What is the chemistry behind how combustion engines work?

Question

What is the chemistry behind how combustion engines work?

In: Chemistry

Answer 1

You generally have 2 types of combustion engines: spark or pressure. (gas or diesel)

Both turn explosive energy into mechanical energy by using the micro-explosions in the cylinders to push on the pistons. The pistons then further transfer that energy, leading to the movement in the engine that makes it go.

So back to the chemistry part.

Spark engines are pretty easy. Take a volatile substane that ignites with flame, mix with enough air to get a nice reaction, then use the spark to create the explosion.

Compression engines, on the other hand, don’t use sparks at all. Instead they take a fuel that ignites under high pressure, and compress it until it explodes.