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Diesel Engine: The diesel engine (Diesel engine) is an internal combustion engine that converts stored energy in fuel into usable mechanical energy through a series of controlled explosions. To create usable energy the diesel engine compresses air and utilizes the heat created by the compression to ignite injected fuel. Unlike a gasoline engines that require a spark to ignite the fuel diesel engines are able to obtain high thermal efficiency because of the high compression ratio which delivers the most energy from an equal amount of fuel burnt.

History:
The diesel engine was created by Rudolf Diesel in 1876 as a new, more economical alternative to the standard gasoline engine. Initially created by Rudolf Diesel after he learned of the standard gasoline engine’s poor efficiency to convert fuel energy into mechanical energy. The “combustion power engine” was Rudolf Diesel’s more efficient alternative.

How the Diesel engines works:
Four Stroke Engines: The diesel engine, although very complicated, can be simplified into a simple four stroke summary that summarizes how fuel is turned into energy. The first stroke of the engine is the intake stroke, beginning with the intake valve opening and letting air fill the combustion chamber and moving the piston downwards. The Compression stroke then begins as the intake valves close and the pistons move back up and begin to compress the air inside the combustion chamber. The combustion stroke begins as the piston is almost at the top of the combustion chamber; at this point the compression of the air has created heat. Fuel is then injected and ignites because of the high amount of heat. This step is very complicated because of the complex direct injection methods required to input the gasoline at exactly the right time. The combustion moves the piston back down the combustion chamber. The exhaust stroke then begins as the piston begins to move back up the chamber and pushes exhaust out of the now open exhaust valve. These four strokes take two full cycles of the piston to complete and once completed have successfully converted the energy stored in fuel into mechanical energy in the form of rotation. The diesel engine is able to create enough power to run an automobile or a large diesel vehicle through the use of more combustion chambers, or cylinders. These cylinders continually rotate through the four cycles listed above, rotating the crankshaft and creating more energy. It should be noted that in standard four, six and eight cylinder automobile engines the pistons are continually at opposite positions cancelling out forces and reducing the amount of vibration in the engine. The converted power is then used to power the car’s gearbox and in turn moves the wheels. Speeds are changed by varying the amount of fuel that is injected into the chamber, the more fuel there is the more energy created and therefor more power is converted and put to the wheels. Two Stroke Engines: More to come...

Advancements and options:
To be continued...

Advantages and Disadvantages:
Although originally created as a more efficient vehicle the diesel engine in America is seen as a heavy duty and polluting engine capable of producing high amounts of torque and an overall lower top end speed. The high torque and high efficiency makes the engine ideal for large vehicles and industrial uses over a long distance but also applies it well to commuter cars. However the diesel engine is generally seen as a poor alternative to gasoline because of its noisy and smelly reputation, one it is trying to lose. The diesel engine’s lack of a spark ignition system generally means a more reliable engine because there are fewer steps during its general rotation to go wrong. Diesel fuel also applies itself well to a more reliable engine because of its superior lubrication abilities over regular gasoline creating less wear and tear inside the engine. The downside of the diesel engine’s reliability is created because of its unique compression ignition system; with such high amounts of pressure found within the engine heavier parts are required therefor heavier engines are generally the case. This added weight causes some complication with the initial startup of the engine especially in large industrial engines as it takes more energy to move a heavier object that is in rest. The diesel engines biggest faults are found with the noise and emissions the engine creates. Quick and large explosions mixed with high pressures produces loud noises. These noises today can be slightly reduced but are still audible. The fumes created from these loud explosions produce lists of air toxins that smell and need to be monitored especially with today’s tough emission standards. Diesel fuel, like the fumes emitted from the engine, is also a negative when compared to gasoline engines and the feul is thicker, smellier and is difficult to clean. These faults require special attention and require more expensive technology to counter, driving prices up.

Diesel Fuel:
Diesel fuel, much like standard gasoline is refined from crude oil found within the earth. Diesel fuel is very thick compared to gasoline and evaporates at a much slower rate. It is a thick very oily fuel which justifies the name Diesel oil that is commonly used to describe diesel fuel. It has a strong smell and is difficult to get off clothes and hands. Diesel fuel is in general a lot easier to create compared to the refining process of gasoline, which should create a cheaper product but because of high demand cost are driven up. Diesel fuel has a higher energy density compared to standard gasoline engines, averaging 147,000 BTU per gallon compared to gasoline’s 125,000 BTU’s per gallon. This is part of the reason the diesel engine has a higher efficiency and is often more economical.

Biodiesel:
Biodiesel is a green alternative to diesel fuel that is not created from fossil fuels and therefor creates less harmful fumes. More to come...

Diesel Engine’s Future:
The diesel engine might still have a long future ahead of it but it's not as set in stone as once thought, especially when personal diesel engine's futures are examined. The engine is facing heavy competition from new clean technology that is attempting to replace both diesel and gasoline engines with green environmentally friendly power sources. Power plants like battery hybrid electrics (BHE) and fuel cell electrics (FCE) are two important technologies that are beginning to hit American and European markets and make even clean diesel technology look dirty. The diesel engines biggest opposition are depleting fossil fuel reserves and increasing diesel prices due to demand. These two factors cause even economical engines to cost more to power and will eventually cause the price of owning a diesel automobile to well exceed even more expensive alternative energy sources.

Works Cited:
Marshall Brain. How Diesel Engines Work; How Stuff Works. http://auto.howstuffworks.com/diesel.htm,

Car Engines; Explain That Stuff. April 26, 2009. http://www.explainthatstuff.com/carengines.html

A New Clean Diesel Technology: Demonstration of Ulev Emissions on a Navistar Diesel Engine Fueled With Dimethyl Ether: Fleisch, Theo; McCarthy, Chris; Basu, Arun; Udovich, Carl; Charbonneau, Pat; Slodowske, Warren; Mikkelsen Svend-Erik. Illumina http://md1.csa.com/partners/viewrecord.php?requester=gs&collection=TRD&recid=20070520133503MT&q=diesel+automotive+engine&uid=790489715&setcookie=yes

Frictional Losses In Diesel Engines. Millington; Hartles. Ricardo & Co. Enginineering, 01-02-1968, 650590. http://papers.sae.org/680590