Why do they use diesel in large vehicles rather than petrol?

Moses Rap, studied at Cook (2014)

Updated Wed

Diesel engines are commonly used in large vehicles for several reasons.

Larger vehicles are always heavier than small vehicles and they are commonly used to
transport cargo or load.

Torque is the name of the game. High torque is needed to move heavy loads. If
comparing a gasoline engine to a comparable diesel engine the diesel will always have
higher torque. The higher torque comes from the need for a higher compressing ratio
needed for compression ignition. To achieve the higher compression ratio a longer
stroke is required. The longer stroke comes from a greater crankshaft offset. This offset
gives greater torque.

Despite having only around 400 HP, this truck pulls 40 ton trailers with ease, due to its diesel
engines huge torque.

Another aspect is that diesels can make tremendous torque at very low RPM. Very
simply put more fuel equals more torque when everything else is kept the same.

A diesel does not have throttle plates and draws in the maximum amount of air on every
stroke. In a diesel the amount of fuel added is what controls the power. The throttle controls
how much fuel is added. This means that a diesel always runs lean. At idle the engine uses
hardly any fuel. This lean mixture allows for the addition of large quantities of fuel even at
low RPM.

A gasoline engine on the other hand always has to keep the fuel mixture at optimal
stoichiometric. This need to keep the mixture correct means that to get more fuel the engine
needs to rev to higher RPMs. This means that a gasoline engine makes it's torque at much
higher RPM than a diesel. This high end torque characteristic makes a gasoline engine hard to
drive necessitating constantly keeping the RPM high.

The only real draw back to this torque production is a limited RPM. This is
compensated by a gear box with lots and lots of gears.

If a gasoline engine was used it would have to be much larger. The much larger engine would
make for greater fuel consumption.

Diesel has several other advantages which has attracted many large vehicle manufacturers
such as -
 1. More efficient. When hauling a 40 ton trailer for very large distances, every drop of
fuel matters.
2. More reliable in damp and wet weather due to absence of spark ignition.
3. Very durable. Diesels are built with stronger components to withstand higher stresses
and compression ratios.

( This will probably outlive you, me, nuclear war, and the end of the Universe )

During the 40s and 50s, gasoline trucks were very popular in the USA. However, they
quickly switched to diesel due to complaints of too high fuel consumption, and due to
gasolines less torque, the engine had to be revved pretty high to achieve speeds greater than
20 MPH. This further decimated fuel economy.

( EDIT )

Due to answer being pretty popular, iv decided to write down even more detail about diesels
advantage in heavy vehicles.
1: Low end torque. When pulling heavy loads, this is important. Diesel produces much more
torque at lower RPMs than equivalent gas engines at lower displacements. In light duty
vehicles with gas and diesel options, you often see an option between a 2 - 2.5 liter diesel and
a 3 - 5 liter gas engine. A tractor trailer engine typically displaces between 12 - 16 liters, so
can you imagine the necessary displacement increase for a gas engine?

2: Fuel mileage. Diesel engines are approaching 50% thermal efficiency, meaning about half
the heat is used, and about half is rejected. Gas engines are struggling just to reach 23%,
meaning over 3/4 of the heat produced is rejected. Coupling that with the higher BTU
production of diesel fuel, the winner is clear.

3: safety. Such vehicles require large amounts of fuel, and large fuel tanks, which are
typically mounted outside of the frame. Given how much more difficult it is to ignite non-
vaporized diesel fuel vs. gasoline, diesel is much, much safer on that regard

4: Emissions. Not traditionally so, but in more recent times, aftertreatment systems have been
developed which makes diesel exhaust much, much cleaner than gasoline exhaust.

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Nikita Rybalkin, Home mechanic and tinkerer

Answered Sun

Diesel engines typically have more torque.

Diesel fuel burns slower than petrol.

The slow burning fuel allows for the engine to have a long stroke. Meaning that for the same
engine size, the cylinders are skinnier and longer. Fast burning petrol would burn up before
the long stroke of the piston is complete, wasting it.

Long stroke of the piston, means that the crankshaft radius is larger.

Larger crank radius effectively means that that piston had a longer leaver to act up on the
crankshaft.

Longer leaver means more torque.

Torque is what is needed to get heavy things like trucks moving. Not necessarily fast, but
moving.
Bonus:

The trade off is being restricted to relatively lower rpm.

If the stroke of an engine is double that of the other, then at the same rpm the cylinder if the
long stroke engine travels twice the linear distance. Physical properties of the materials
used to build an engine restrict just how fast a piston can move.

An engine in a car can benefit from having higher rpm.

Engine power is a function of torque AND rpm. The higher the rpm, the more power.

The problem in a car is not getting it off the line (like a truck) but getting it to go FAST!

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Gil Lambert, former Marriage Celebrant (2009-2014)

Answered 16h ago

Diesel fuel delivers more power than petrol and due to it's longer sustained burn in the engine
cylinder it is more suitable for heavy load transport.

In previous years the slow speed buildup of diesel engines were a drawback, but since turbo
diesel engines have become standard, this no longer applies. You now get the best of both
worlds with the sustained power characteristic giving better fuel consumption and high
power, with good acceleration from the turbo.

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Chuck Walker, Retired ASE Master Technician (Gas/Diesel)
Answered Sat

No brainier. Diesel technology exceeds gas technology across the board. (equal size
comparison) Diesel engines are more efficient and use less fuel, and they produce more
torque at lower rpm, which is what matters when towing or pulling. Diesel engines are also
heavier duty and generally can go 5x as many miles over a lifetime than a gas engine, which
makes cost of ownership much lower over time. Another factor is maintenance. Diesel
engines do not have an ignition system that needs frequent maintenance or replacement. No
plugs, no wires, no distributor, no cap & rotor, etc. Lastly, diesel engines rotate (rpm) much
slower which makes them run cooler and reduces oil break down, which greatly increases the
miles between oil changes, also reducing operating costs over the long run.