What is "Combustion", you might ask? It is a chemical reaction between fuel (gasoline) and air (oxygen) which results in lots of heat and gas! We will see how a car engine makes this chemical reaction to occur in a controlled environment (without putting the whole car on fire!) and uses the resulting explosion to produce power. We will see a sophisticated kit which realistically simulates many aspects of an internal combustion engine in action. There are many parts and components in a car engine, however we will concentrate our attention to the following main components.
Carburetor: Mixes air fuel and sends them to the cylindrical chambers in an engine
Cylinder: A cylindrical chamber (space) which is created in an engine block. This is where combustion (a controlled explosion) occurs. Small cars usually have 4 cylinders. You can find larger cars with 6 or even 8 cylinders but obviously they use more fuel! How many cylinders does your car have? ....
Valve: Controls the flow of gas in or out of a cylinder. Each cylinder has two valves. The "intake valve" for entering fuel/air mixture and "exhaust valve" for the exiting burnt gases which are very hot! For example there are ....... valves in a 6-cylinder engine.
Piston: A cylindrical metallic block which moves back and forth inside a cylinder. There is only one piston for every cylinder in an engine! So a 4-cylinder car has .......... pistons.
Spark Plug: Receives a high voltage and creates an arc of spark, like the thunder in the sky! The extreme heat from this spark causes the mixture of air and fuel to ignite (catch fire) and make an explosion inside the cylinder. Each cylinder has a only one spark plug so there are .......... spark plugs in an 8-cylinder engine.
(Continues on the back page ........)
Crank Shaft: A crooked metallic rod which converts the back and forth (straight) motion of the pistons to a rotational motion!
4 Strokes Cycle! Each piston/cylinder/valve
assembly go through 4 distinct phases over and over.
1. Intake: Intake valve opens, piston moves back, and
fuel/air mixture enters the cylinder.
2. Compression: Both valves close, piston
moves forward, fuel/air mixture is compressed.
3. Combustion: Both valves are
closed, fuel/air mixture ignites, piston moves back.
4. Exhaust: Exhaust valve opens, piston moves
forward, burnt gases are pushed out.
Cam Shaft, Timing Belt, Oil Pan, Coolant,
Radiator, Fan, ....
Are some of the other components which help the engine to run correctly
and smoothly.
A message to take home with you!
Next time you go to a gas station, you can ask your Mom or Dad this:
"Did you check the engine oil level?"
Ask if they can show you the "oil dip-stick". Check it to see if there
is enough oil in the engine oil pan!
Want to learn more about "internal combustion engine"?
Check out this web site:
http://auto.howstuffworks.com
You will find a nice simulation for all the actions in an "Internal
Combustion Engine"!