ME5403

APPLIED THERMODYNAMICS
UNIT 4
INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINES –
FEATURES AND COMBUSTION
Dr. K. Arshad Ahmed
Teaching Fellow
Institute for Energy Studies
Department of Mechanical Engineering
CEGC, Anna University,
Chennai – 600 025
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Engine

• An engine is a device which transforms one form

of energy into another form.
• However, while transforming energy from one
form to another, the efficiency of conversion
plays an important role.
• Normally, most of the engines convert thermal
energy into mechanical work and therefore they
are called ‘heat engines’.

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 Heat Engine

• Heat engine is a device which transforms the chemical

energy of a fuel into thermal energy and utilizes this thermal
energy to perform useful work.
• Thus, thermal energy is converted to mechanical energy
in a heat engine.
• Heat engines can be broadly classified into two categories:

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Classification and Some Basic Details of Heat Engines

• Of the various types of heat engines, the most widely used ones are the
reciprocating internal combustion engine, the gas turbine and the steam
turbine.
• The steam engine is slowly phased out nowadays.
• The reciprocating internal combustion engine enjoys some advantages
over the steam turbine due to the absence of heat exchangers in the
passage of the working fluid (boilers and condensers in steam turbine
plant).
• This results in a considerable mechanical simplicity and improved power
plant efficiency of the internal combustion engine.

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• In internal combustion engines, higher thermal efficiency can be
obtained with moderate maximum working pressure of the fluid in the
cycle, and therefore, the weight to power ratio is quite less compared to
steam turbine power plant.
• Also, it has been possible to develop reciprocating internal combustion
engines of very small power output (power output of even a fraction of
a kilowatt) with reasonable thermal efficiency and cost.
• The main disadvantage of this type of engine is the problem of
vibration caused by the reciprocating components.
• Also, it is not possible to use a variety of fuels in these engines.
• Only liquid or gaseous fuels of given specification can be effectively
used.
• These fuels are relatively more expensive.

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External Combustion and Internal Combustion Engines

• External combustion engines are those in which combustion takes place

outside the engine whereas in internal combustion engines combustion

takes place within the engine.

• For example, in a steam engine or a steam turbine, the heat

generated due to the combustion of fuel is employed to generate

high pressure steam which is used as the working fluid in a

reciprocating engine or a turbine.

• In case of gasoline or diesel engines, the products of combustion

generated by the combustion of fuel and air within the cylinder form the

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Basic engine components and nomenclature

• Even though reciprocating internal combustion engines

look quite simple, they are highly complex machines.
• There are hundreds of components which have to
perform their functions effectively to produce output
power.
• There are two types of engines, viz.,
spark-ignition (SI) and
compression-ignition (CI) engine.

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Engine Components
A cross section of a single cylinder spark-ignition engine with overhead
valves is shown in Fig.

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Cylinder : As the name implies it is a cylindrical vessel or space in which the piston

makes a reciprocating motion. The varying volume created in the cylinder during the

operation of the engine is filled with the working fluid andsubjected to different

thermodynamic processes. The cylinder is supported in the cylinder block.

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Piston : It is a cylindrical component fitted into the cylinder forming the moving

boundary of the combustion system. It fits perfectly (snugly) into the cylinder

providing a gas-tight space with the piston rings and the lubricant. It forms the first

link in transmitting the gas forces to the output shaft.

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Combustion Chamber : The space enclosed in the upper part of the cylinder, by

the cylinder head and the piston top during the combustion process, is called the

combustion chamber. The combustion of fuel and the consequent release of thermal

energy results in the building up of pressure in this part of the cylinder.

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Fly Wheel : The net torque imparted to the crankshaft during one complete

cycle of operation of the engine fluctuates causing a change in the angular

velocity of the shaft. In order to achieve a uniform torque an inertia mass in

the form of a wheel is attached to the output shaft and this wheel is called

the flywheel.

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Engine Nomenclature

1. Cylinder Bore (d) : The nominal inner diameter of the working cylinder is called

the cylinder bore and is designated by the letter d and is usually expressed in

millimeter (mm).

2. Piston Area (A) : The area of a circle of diameter equal to the cylinder bore is

called the piston area and is designated by the letter A and is usually expressed in

square centimeter (cm2).

3. Stroke (L) : The nominal distance through which a working piston moves between

two successive reversals of its direction of motion is called the stroke and is

designated by the letter L and is expressed usually in millimeter (mm).

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4. Stroke to Bore Ratio : L/d ratio is an important parameter in classifying the size

of the engine. If d < L, it is called under-square engine. If d = L, it is called square

engine. If d > L, it is called over-square engine. An over-square engine can operate

at higher speeds because of larger bore and shorter stroke.

5. Dead Centre : The position of the working piston and the moving parts which are

mechanically connected to it, at the moment when the direction of the piston motion

is reversed at either end of the stroke is called the dead centre. There are two dead

centres in the engine :

(i) Top Dead Centre (ii) Bottom Dead Centre

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5a. Top Dead Centre (TDC) : It is the dead centre when the piston

is farthest from the crankshaft. It is designated as T DC for vertical

engines and Inner Dead Centre (IDC) for horizontal engines.

5b. Bottom Dead Centre (BDC) : It is the dead centre when the

piston is nearest to the crankshaft. It is designated as BDC for

vertical engines and Outer Dead Centre (ODC) for horizontal

engines.

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6. Displacement or Swept Volume (Vs) : The nominal volume swept by the

working piston when travelling from one dead centre to the other is called the

displacement volume. It is expressed in terms of cubic centimeter (cc) and given

by

7. Cubic Capacity or Engine Capacity : The displacement volume of a cylinder

multiplied by number of cylinders in an engine will give the cubic capacity or the

engine capacity. For example, if there are K cylinders in an engine, then

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8. Clearance Volume (VC) : The nominal volume of the combustion chamber above

the piston when it is at the top dead centre is the clearance volume. It is designated

as VC and expressed in cubic centimeter (cc).

9. Compression Ratio (r) : It is the ratio of the total cylinder volume when the piston

is at the bottom dead centre, VT , to the clearance volume, VC . It is designated by

the letter r.

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COMBUSTION IN CI ENGINE

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 STAGES OF COMBUSTION

IGNITION(Physical or Chemical)
DELAY

PERIOD OF RAPID
COMBUSTION

PERIOD OF CONTROLLED
COMBUSTION

PERIOD OF AFTER BURNING

(A B)
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 IGNITION (Physical or Chemical) DELAY
• Due to physical and Chemical Delay

• Physical delay depends on fuel type

---->reduced by low viscosity , high injection
pressure and high turbulence.

• Chemical delay is due to pre-flame reactions.

------->Larger than physical delay at low T
------->depends on T and lower at high T

• ID > Injection Time

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 PERIOD OF RAPID COMBUSTION
• Uncontrolled combustion with rapid
pressure rise

• Rate of pressure rise is the highest.

• Rate of heat release is also maximum.

• If ID is longer , rate of pressure rise and

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 PERIOD OF CONTROLLED COMBUSTION

• Injected fuel in this stage burn

with low ID , due to high p & T.

• This period is assumed to end

at maximum cycle
temperature(Tmax)
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 PERIOD OF AFTER BURNING (AB)

• Burning after injection is stopped

• Unburnt and partially burnt
particles burns in this period.
• Starts at Tmax and continues over a
part of expansion stroke.
• Rate of AB depends on velocity of
diffusion and turbulent mixing of
unburnt particles with air.
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COMBUSTION IN SI ENGINE

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NECESSARY CONDITIONS

PRESENCE
OF
COMBUSTIBLE
MIXTURE
SOURCE OF IGNITION
STABILIZATION
&
FLAME PROPAGATION

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IGNITION LIMITS

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 Four-Stroke Spark-Ignition Engine
•In a four-stroke engine, the cycle of operations is completed in four strokes of the
piston or two revolutions of the crankshaft.
•During the four strokes, there are five events to be completed, viz., suction,
compression, combustion, expansion and exhaust.
•Each stroke consists of 180◦ of crankshaft rotation and hence a four-stroke cycle is
completed through 720◦ of crank rotation.
•The cycle of operation for an ideal four-stroke SI engine consists of the following
four strokes :
(i) suction or intake stroke;
(ii) compression stroke;
(iii) expansion or power stroke and
(iv) exhaust stroke.

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References:
1. Thermal Engineering. By R. K. Rajput., ISBN:
8170088348
2. Moran, M.J., Moran, H. N. Shapiro, D.D.
Boettner, and M.B. Bailey,“Fundamentals of
engineering thermodynamics”. John Wiley &
Sons; (2010)

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THANK YOU

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