1. General information. Description

1.1 Principles

The AC engine is first and foremost a reciprocating internal combustion engine, i.e. work is produced by the combustion of a carburetted mixture inside a cylinder, in which a reciprocating piston moves. The two extreme limits of movement are called top dead center (TDC) and bottom dead center (BDC) respectively. The volume swept between these two points constitutes the unit displacement, and if d is the cylinder diameter (or bore) and C the piston stroke, the displacement V is written : $V=C\text{π}\frac{d^2}{4}$

At top dead center, the residual volume is called the dead...