What goes on inside

The Four-Stroke Engine

General Motors

An introduction for beginners

By Matthew Harned

Introduction The four-stroke engine is arguably the most prevalent motion-producing technology in the
world today. It powers everything from trimmers to trains. So how does it work? We all know what it needs; fuel and air. And we all know what it does; it creates movement. How does this transformation take place? The purpose of this document is to provide an outline of this process. The internal-combustion engine, as opposed to a jet engine, creates power by burning gas fumes inside of a chamberthus the name. The system is based on three basic principles of energy transfer: 1. Heat causes air to expand 2. Expanding air in a sealed container causes pressure 3. Pressure is a force that can be used to cause motion It works like this: Gasoline fumes are ignited and burn quickly, producing a lot of heat. The gas and air expands rapidly from all the heat produced by the combustion. And because this all takes place inside of an airtight chamber, a pressure of up to 1,000 psi is created (cylinder pressure, n.d.). This pressure shoves against one end of the chamber and moves it with considerable force. Thus, gasoline fumes are converted to useable motion that can do work in your carspecifically, turn the transmission and eventually the wheels.

The Machine It all starts in that chamber, called a cylinder.

Cylinder: the combustion chamber within an engine where the fuel-air mixture is ignited and through which the piston moves The larger the cylinder, the more fuel and air it can take, and thus the more power it can generate. The top or lid of the cylinder is called the head, and it must be strong enough to contain the explosion of fuel and the burst of pressure millions of times over the life of the engine. The expression blown a gasket comes from the heads failure to contain this pressure, resulting in a leaky gasket, loss of power, extremely smoky tailpipes, and so forth. The head also contains some valves; some to allow gasoline and air to go into the cylinder, and others to allow smoke and hot air out afterwards.

So what good is an explosion inside of a steel canister? How is the power turned into useable motion? This is the job of the piston. Piston: the moveable end of the cylinder, against which the pressure of successive combustions acts to cause a back-and-forth motion The piston is a piece of metal that just fits into the cylinder. It has seals, called piston rings, that help contain the pressurized gasses. Leaky piston rings result in a loss of power, because the pressure is escaping through the rings rather than forcing the piston to move. The piston is like a cork at the end of the cylinder, and when the explosion goes off inside, somethings got to move, so the cork goes flying. When the pressure subsides, the piston is promptly shoved back into the cylinder by the crankshaft. Crankshaft: the rotating core of an engine, which is spun by the pistons, and which in turn spins the load The engines sole purpose is to make something spinlawnmower blades, car wheels, electricity generatorsand this is accomplished by the crankshaft.

How It Works

To begin the cycle, the intake valves open when the cylinder is
getting larger, that is, when the piston is on its way down. Gasoline fumes and air pour into the cylinder through the valves as the piston continues to move downwards, turning the crankshaft as it moves. This is called the intake stroke.

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When the piston has reached the bottom of its stroke, the intake
valves close, and the cylinder is sealed. The momentum of the weight of the pistons carries them back up towards the top as the crankshaft continues to spin. This squeezes the fumes into a tighter and tighter space. This is called the compression stroke, and it occurs because gasoline fumes burn hotter and expand faster if they are compressed first.

When the piston has returned to the

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top, and the fumes are at maximum pressure, the spark plug fires, and the spark causes the fumes to ignite. They explode within the cylinder, creating an instant and massive pressure against the piston. The piston flies back down away from the pressure, and this is called the combustion or power stroke. The power of the explosion drives the piston all the way to the bottom, and the piston in turn rotates the crankshaft.

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When the piston reaches the bottom, the gasoline has done all it
can, and as the momentum of the turning crankshaft carries the piston back toward the top again, the exhaust valves open to let the hot smoke escape, pushed out of the cylinder by the returning piston. This is called the exhaust stroke. When the piston returns to the top, the exhaust valves re-close, and the intake valves open, to start the process over again. This entire process regularly happens 30 times in a second in every cylinder when youre driving your car at highway speedsand you probably have six cylinders in your car.
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Conclusion An ordinary fully-assembled car engine is quite complex. This document describes the action
of the engine itself, but it leaves numerous other systems unmentioned. Such systems support the engine by supplying fuel, controlling the timing of the valves and sparks, carrying away excess heat, charging the cars batteries, and performing many other important tasks. A cursory knowledge of the main systems, beginning with the engine itself, can enable an owner to make better decisions regarding his or her machine. Weedwacker wont start? Make sure the fuel/air mixture is correct. Cars billowing white smoke? Maybe youve blown a gasket, and antifreeze is seeping into the cylinder. Black smoke? Could be a leaky piston ring allowing oil to enter the cylinder. Heavy clunking noises may come from unsynchronized pistons; check your timing belt. Such quick deductions are based on a simple understanding of the function of an engine. The more you educate yourself about your engine, the better it will perform and the longer it will last.

References Cover photo: (2011). California pollution watchdog OKs GM hot rod engine. media.gm.com Retrieved from http://media.gm.com/media/us/en/gm/news.detail.html/content/Pages/news/us/en/2011/Au g/0809_gmpp.html Cylinder pressure. (n.d.). Performancetrends.com. Retrieved from http://performancetrends.com/Definitions/Cylinder-Pressure.htm Four stroke i.c. engine images. (n.d.). Planetcarz.blogspot.com. http://planetcarz.blogspot.com/2012/10/four-stroke-ic-engine-images.html Diesel locomotive technology. (2013). Railway-technical.com. Retrieved from http://www.railway-technical.com/diesel.shtml Trimmers. (n.d.). Powerequipment.honda.com Retrieved from http://powerequipment.honda.com/trimmers