Internal Combustion Engine

Engr. Mansoor Ali Zaheer

Assistant Professor
Mechanical Engineering Department
University of Sargodha
ENGINE KNOCKING
AND

DETONATION
What is Knocking ?
 sharp sounds caused by premature combustion of part of the
compressed air-fuel mixture in the cylinder.

 Explosive combustion of air-petrol vapor mixture produces shock

waves which hit the cylinder wall and piston of IC engine,
creating rattling sound is known as knocking
Effects Of Knocking
 Overheating of the spark-plug points

 Erosion of the combustion chamber surface

 Rough & inefficient operation

 Overall efficiency reduction

Remedies Of Knocking
 Use the right octane fuel for that engine (not too low)
 Let the car engine warm up before driving, and certainly don't
push the engine hard when it's still cold.
 Do not use a Turbochargers on engines not designed for them.
 Some engines are poorly designed and will develop knock due to
their own structural problems.
 Related to that, knock may occur because the engine is getting too
hot.
Causes Of Knocking

The main causes of knocking are

 Detonation
 Pre-Ignition
Detonation ?
 An undesirable engine condition in which pockets of fuel start to
burn at about the same time as the spark plug fires
How Detonation Occurs ?
 Detonation occurs when excessive heat and pressure in the
combustion chamber cause the air/fuel mixture to auto ignite. This
produces multiple flame fronts within the combustion chamber
instead of a single flame kernel. When these multiple flames
collide, they do so with explosive force that produces a sudden rise
in cylinder pressure accompanied by a sharp metallic pinging or
knocking noise. The hammer-like shock waves created by
detonation subject the head gasket, piston, rings, spark plug and
rod bearings to severe overloading.
How Detonation Occurs ?
How Detonation Occurs ?
Causes Of Detonation ?
 Increased compression

 High temperatures

 Lean fuel/air mixture

 Carbon Deposits

 Lower octane fuels

Remedies Of Detonation

 Try a higher octane fuel (octane is the measure of how much

compression a fuel can withstand before igniting)

 Check for loss of EGR

 Keep compression within reasonable limits

 Check for engine overheating

Remedies Of Detonation

 Check for a lean fuel mixture

 Remove carbon deposits

 Change your driving habits

Pre-Ignition
 Fuel starts to burn before the spark plug fires.
 This occurs when a point within the combustion chamber becomes
so hot that it becomes a source of ignition and causes the fuel to
ignite before the spark plug fires
Effects Of Pre-Ignition
 Decreases engine performance and produces audible knocking
sound in the engine.

 Increases the peak combustion pressure in the cylinder.

 Increases internal temperature.

 Will cause engine parts like pistons, connecting rods and

crankshafts to fail.
Causes Of Pre-Ignition
• An overheated spark plug
• Glowing carbon deposits
• Over heated exhaust valve
• A sharp edge in the combustion chamber or on top of a
piston
• Sharp edges on valves that were reground improperly
• A lean fuel mixture.
Remedies Of Pre-Ignition
 fuel cutoff solenoid on the carburetor to stop the flow of fuel to
the engine once the ignition is turned off.

 Idle stop solenoid that closes the throttle completely to shut of the
engine's air supply

 Cold place spark plug used