1. Reciprocating internal combustion engines. Principle of operation
Figures 1 and 2 show the operating principle of the two main types of four-stroke reciprocating internal combustion engines (MACI):
spark-ignition engines ;
and diesel engines.
In engine terminology, a stroke corresponds to half a revolution of the crankshaft, so a four-stroke engine is one in which the crankshaft has to make two complete rotations for the engine to return to its initial state.
There are also two-stroke engines. Less common than four-stroke engines, they won't be discussed here. It should also be noted that most engines are multi-cylinder. We are concerned here only with operations that take...
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Reciprocating internal combustion engines. Principle of operation
Basic cycles
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