Does gas burn more when it’s hot?

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So where I live there’s a heat advisory saying it’s 95 but feels like 113. Can gas burn or ‘evaporate’ more when it’s hotter outside. I know it’s supposed to burn in the engine but can it burn up faster when it’s hotter outside?

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4 Answers

Anonymous 0 Comments

The engine is less efficient when the inlet air is hotter. Internal combustion engines fundamentally get power from the difference between the inlet temperature and exhaust temperature. So, while the gasoline does not “burn faster”, the engine is deriving less power on hot days.

Anonymous 0 Comments

The injection of gasoline into the piston sufficiently aerosolizes the gasoline regardless of temperature. Hot air is less dense, so you’ll have less oxygen coming in through the air intake, so you may get more incomplete combustion.

It can make a difference with gasoline on the ground, but not exactly in an engine.

Anonymous 0 Comments

You ask a couple different questions and it isn’t clear if you are asking about efficiency or what.

Yes, gas will evaporate more the hotter it is.

The reaction rate of gasoline combustion does increase when the temperature is higher, so all other things being equal it would burn faster.

What does that mean for a car? There will be somewhat less power because as others have mentioned, the hotter the air is the less dense it is and the less oxygen gets into the cylinders.

Your overall gas mileage can increase though because your car experiences less air resistance.

Anonymous 0 Comments

It “burns” less in hot weather. In most engines, how much air gets in the engine is the limiting factor, most engines are designed to pump in just enough gas to match the amount of air getting sucked in. Since hot air is less dense, that usually means the maximum air the engine can suck in is decreased.