half way
down its power stroke the exhaust valves open allowing the burnt gases to
escape through the exhaust valves. When the piston moves down near the
end of the power stroke, the inlet ports are uncovered, allowing fresh air
from the blower to be admitted.
The piston moves upward toward the cylinder head sealing off the inlet
ports and helping the fresh air to push any remaining burnt gases through
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the exhaust valves and the exhaust valves close. The piston continue to
move upward compressing the charge of air and raising the temperature
and the pressure to about 30 to 40 bars. Before the piston reaches the
TDC fuel is injected into the charge.
The heated charge vaporises the fuel and ignites it. The rapidly burning
mixture raises the pressure and temperature very rapidly inside the
cylinder and forces the piston to move away from the cylinder head in the
power stroke.
Piston & Connecting-rod assemblies

Piston-Ring action:
Piston ring can be divided into two groups:
i)
Compression rings, whose function is to seal the space between

the piston and the cylinder wall so that gas can not escape.
ii)
Oil-control rings, whose main purpose is to control the amount

of lubricant passing up to the top of the cylinder walls.
Compression-ring action:
The piston ring is designed to expand radially outward when fitted in its
groove so the ring will tend to spring outwards to apply pressure on the
cylinder wall.
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On the upward compression stroke, the compressed charge will move

between the groove and the ring side faces, press the ring against the
lower groove of the piston. This provide a very effective compression
seal without leakage.
On the downward power stroke, piston acceleration is greater than that of
the ring so that the upper groove and the ring side faces will be held
firmly together to form the seal.
Oil-Control-ring action
During the crankshaft rotation, oil is splashed from the big end bearing on
to the cylinder walls. The oil control scraper ring performs two functions:
first, it regulates the amount of oil passing to the combustion chamber
and secondly, it distributes a film of oil over the cylinder surface to
lubricate the cylinder wall and the compression rings.
On the pistons upward stroke, the lower face of the ring will be held
firmly against the lower groove so that the upper face of the ring will
scrape a proportion of the oil. The excess oil will accumulate in the
clearance space of the groove until it overflows through the drillings to
the sump.
On the piston downward movement the ring will snap over to the top of
the ring groove. The sharp edge of the working face of the ring will
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scrape the oil down the cylinder wall. The surplus oil accumulates in the
space of the groove and overflows through the drillings.
Piston and piston-ring working clearances
1. Piston-ring side clearance:
Is the gap between the ring and land side faces. With insufficient
clearance, the expansion of the lands will wedge the rings in their grooves
and could destroy the oil film and cause overheating. A lose fit will cause
the ring to flutter. This hammers the ring against the groove faces,
producing rapid groove wear. Ring side clearance can be checked by
removing the ring from the piston and rolling it around the outside of the
piston in its groove, suitable size of feeler gauge can be slipped between
the ring and the groove to check the clearance.
Typical minimum ring-side clearances for pistons between 6 and 12 cm in
diameters are as follows:
Compression ring: Petrol 0.05 mm, Diesel 0.06 mm
Oil control ring: Petrol 0.04 mm, Diesel 0.04 mm
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Piston-ring joint clearance

A clearance must be allowed at the piston-ring joint to compensate for the
expansion, which takes place from cold to hot working temperature.
Insufficient clearance will cause the ring ends to buckle, expanding the
ring against the cylinder wall, affecting the oil film and can cause
overheating. Rings with large gaps may cause a loss of compression.
Typical minimum ring-joint clearance are as follows: Water-cooled fourstroke engines 0.03 mm per cm diameter. Air-cooled four-stroke engines
0.04 mm per cm diameter.
Piston-skirt-to-bore clearance
The correct clearance between the skirt and the cylinder wall is necessary
to eliminate piston slap when the engine is cold. To check the clearance,
insert the feeler blade into the cylinder bore for its full length, then slide
the corresponding piston into the bore so that it traps the feeler blade at its
largest diameter then hold the piston and pull the feeler.
Piston and connecting-rod Gudgeon pin Joints

The piston and connecting-rod are coupled together by a Gudgeon pin ,
which is supported in holes bored in the piston at right angles to the
piston axis at about mid-height position, the central portion of the
Gudgeon pin passes through the connecting-rod small-end eye.
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To secure the connecting-rod and Gudgeon-pin in position, the

connecting-rod small-end faces are polished with emery cloth and heated
evenly with an Oxy-acetylene torch (230 320 C) then the Gudgeon-pin
is forced through both the piston and the small-end eye until it is centrally
positioned. The small-end then cools and shrinks tight over the pin.
Crankshaft Construction
Main Journals: are the parallel cylindrical portions, which are supported
by the plain bearings.
Counterbalance Weights: are attached or integrated with the crankshaft.
Their function is to counteract the centrifugal force created by each
individual crankpin and its webs.
Crank-webs: The cranked arms of the shaft, which provide the throws of
the crankshaft are known as crank-webs. Their purpose is to support the
big-end crankpin.
The flywheel: The flywheel serves three main purposes:
i)
To support the clutch assembly and to transmit the drive

between the crankshaft and the gearbox by means of friction
between the friction face of the flywheel and the clutch drivenplate.
ii)
To provide a carrier wheel for the ring gear when the engine to
be started.
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iii)
To store energy on the power stroke so that it will be given out

on the three idle strokes, this being necessary to reduce
crankshaft speed fluctuation throughout each cycle of operation.
Valve Timing Diagrams and Camshaft Drives:

The inlet valve opens before TDC for the following reasons:
1. To prevent excessive cam-follower shock loads and spring
vibration, the inlet valve is opened very gradually.
2. Due to its inertia, it takes some time for the charge to enter the
cylinder after the inlet valve opens.
3. To make use of the partial depression in the combustion chamber
caused by the outgoing gases.
The inlet valve closes after BDC
To maximize the air charge entering the cylinder and make use of the
inertia of the incoming fresh charge particularly at medium to high engine
speed. At low speed, the inertia is insufficient to oppose the upward
moving piston so that a portion of the newly arrived charge will actually
be pushed back and return to the induction manifold.
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Exhaust valve opens before BDC for the following reasons:

1) Toward the end of the power stroke the burning process slows
down because the burnt gases suffocate and prevent the mixing and
burning of the unburnt charge so that the loss of power is small.
2) To take advantage of the kinetic and pressure energy of the exhaust
gases to clear the cylinder before the end of the power stroke.
Exhaust valve closes after TDC
To take advantage of the exhaust gases. The momentum of the outgoing
exhaust gases leave a vacuum that induces fresh charge to enter the
cylinder and simultaneously push any remaining exhaust gas out.
Crankshaft to camshaft drive
With the four-stroke cycle engine, the cycle of events of the inlet and
exhaust valve opening and closing is performed by the camshaft in one
revolution, but the piston strokes- induction, compression, power, and
exhaust are completed in two crankshaft revolutions. Consequently; for
the camshaft timing cycle to be in phase with the crankshaft angular
movement, the camshaft has to turn at half crankshaft speed, that is a 2:1
speed ratio. The crankshaft to camshaft drive may be transmitted by three
methods: chain, belt, or gear.
Chain drives are more expensive than belts. They are noisy, but they last
longer. Timing gear trains are particularly suitable for medium to large
diesel engine applications where reliability is essential. In all cases the
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pulley-wheel of the camshaft has twice the teeth of the crankshaft pulleywheel.
Setting belt tension
Adjustment of the belt can be carried out by loosening the jockey idler
locknut and pushing it against the smooth face of the belt with a moderate
thumb pressure at the midpoint between the crankshaft and camshaft
pulleys.
Poppet-valve operating mechanism
A poppet valve resembles a cylindrical stem with an enlarged mushroom
disk at one end. The stem of the valve is situated in a guide hole. When
the valve stem is moved in and out, the valve disk head will open and
close.
Camshaft with push-rod and rockers
That valve-mechanism is made up from the following components:
a) a camshaft
b) a cam follower
c) a push rod
d) a rocker arm
e) a rocker shaft
f) a return spring
g) a poppet-valve
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Cooling Systems
Engine heat distribution and the necessity for a cooling system
The energy released from the combustion of fuel in the cylinder is
dissipated in roughly three ways:
35-45% heat energy doing useful work on the piston.
30-40% heat expelled with the exhaust gases
22-28% heat carried away by heat transference
The importance of the cooling systems
If the cooling was not effective, the heat-flow rate through the metal will
be low and the temperature of the inner surfaces will rise to a point where
the heat destroys the lubricating properties of the oil film on the cylinder
walls. Simultaneously, thermal stresses will be established, which may
distort the cylinders.
Methods of Heat Transfer
1) By conduction through solids or stagnant fluids
K
Q cond A T1 T2
Where A is the area of heat transfer, K is the thermal conductivity of

the material, is the thickness of the material, and T1-T2 is the
temperature difference.
2) By convection through the movement of fluids
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Q
conv Ah (T1 T2 )
Where A is the area of heat transfer, h is the heat transfer coefficient,

and T1-T2 is the temperature difference.
3) By radiation (no medium is required)
Q rad A1 F1 2 1 (T14 T24 )
where A1 is the surface area of the body emitting the radiation, T1 is

the temperature of the body emitting the radiation, T2 is the
temperature of the body receiving the radiation, 1 is the emissivity of
the body emitting the radiation, F1-2 is the view factor from body 1 to
body 2, and is Steven Boltzmann constant = 5,67 10-8 W/m2 K4
Types of cooling systems
i)
Direct air-cooling, where cool circulating air is made to

come in contact with the exposed and enlarged external
surfaces of the cylinder and head and thereby dissipate
their heat to the surrounding air.
ii)
Indirect cooling (liquid cooling), where a liquid coolant is

used to transmit the heat from the cylinder and head to
the radiator. Movement of air through the radiator then
extracts and dissipates the unwanted heat to the
surroundings.
Direct air-cooling system

If direct air-cooling is to be used, the surface area of the outside walls
of both the cylinder and the head must somehow be enlarged to
anything from five to fifteen times the plain cylindrical surface area.
Fins are used to increase the external surface area of the cylinder. The
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length of these fins will be greatest where the cylinder is hottest-near

the cylinder head and will progressively reduce toward the cooleroperating crankcase.
Description of an air-cooled system

Air-cooled engines mounted on a motorcycle frame are usually
exposed to the surrounding atmosphere. They rely on the natural air
stream caused by the forward movement to circulate air around the
cylinders, head, and crankcase.
For multi-cylinder engines, controlled air-cooling is usually achieved
by incorporating a fan, which blows fresh air over the external finned
surfaces of the engine. To improve the effectiveness of the blown air,
the sides of the finned cylinders and heads are enclosed by a sheet
metal. The shape of the sheet metal guides the forced convection
current around all the cylinders and provide a direct exit after the air
has extracted and absorbed the heat from the engine.
Heat transfer in an indirect liquid-cooled engine system
The heat released from the burning of the atomised mixture of air and
fuel is transferred in all directions to the metal walls of the combustion
chambers, cylinders, and pistons by direct radiation, by convection
currents and then by conduction through a stagnant boundary layer of
gas and a film of oil to the metal walls.
Due the difference in temperature between the inner and outer cylinder
walls, heat will be conducted through the metals. It is then further
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conducted through a thin stagnant boundary layer of liquid to the

coolant liquid in the passages around the cylinders.
Thermo-syphon liquid-cooling system

As the liquid around the cylinders receives heat it expands and becomes
less dense relative to liquid which is not in contact with the hot metal
walls; therefore, the lighter hot coolant will rise to the highest point of the
system, which is the header tank over the radiator tubes. At the same
time, the liquid in the radiator will be cooled by the air stream passing
around the tubes and over the fins, consequently the density of the liquid
in the tubes will increase so that the cooled liquid sinks to the bottom and
replace the hot and less dense liquid in contact with the cylinder walls;
thus, a convection current flows between the engine and the radiator and
so forms an enclosed circulating loop known as the thermo-syphon
cooling system.
Description of a liquid-cooled system

Radiator: the radiator transfers the heat absorbed by the liquid coolant to
the surrounding air. The radiator consists of columns of spaced-out
copper or aluminium-alloy tubes held in position at the ends by an upper
header tank and a bottom tank. Attached to these tubes are layers of
horizontal copper or aluminium sheets known as fins. These sheets
improve the effectiveness of air-convection heat dissipation. The upper
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header tank distributes the collected hot liquid evenly among the vertical
tubes. The bottom tank collects the cooled liquid coolant from each tube
and passes it to the engines coolant passages surrounding the cylinders.
Flexible hosing: The flexible hoses are necessary to absorb the relative
movement between the radiator, which is bolted to the body and the
suspended engine, which tends to vibrate while operating.
Coolant Jackets: are passages for the coolant water around the
combustion chamber walls, the inlet and exhaust ports and their valve
seats, and the spark-plug or injector holes.
Fan: to provide a continuous air stream over the tubes and fins to
dissipate the heat being circulated by the coolant.
Limitations of the thermo-syphon cooling system
a) Under heavy load condition, the rate of the coolant circulating
cannot match (much less) the rate of heat transfer from the cylinder
walls to the coolant.
b) Without coolant-circulation control, the engine tends to be
overcooled and very rarely reaches the optimum operating
temperature.
Forced-convection pump circulation
A centrifugal pump is incorporated to speed up the rate of coolant
circulating and heat removal. With the forced circulation of coolant, the
coolant is uniformly distributed among all cylinders. This helps to
prevent overheating of individual cylinders. Increasing the coolant flow
rate enables the radiator to work more efficiently so it is reduced in size.
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The cooling process is controlled by placing a thermostat valve in series

with the top hose. When the engine is cold, the valve is closed-this
prevents the bulk of the liquid circulating. Once normal working
conditions are reached, the thermostat automatically senses the desired
working temperature and opens the valve and bulk circulation begins.
To prevent excessive pressure build up in the engine coolant passages, a
bypass pipe circulate about one tenth of the liquid directly between the
cylinder-head thermostat housing and the inlet side of the pump.
Comparison of air-and liquid-cooling systems
Air-cooling:
Advantages:
a) Air-cooled engines operate extremely well in both hot and cold
climates
b) Air-cooled engines rapidly reach their working temperature from
cold
c) Air-cooled engines are lighter than similar-sized liquid-cooled
engines
d) Air-cooled engines have no coolant leakage or freezing problems.
Disadvantages
a) A relatively large amount of power is required to drive the cooling
fan
b) The large quantities of intake air passing into the cooling system
can make the engine noisy
c) The cooling fins can under certain conditions vibrate and amplify
noise
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d) The pitch between cylinder centres has to be greater than in liquidcooled engines to permit the fins to extend between cylinders
e)
Each cylinder has to be individually cast whereas a rigid

monoblock construction is used by liquid-cooled engines
Liquid Cooling
Advantages
a) Liquid-cooled engines provide greater temperature-uniformity
around the cylinders compared with air-cooled engines.
b) The combined power consumption of the coolant pump and the fan
in liquid-cooled units is far less than that of the sir-cooled engine
fan.
c) The liquid-cooled engine cylinders are situated closer together,
providing a very rigid and compact unit compared with the aircooled engine.
d) Mechanical noise from the engine is damped by both the coolant
and the jackets.
Disadvantages
a) Liquid-coolant joints are subject to leakage
b) Precautions must be taken to prevent coolant freezing
c) Liquid-cooled units take longer to warm up
d) The coolant passages tend to scale, and the hoses and radiator tubes
deteriorate with time.
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Thermostat-controlled cooling systems

The function of the thermostat is to regulate heat dissipation by
controlling the rate of coolant flow through the radiator. Engines are
designed to operate most efficiently over a narrow temperature range
(usually between 80 and 100 C for coolant) because of the following
reasons:
a) The working clearances of rubbing components such as piston
rings and cylinder, the journals and bearings, the valves and guides,
etc. will not be ideal until the engine is fully warmed up, so that
both noise and wear will be accelerated during the heating-up
period.
b) Large amount of condensed corrosive vapour in the cold crankcase
may contaminate the lubricating system
c) An improved uniform air-fuel mixture will be formed at the
optimum working temperature, so more useful work will be done
during combustion
d) The optimum operating temperature will maintain the lubricating
oil at the correct viscosity, so that the rubbing parts have the best
lubricant protection.
Operation of the bellows-type thermostat
The thermostat is usually situated in front of the cylinder head in a
coolant-outlet housing, therefore, all the coolant flowing through the top
hose from the engine to the radiator has to pass through the thermostatvalve assembly. The thermostat consists of a brass flexible bellows
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partially filled with a volatile fluid such as alcohol. A poppet valve is

attached to one end, and the other end is mounted in a brass frame, which
fits into the coolant-passage housing.
While the engine is cold, the bellows lobes will contract together so that
the poppet valve is closed and only small amount of coolant circulate in
the engine through a bypass passage.
Once the engine has warmed up, the heat will act on the bellows and the
liquid will rapidly expand, pushing apart the individual bellows lobes so
that the valve will begin to open. If the temperature continues to rise, the
substance inside will change its state into gas, and further expansion of
the bellows will result until the valve is fully open.
Engine Lubrication System

A portion of power is called friction power is lost to overcome the
resistance to relative motion of all the moving parts of the engine. This
includes the friction between the piston rings, piston skirt, and cylinder
wall; friction in the big end, crankshaft, and camshaft bearings. Friction
in the valve mechanism, friction in the gears, or pulleys and belts, which
drive the camshaft and engine accessories.
The Importance of Lubrication
The lubricant and lubricating system perform the following functions:
1. Reduce the friction resistance of the engine to a minimum to
ensure maximum mechanical efficiency.
2. Protect the engine against wear.
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3. Contribute to cooling the piston and regions of the engine

where friction work is dissipated.
4. Remove all impurities from lubricated regions.
5. Hold gas and oil leakage at an acceptable minimum level.
Lubricating System
In that system, oil is circulated through the system using an oil-pump,
which may be driven directly from the crankshaft or indirectly from the
camshaft or any auxiliary shaft. When the camshaft rotates, oil from the
sump is drawn through the submerged strainer and pick-up pipe to the
pump. The oil is then compressed and discharged through a drilling to the
lubrication system. Control of the oil pressure is achieved by a pressurerelief valve situated on the output side of the pump. If the oil pressure
becomes too high, the relief valve will open, bleeding any surplus oil
back to the sump. From the oil-pump, all the oil flows through drillings in
the crankcase to a cylindrical filter unit. The oil circulate around the filter
bowl, forces its way through the center and flows out to the main oil
gallery (the main oil passage). By various branch cross-drillings in the
crankcase, oil is distributed to the crankshaft main-journal bearings and to
the camshaft bearing.
Main-and big-end bearing lubrication:
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Continuous oil feed to the big-end bearings from the oil grooves is
provided by diagonal drillings in the crankshaft.
Cylinder and Piston Lubrication
One of the common methods for cylinder and piston lubrication is
connecting-rod big-end radial-hole oil spray. In this method, through a
small radial drilling in each connecting rod, a spray of oil is directed to
the thrust side of the cylinder bore once every revolution.
Valve rocker-arm-mechanism lubrication

An oil drilling from one of the camshaft bearings supplies oil to the
tappet-follower gallery drillings. Oil from this gallery flows through the
hollow push-rod and to the rocker-arm.
Petrol-engine Carburetion Fuel System
Layout of a Petrol-engine Fuel System:

A fuel system fro a carburetted engine includes:
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a) A fuel tank, which stores the petrol and has a fuel-gauge sensor
unit incorporated to indicate the amount of petrol in the tank.
b) A feed pump, which transfers the petrol from the tank to the
carburettor.
c) A feed filter, which prevents any contaminating particles from
passing into the carburettor.
d) An air-silencer and filter unit, which quietens the fast-moving air
intake and prevents dirt from entering the engine.
e) A carburettor, which merges air and petrol together so that they
mixed in the correct proportions and the petrol is finely atomised.
f) An induction manifold, which collects the prepared air-fuel
mixture and distributes it to the various inlet ports in the cylinder
head.
g) Supply and return pipelines.
Carburetion
Air and petrol mixture strengths: According to chemical combination
requirements, the air-fuel ratio, which gives complete combustion is 15.
Rich mixtures, which contain more than the optimum amount of petrol,
produce more power than optimum. The maximum power of the engine
can be obtained when the mixture is about 15-20% rich (air-fuel ratio
between 12 and 13). Prolonged running with very rich mixture will result
in forming a black powder on the cylinder walls and on the spark-plugs.
Weak mixture, which contain less than the optimum amount of petrol
produce less power than optimum, but fuel economy is much better than
for other conditions. For minimum fuel consumption, the mixture can be
15 to 20% weak (air fuel ratio is 17 to 18). Burning is generally slow and
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requires sufficient ignition timing advance to compensate for this

prolonged combustion period.
Single-jet Fixed-choke Carburettor
It is a vertical tube that is connected to a petrol reservoir that has a float
and a valve assembly as shown in the figure. Dividing the two sides of
the U-tube carburettor at the base of the bent is a restriction orifice known
as the petrol jet, its function being to meter the amount of petrol flowing
into the venturi. As the air flow through the restriction its velocity
increases and its pressure decreases so that the atmospheric pressure acts
on the petrol in the float chamber, pushing the petrol into the venture. As
the petrol enters the venturi it will immediately torn apart into various
sizes of droplets so that the petrol will be finely distributed throughout
the air stream as it is drawn into the engine cylinders.
To control the speed and load output of the engine, a butterfly throttle
valve is placed on the downstream side of the venturi. The spindle of the
valve is connected to the accelerator pedal by a cable or levers. The
quantity of charge entering the engine can be varied by the degree of
depression acting at the discharge nozzle, which depends on the angular
position of the throttle spindle opening the butterfly valve. The function
of the float chamber is to provide a reservoir of petrol of constant depth
under steady-running conditions.
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Limitation of the Single-Jet Carburettor

The quantity of air consumed by an engine in unit time is directly
proportional to the engine speed, but due to the inertia of liquid flow, the
rate at which petrol is drawn out of the discharge nozzle into the air
stream increases almost with the square of the engine speed. Therefore, if
the engine is designed to have the correct air-fuel ratio at the design speed
(2000 rpm in the figure), the engine will have weak mixtures at speeds
lower than the design speed so that the limitation of the single-jet
carburettor is that it does not meet the engine requirement for the correct
air-fuel ratio at speeds that are lower or higher than the design speed.
Capacity-well Compensation
During initial acceleration when the throttle is open, the pressure drop
created at the venturi will draw fuel from the discharge nozzle at a far
greater rate than can be supplied by the petrol jet alone, but the capacity
well will provide the extra fuel demanded for rich acceleration mixture.
The level of fuel in the capacity well will drop quickly until the well is
emptied. Petrol droplets suspended in air will be formed at the base of the
well and will prevent any more enriching of the mixture. Any further
increase in speed will only result in a constant amount of fuel flow from
the compensation petrol jet since the air passage bleed reduces some of
the depression created across the petrol jet. The limitation of the capacitywell compensation is that it is not flexible enough under varying
operating condition.
Air-bleed and capacity-well compensation
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This system uses one fuel jet and suspension tube situated in the center of
the capacity well. Under no-load conditions, the fuel level in the well will
be the same as in the float chamber. With initial throttle opening, the fuel
in the well will be consumed; thus, providing an enriched mixture. As the
level of fuel in the well drops, it exposes the uppermost of the suspension
tube holes. This allows more air to enter the well and mix with the fuel,
thus preventing any tendency towards undue richness. As the petrol level
in the well drops further it allow more air bleed correcting the
composition of the mixture.
Coil Ignition System

The combustible mixture of air and petrol is ignited by a spark occurring
between two electrodes in the combustion chamber at the end of the
compression stroke just before TDC. It is the function of the ignition
system to periodically provide a spark of sufficient heat intensity to ignite
the mixture at the predetermined position in the engines cycle under all
speed and load conditions.
The voltage necessary to ionise the air between the electrodes so that the
spark will bridge the air gap can vary from as little as 500 volts when the
gap is small and the engine is hot, to a value of 20,000 volts when the
28
spark-plug electrodes are badly eroded, the air gap is large and the engine
is cold.
Ignition-system equipment
Battery: This is usually a 6 or 12-volt battery. It stores chemical energy,
which can be converted into electrical energy to supply the flow of
current through the ignition system when required.
Ignition switch: This switch is connected in series in the coil primarywinding circuit. It enables the driver to switch on or off the electrical
supply of the battery as required to operate the ignition system.
Ignition coil: It is an electrical step-up transformer, which converts the
relatively low battery voltage to a high-intensity voltage.
If the ignition switch is closed and the contact-breaker points are together,
current will flow from the battery through the primary winding and the
earth-return path back to the battery so that a magnetic field is produced,
which interlinks both the primary and secondary winding. When the
rotating distributor cam opens the contact points, the primary current falls
very rapidly to zero and the magnetic field also decays rapidly. Selfinduction acts so as to oppose these changes and a very large back e.m.f.
is induced in the primary winding. By transformer step-up action, an even
larger e.m.f. (200 times larger) is thus induced in the secondary winding
and is fed to the spark-plug gap to produce a spark.
Capacitor: The capacitor is connected in parallel with the contact-breaker
points, the surge current in the primary winding when the contacts open
finds an easier path through the capacitor so that the primary-current flow
stops instantly and the back e.m.f. that is induced in the primary winding
will be much greater. When the contacts close again, the charge stored in
29
the capacitor charges into the primary winding and so helps to accelerate
the build-up of a new magnetic field in the primary winding.
Spark-plug: It periodically provides a spark of sufficient heat intensity to
ignite the charge mixture.
Design and engineering principles
Power output limitations

The four-stroke cycle
1=TDC
2=BDC
A: Intake
B: Compression
C: Power
D: Exhaust
The maximum amount of power generated by an engine is determined by the maximum

amount of air ingested. The amount of power generated by a piston engine is related to
its size (cylinder volume), whether it is a two-stroke or four-stroke design, volumetric
efficiency, losses, air-to-fuel ratio, the calorific value of the fuel, oxygen content of the air
and speed (RPM). The speed is ultimately limited by material strength and lubrication.
Valves, pistons and connecting rods suffer severe acceleration forces. At high engine
speed, physical breakage and piston ring flutter can occur, resulting in power loss or
even engine destruction. Piston ring flutter occurs when the rings oscillate vertically
within the piston grooves they reside in. Ring flutter compromises the seal between the
ring and the cylinder wall, which causes a loss of cylinder pressure and power. If an
engine spins too quickly, valve springs cannot act quickly enough to close the valves.
This is commonly referred to as 'valve float', and it can result in piston to valve contact,
severely damaging the engine. At high speeds the lubrication of piston cylinder wall
interface tends to break down. This limits the piston speed for industrial engines to about
10 m/s.
Intake/exhaust port flow[edit]
The output power of an engine is dependent on the ability of intake (airfuel mixture) and
exhaust matter to move quickly through valve ports, typically located in the cylinder head.
To increase an engine's output power, irregularities in the intake and exhaust paths, such
as casting flaws, can be removed, and, with the aid of an air flow bench, the radii of valve
port turns and valve seat configuration can be modified to reduce resistance. This
process is called porting, and it can be done by hand or with a CNC machine
30
Supercharging[edit]
One way to increase engine power is to force more air into the cylinder so that more
power can be produced from each power stroke. This can be done using some type of air
compression device known as a supercharger, which can be powered by the engine
crankshaft.
Supercharging increases the power output limits of an internal combustion engine
relative to its displacement. Most commonly, the supercharger is always running, but
there have been designs that allow it to be cut out or run at varying speeds (relative to
engine speed). Mechanically driven supercharging has the disadvantage that some of the
output power is used to drive the supercharger, while power is wasted in the high
pressure exhaust, as the air has been compressed twice and then gains more potential
volume in the combustion but it is only expanded in one stage.
Turbocharging[edit]
A turbocharger is a supercharger that is driven by the engine's exhaust gases, by means
of a turbine. It consists of a two piece, high-speed turbine assembly with one side that
compresses the intake air, and the other side that is powered by the exhaust gas outflow.
When idling, and at low-to-moderate speeds, the turbine produces little power from the
small exhaust volume, the turbocharger has little effect and the engine operates nearly in
a naturally aspirated manner. When much more power output is required, the engine
speed and throttle opening are increased until the exhaust gases are sufficient to 'spool
up' the turbocharger's turbine to start compressing much more air than normal into the
intake manifold.
Turbocharging allows for more efficient engine operation because it is driven by exhaust
pressure that would otherwise be (mostly) wasted, but there is a design limitation known
as turbo lag. The increased engine power is not immediately available due to the need to
sharply increase engine RPM, to build up pressure and to spin up the turbo, before the
turbo starts to do any useful air compression. The increased intake volume causes
increased exhaust and spins the turbo faster, and so forth until steady high power
operation is reached. Another difficulty is that the higher exhaust pressure causes the
exhaust gas to transfer more of its heat to the mechanical parts of the engine.
Rod and piston-to-stroke ratio[edit]

The rod-to-stroke ratio is the ratio of the length of the connecting rod to the length of the
piston stroke. A longer rod reduces sidewise pressure of the piston on the cylinder wall
and the stress forces, increasing engine life. It also increases the cost and engine height
and weight.
A "square engine" is an engine with a bore diameter equal to its stroke length. An engine
where the bore diameter is larger than its stroke length is an oversquare engine,
31
conversely, an engine with a bore diameter that is smaller than its stroke length is an
undersquare engine.
Valve train[edit]
The valves are typically operated by a camshaft rotating at half the speed of
the crankshaft. It has a series of cams along its length, each designed to open a valve
during the appropriate part of an intake or exhaust stroke. A tappet between valve and
cam is a contact surface on which the cam slides to open the valve. Many engines use
one or more camshafts above a row (or each row) of cylinders, as in the illustration, in
which each cam directly actuates a valve through a flat tappet. In other engine designs
the camshaft is in the crankcase, in which case each cam contacts a push rod, which
contacts arocker arm that opens a valve. The overhead cam design typically allows
higher engine speeds because it provides the most direct path between cam and valve.
Valve clearance[edit]
Valve clearance refers to the small gap between a valve lifter and a valve stem that
ensures that the valve completely closes. On engines with mechanical valve adjustment,
excessive clearance causes noise from the valve train. A too small valve clearance can
result in the valves not closing properly, this results in a loss of performance and possibly
overheating of exhaust valves. Typically, the clearance must be readjusted each 20,000
miles (32,000 km) with a feeler gauge.
Most modern production engines use hydraulic lifters to automatically compensate for
valve train component wear. Dirty engine oil may cause lifter failure.
Energy balance[edit]
Otto engines are about 30% efficient; in other words, 30% of the energy generated by
combustion is converted into useful rotational energy at the output shaft of the engine,
while the remainder being losses due to waste heat, friction and engine accessories.
[6]
There are a number of ways to recover some of the energy lost to waste heat. The use
of a Turbocharger in Diesel engines is very effective by boosting incoming air pressure

and in effect provides the same increase in performance as having more displacement.
The Mack Truck company, decades ago, developed a turbine system that converted
waste heat into kinetic energy that it fed back into the engine's transmission. In 2005,
BMW announced the development of theturbosteamer, a two-stage heat-recovery
system similar to the Mack system that recovers 80% of the energy in the exhaust gas
and raises the efficiency of an Otto engine by 15%. [7] By contrast, a six-stroke engine may
reduce fuel consumption by as much as 40%.
Modern engines are often intentionally built to be slightly less efficient than they could
otherwise be. This is necessary foremission controls such as exhaust gas
recirculation and catalytic converters that reduce smog and other atmospheric pollutants.
32
Reductions in efficiency may be counteracted with an engine control unit using lean burn
techniques.[8]
In the United States, the Corporate Average Fuel Economy mandates that vehicles must
achieve an average of 34.9 miles per gallon (mpg) compared to the current standard of
25 mpg. As automakers look to meet these standards by 2016, new ways of engineering
the traditional internal combustion engine (ICE) have to be considered. Some potential
solutions to increase fuel efficiency to meet new mandates include firing after the piston
is farthest from the crankshaft, known as topdead centre, and applying the Miller cycle.
Together, this redesign could significantly reduce fuel consumption and NOxemissions.
33

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1

PROJECT ON 4 STROKE IGNITION SYSTEM

A Four stroke Ignition engine (also known as four-cycle) is an engine

The Four-stroke-cycle spark-ignition (petrol) engine

The two-stroke-cycle petrol engine

2. Compression and power stroke: The piston moves in the direction

Two-stroke cycle diesel engine:

Piston & Connecting-rod assemblies

Compression rings, whose function is to seal the space between

Oil-control rings, whose main purpose is to control the amount

On the upward compression stroke, the compressed charge will move

Piston-ring joint clearance

Piston and connecting-rod Gudgeon pin Joints

To secure the connecting-rod and Gudgeon-pin in position, the

To support the clutch assembly and to transmit the drive

To store energy on the power stroke so that it will be given out

Valve Timing Diagrams and Camshaft Drives:

Exhaust valve opens before BDC for the following reasons:

Where A is the area of heat transfer, K is the thermal conductivity of

Where A is the area of heat transfer, h is the heat transfer coefficient,

where A1 is the surface area of the body emitting the radiation, T1 is

Direct air-cooling, where cool circulating air is made to

Indirect cooling (liquid cooling), where a liquid coolant is

Direct air-cooling system

length of these fins will be greatest where the cylinder is hottest-near

Description of an air-cooled system

conducted through a thin stagnant boundary layer of liquid to the

Thermo-syphon liquid-cooling system

Description of a liquid-cooled system

The cooling process is controlled by placing a thermostat valve in series

Each cylinder has to be individually cast whereas a rigid

Thermostat-controlled cooling systems

partially filled with a volatile fluid such as alcohol. A poppet valve is

Engine Lubrication System

3. Contribute to cooling the piston and regions of the engine

Main-and big-end bearing lubrication:

Valve rocker-arm-mechanism lubrication

Petrol-engine Carburetion Fuel System

Layout of a Petrol-engine Fuel System:

requires sufficient ignition timing advance to compensate for this

Limitation of the Single-Jet Carburettor

Coil Ignition System

Design and engineering principles

Power output limitations

The maximum amount of power generated by an engine is determined by the maximum

Rod and piston-to-stroke ratio[edit]

of a Turbocharger in Diesel engines is very effective by boosting incoming air pressure

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