CHAPTER 03

Engine Basics

INTRODUCTION
• This chapter begins with an • The basic engine terminology and
explanation of some basic engine principles introduced in this chapter
terminology. are used repeatedly throughout the
• Before you can properly understand textbook.
how any engine functions, you have to • As you progress through it, use the
become familiar with the language glossary to check the definitions of any
used to describe its operation. words with which you are not familiar.
• After introducing the basic
terminology, the chapter describes first
the four-stroke diesel cycle and then
the two-stroke diesel cycle.
Building Block Definitions
• Engine. The term engine describes a
machine that converts one energy form
to another. We will be referring to an
engine that converts the heat energy of
a fuel into useable mechanical energy.
• Internal Combustion Engine. The term
internal combustion engine describes a
heat engine in which the combustion of
fuel is contained within a cylinder.
Internal combustion engines differ
from steam engines (these are external
combustion engines) in which the fuel
is combusted outside of the engine.
• Diesel Engine. A diesel engine is a type
of internal combustion engine in which
the fuel/air charge is ignited by the heat
of compression.
• Kinetic Energy. Kinetic energy is the
energy of motion. Kinetic energy is a
form of mechanical energy.
• Air. Air is a gaseous mixture of nitrogen
and oxygen. The oxygen available in air
is used as the reactant to combust the
fuel in most internal combustion
engines.
• Fuel. The fuels we use in diesel engines
are hydrocarbons (HC). The source of
most diesel fuel used today is
petroleum.
• Heat Energy. Heat energy is a rating of
the available energy in any given fuel.
As the heat energy of a fuel increases,
so does the potential for converting this
heat energy into useful kinetic energy.
Building Block Definitions
• Naturally Aspirated. The term naturally • Volumetric Efficiency. The term
aspirated (NA) is used to describe an volumetric efficiency is defined as a
engine in which air (or air/fuel measure of an engine’s breathing
mixture) is induced into its cylinders by efficiency. It is the ratio between the
low cylinder pressure created by the volume of actual fresh air taken into
down stroke of the piston. Not too many the engine cylinder before the intake
diesels today are naturally aspirated; valves close versus the cylinder swept
most are turbo boosted. An engine that volume.
has no turbocharger or supercharger is
naturally aspirated.
• Turbo-Boost. As mentioned earlier,
most diesel engines are turbo-boosted.
Another way of saying turbo-boost is
manifold-boost. Manifold-boosted
describes any engine whose cylinders
are charged at pressures above
atmospheric.
THE DIESEL CYCLE
• The diesel cycle is best introduced by • The four strokes of the diesel cycle are
outlining the four strokes of the pistons shown in Figure 3 -1.
made as an engine is turned through
two revolutions.
• A full cycle of a diesel engine requires
two complete rotations. Each rotation
requires turning the engine through
360 degrees, so a complete diesel cycle
translates into 720 crankshaft degrees.
• The four strokes that comprise the
four-stroke cycle are:
1. Intake
2. Compression Figure 3.1 The four stroke diesel cycle.
3. Power
4. Exhaust
Four Strokes Diesel Engine
• Now we will take a closer look at what
happens during the four-stroke diesel
cycle. Refer to Figure 3-2 to help you
understand the description provided
here.
• Figure 3-2 (A) Intake stroke: turbo-
boosted air is charged to the engine
cylinder.
• Figure 3-2 (B) Compression stroke:
piston is driven upward, compressing
the air charge. Compression pressures
in diesel engines vary from 400 pounds
per square inch (psi) (2,750 kiloPascal
[kPa]) to 700 psi (4,822 kPa).
Compression ratios used to achieve the
compression pressure required of diesel
engines generally vary from a low of
14:1 to a high of 25:1 Figure 3.2 The four stroke diesel Engine
Four Strokes Diesel Engine
• Figure 3-2 (C) Power stroke: fuel is
injected to cylinder and resulting gas
expansion drives the piston down-
ward.
• Figure 3-2 (D) Exhaust stroke: piston is
driven upward, displacing end gas
through the exhaust valves.

Figure 3.2 The four stroke diesel Engine

 Four Strokes Diesel Engine
Valve Timing Diagram

Figure 3.3 Events of the compression and power Figure 3.4 Events of the intake and exhaust
strokes strokes.
Two Strokes Diesel Engine
• Step 1. We start with the piston at the top of
its cylinder on its compression stroke. The
cylinder is filled with pressurized,
superheated air. Diesel is injected and
ignites. The piston starts down the cylinder
on its power stroke. As it descends, the
cylinder pressure and temperature fall.
When the piston nears the bottom of its
power stroke, the exhaust valve opens and
most of the burned gases rush out of the
cylinder. So far all is the same as for a four-
cycle diesel. Now as the piston continues to
descend the cylinder, it uncovers a series of
holes, or ports, in the cylinder wall. A
supercharger or turbocharger blows
pressurized air through these ports, pushing
the rest of the burned gases out of the
cylinder and refilling it with a fresh air
charge. The piston has only now reached the
bottom of its cylinder and is starting back up Figure 3.5 The two-stroke diesel cycle.
again. The exhaust valve closes.
Two Strokes Diesel Engine
• Step 2. As the piston moves back up, it
blocks off the inlet ports, trapping the
charge of fresh air in the cylinder.
Although the piston has only covered a
little over one stroke, it has already
completed its power stroke, the exhaust
process, and the inlet cycle. As the
piston comes back up the cylinder on
its second stroke, it compresses the
fresh air. When it reaches the top of the
cylinder, injection and combustion take
place. The cycle starts over. The engine
has done in two strokes what a four-
cycle diesel does in four.

Figure 3.5 The two-stroke diesel cycle.

Two Strokes Diesel Engine
Valve Timing Diagram

Figure 3.6 Two stroke diesel cycle events..

ENGINE SYSTEMS AND CIRCUITS
• Many of the components in the diesel
(compression ignition or CI) engine are
identical to those in the Otto (spark ignition
or SI) cycle engine.
• For study purposes, the engine components
are divided as follows:
1. Engine housing components — the
cylinder block, cylinder head(s), oil pan,
rocker covers, timing gear covers,
manifolds, and flywheel housing.
2. Engine power train — the components
directly responsible for power delivery to
the drive train including the piston
assemblies, connectingrods, crankshaft
assembly, vibration damper, and flywheel.
3. Engine feedback assembly — the engine’s
self management components also known
as the valvetrain assembly. This term is
used to describe the diesel engine timing
geartrain, camshaft, valvetrains, valves,
fueling apparatus, and accessory drive
components.
4. Engine lubrication circuit — the oil pump, relief
valve, lubrication circuitry, full flow filter(s),
bypass filters, and heat exchangers..
5. Engine cooling circuit — the coolant pump,
thermostat(s), water jacket, coolant manifold,
filter, shutters, fan assembly, radiator, and other
heat exchangers.
6. Engine breathing system — the engine intake
and exhaust system components including
precleaners, air cleaners, ducting, turbocharger,
Roots blower, charge air heat exchangers, tip
turbine assemblies, intake and exhaust
manifolds, pyrometer, exhaust gas recirculation
(EGR) system, diesel particulate filter (DPF),
exhaust piping, engine silencer, catalytic
converter, and other external emission control
apparatus..
7. Engine fuel management system — the fuel
storage, pumping, metering, and quantity
control apparatus including a management
computer, sensors and actuators, hydraulic
injectors, mechanical unit injectors (MUIs),
electronic unit injectors (EUIs), hydraulically
actuated electronic unit injectors (HEUIs),
electronic unit pumps (EUPs), common rail (CR)
injection, hydromechanical injection pumps,
fuel tanks, filters, and transfer pumps.
Diesel Fuel
• The fuel used in modern diesel engines 3. Distillate Fuel.
is composed of roughly 85 percent 4. Marine Diesel Oil
carbon and 12 to 15 percent hydrogen, 5. Gas Oil.
not too much different from the
chemical composition of gasoline. 6. Marine Diesel.
• The heat required to ignite the fuel oil
7. Blended Fuel Oil
is defined by the most volatile fractions 8. Residual Fuel
of the fuel: this is determined by the 9. Aircraft Jet Fuels and Kerosene
fuel’s cetane number (CN). Type Fuels
• The ignition temperature of highway 10. Biodiesel
diesel fuel is usually around 482 F (250 11. Ultra Low Sulfur Diesel (ULSD)
C): this is equivalent to a CN of around
45.
• Marine Diesel Fuel Types :
1. Crude Oil
2. Residual Oil or Blended Heavy Fuel
Oil (HFO)
MORE ENGINE TERMS
• Top dead center (TDC) : the highest
point of piston travel in an engine
cylinder.
• Bottom dead center (BDC) : the lowest
point of piston travel in an engine
cylinder.
• Before top dead center (BTDC) : a point
of piston travel through its upstroke.
• After top dead center (ATDC) : a point
of piston travel through its down
stroke.
• Bore : cylinder diameter. Bore is how
we express the piston sectional area
over which the cylinder pressures act.
• Stroke: the distance through which a Figure 3.7 Bore and stroke.
piston travels from BDC to TDC.
MORE ENGINE TERMS
• Swept volume : the volume displaced by
the piston in the cylinder as it moves
from BDC to TDC. It can be calculated
if both stroke and bore are known.
• Clearance volume : the remaining
volume in an engine cylinder when the
piston is at the top of its travel or TDC.
• Cylinder volume : the total volume in
the cylinder when the piston is at BDC.
You can calculate the cylinder volume
by adding the cylinder swept volume to
the cylinder clearance volume.
• Engine displacement : the swept volume
of all the engine cylinders expressed in
cubic inches or cubic centimeters/liters. Figure 3.7 Bore and stroke.
MORE ENGINE TERMS
• Square engine : an engine in which the
cylinder bore diameter is exactly equal
to the piston stroke dimension. For
instance, an engine with a 4-inch
piston diameter and a 4-inch stroke is
classified as square.
• Oversquare engine : describes an
engine in which the cylinder bore
diameter is larger than the stroke
dimension. Most indirect injected,
gasoline fueled, spark-ignited engines
are oversquare.
• Undersquare engine: describes an
engine in which the cylinder bore
diameter is smaller than stroke Figure 3.7 Bore and stroke.
dimension. Most high compression
diesel engines are undersquare.
MORE ENGINE TERMS
• Compression : when a gas is squeezed • Indirect injection (IDI) : a CI or SI
by driving a piston into a sealed engine in which the fuel charge is
cylinder, heat is created. introduced outside of the engine
• Compression ignition (CI) : a high cylinder to a precombustion chamber,
compression engine in which the heat cylinder head intake tract, or intake
required to ignite the fuel in its manifold.
cylinders is sourced from compression;
more commonly known as a diesel
engine. The acronym CI is often used to
describe a diesel engine.
• Spark ignited (SI) : an engine in which
the fuel/air charge is ignited by a timed
electrical spark.
• Direct injection (DI) : either a CI or SI
Figure 3.8 Types of combustion chambers.
engine in which the fuel charge is
injected directly into the engine
cylinder rather than to a precom
bustion chamber or part of the intake
manifold..
MORE ENGINE TERMS
• Compression ratio : a measure of the • Combustion pressure : the highest
cylinder volume when the piston is at pressure developed in an engine
BDC versus cylinder volume when the cylinder during the power stroke. In
piston is at TDC. Theoretically, today’s efficient, electronically
compression ratios in diesel engines controlled diesel engines, combustion
range between 14:1 and 24:1. In pressures may peak at up to five times
reality, most modern diesel engines the compression pressure.
have compression ratios typically
between 16 :1 and 17:1.
• Compression pressure : the actual
cylinder pressure developed on the
compressionstroke.Actual compression
pressures in diesel engines range from
350 psi (2.40 mPa) to 700 psi (4.80
mPa) in CI engines. Modern diesel
engines typically produce compression
• pressures of ± 600 psi. Figure 3.9 Compression ratio.
MORE ENGINE TERMS
• Fire point or ignition temperature : the
temperature at which a flammable
liquid gives off sufficient vapor for
continuous combustion to take place.
The fire point or ignition temperature
of a diesel fuel is specified by a cetane
number (CN).
• Thermal efficiency : a measure of the
combustion efficiency of an engine
calculated by comparing the heat
energy potential of a fuel (calorific
value) with the amount of usable
mechanical work produced.
• Rejected heat : that percentage of the
heat potential of the fuel (see the
thermal efficiency definition) that is not
converted into useful work by an
engine. Figure 3.10 Rejected heat.
MORE ENGINE TERMS
• Mean effective pressure (MEP) : a
quantity relating to the operation of a
reciprocating engine and is a valuable
measure of an engine's capacity to do
work that is independent of engine
displacement.
• Types of mean effective pressures :
1. Brake mean effective pressure (BMEP) -
Mean effective pressure calculated
from measured brake torque.
2. Gross indicated mean effective pressure
(IMEPg) - Mean effective pressure
calculated from in cylinder pressure
over compression and expansion
portion of engine cycle (360° in a four-
stroke, 180° in a two-stroke). Direct
measurement requires cylinder
pressure sensing equipment.
3. Net indicated mean effective pressure
(IMEPn) - Mean effective pressure
calculated from in-cylinder pressure
over the complete engine cycle (720°
in a four-stroke, 360° in a two-stroke).
Direct measurement requires cylinder
pressure sensing equipment.
4. Pumping mean effective pressure
(PMEP) - Mean effective pressure from
work moving air in and out of the
cylinder, across the intake and exhaust
valves. Calculated from in-cylinder
pressure over intake and exhaust
portions of engine cycle (360° in a
four-stroke, 0° in a two-stroke). Direct
measurement requires cylinder
pressure sensing equipment. PMEP =
IMEPg - IMEPn..
MORE ENGINE TERMS
5. Friction mean effective pressure (FMEP)
- Theoretical mean effective pressure
required to overcome engine friction,
can be thought of as mean effective
pressure lost due to friction. Friction
mean effective pressure calculation
requires accurate measurement of
cylinder pressure and dynamometer
brake torque. FMEP = IMEPn - BMEP.