A diesel engine is different from a gasoline engine in a few different ways. The major reason is the fact fuel is sprayed into the combustion chambers through fuel injector nozzles. This happens when the air in each chamber has been placed under such great pressure that it's not enough to ignite the fuel spontaneously.
After you turn the key inside the cab, you wait until the engine builds up enough heat in the cylinders before completing the start. Diesel powered vehicles have an indicator when you can start the engine. When prompted, the operator steps on the accelerator and turns the key to start. The whole process takes about two seconds.
Older diesel engines use glow plugs to preheat the chambers. Newer engines still have glow plugs but mostly for emissions control as the extra heat they provide helps burn fuel more efficiently.
Fuel pumps deliver fuel from the fuel tank to the engine, passing through fuel filters that clean it before it can get to the fuel injectors. Proper filter maintenance is important in diesel engine because fuel contamination can clog up the injector nozzles.
The fuel injection pump pressurizes fuel into a delivery tube called a rail. The rail keeps fuel under constant high pressure of 23,000 psi and higher while it delivers fuel to each cylinder.
In comparison, gasoline fuel injection pressure has a psi of only about 50 psi.
Diesel injection spray is controlled by the engine control unit, also known as an ECU. This electronic component regulates the pressure, when the spray is introduced, the duration, and other functions.
Some diesel fuel systems use hydraulics, crystalline wafers, and other methods to control fuel injection, and more are being developed to produce diesel engines that are even more powerful.
Once the primed fuel is delivered, the second important element introduced to the mixture is oxygen. This is done using turbochargers.
Turbochargers dramatically increase power to diesel engines and improve fuel efficiency. A turbocharger can increase the power on a diesel engine by up to 50 percent while lowering its fuel consumption by 20 to 25 percent.
All this power produced by diesel engines is why heavy construction machines, city buses, big rigs, and other large machines use them while vehicles like Grandma's Ford Fusion don't.
If you need diesel engine parts including engine kits, pumps, crankshafts, pistons, liners and more, be sure to give ConEquip Parts a call!
