1.Why the engine can provide power continuously?
The reason why the engine can provide power continuously is due to the orderly cycle of the four strokes of intake, compression, power generation and exhaust in the cylinder.
1.1-The intake stroke
The intake stroke is the movement of the piston from the top dead center to the bottom dead center in the cylinder. This is accompanied by the opening of the intake valve and the closing of the exhaust valve. Fresh air and gasoline mixture are then sucked into the cylinder.
1.2-The compression stroke
The compression stroke is the movement of the piston from the bottom dead center to the top dead center. During this stroke, the intake and exhaust valves are closed, and the mixed gas is compressed to the top of the cylinder. This increases the temperature of the mixed gas, preparing it for the power stroke.
1.3-The power stroke
The power stroke is initiated by the spark plug igniting the compressed gas, which then "explodes" in the cylinder to generate immense pressure. This pressure is transmitted to the piston, causing it to move from the top dead center to the bottom dead center, and subsequently drives the crankshaft to rotate through the connecting rod.
1.4-The exhaust stroke
The exhaust stroke is initiated by the piston moving from the bottom dead center to the top dead center. At this point, the intake valve is closed, the exhaust valve is opened, and the burned exhaust gas is discharged out of the cylinder through the exhaust manifold.
2.The Engine power comes from explosion
The engine can generate power from the "explosive force" in the cylinder. In the sealed cylinder combustion chamber, the spark plug instantly ignites a certain proportion of gasoline and air at the right time, which will generate a huge explosive force. The top of the combustion chamber is fixed, and the huge pressure forces the piston to move downward, pushing the crankshaft through the connecting rod, and then transmitting the power to the drive wheel through a series of mechanisms, and finally driving the car.
3.Spark plugs are "detonation" masters
If you want the "explosion" in the cylinder to be more powerful, timely ignition is very important, and the spark plug in the cylinder plays the role of "detonation". In fact, the principle of spark plug ignition is a bit similar to lightning. The spark plug head has a central electrode and a side electrode (equivalent to two clouds of ions with opposite polarity). There is a very small gap between the two electrodes (called the ignition gap). When powered on, it can generate an electric spark of more than 10,000 volts, which can instantly "detonate" the mixed gas in the cylinder.
4.The intake valve should be larger than the exhaust valve
If you want to continuously "explode" in the cylinder, you must continuously input new fuel and exhaust gas in time. The intake and exhaust valves play an important role in this process. The intake and exhaust valves are controlled by cams, and the two actions of "opening the door" and "closing the door" are performed in a timely manner. Why are the intake valves larger than the exhaust valves? Because the intake is generally sucked in by vacuum, and the exhaust is squeezed to push the exhaust gas out, so exhaust is relatively easier than intake. In order to get more fresh air to participate in combustion, the intake valve needs to be larger to get more intake.
5.The number of valves should not be too many
If the engine has multiple valves, the intake volume is large and the exhaust is clean at high speed, and the engine performance is also better (similar to a movie theater, if there are many doors, it is much more convenient to get in and out). However, the multi-valve design is more complicated, especially the valve drive method, combustion chamber structure and spark plug position all need to be precisely arranged, so the production process requirements are high, the manufacturing cost is naturally high, and the later maintenance is also difficult. Therefore, the number of valves should not be too many. Common engines have 4 valves per cylinder (2 inlet and 2 outlet).
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