Forklift Engines
Forklifts are classed as small-engine vehicles. Forklift engines all follow the principles of internal combustion, while the numerous models and makes of lift truck will have a different design and layout. Forklifts are designed more toward generating high torque rather than for speed. They usually are geared to low speeds. The engine powers the forklift's drive wheels. The engine is also needed to raise and lower the forks via a series of chain pulleys. Most forklift engines which are modern are fueled by propane since they would be used indoors, where gasoline and diesel engines would be inappropriate because of the exhaust they generate.
A four-cylinder engine-block is normally found in a lift truck. A lot like the engine in small cars, the engines of the forklift have cylinders that contain pistons connecting to a camshaft. The head of every cylinder consists of an exhaust hatch, a spark plug and an exhaust hatch, each of them one-way and spring-loaded.
Engine Function
When the driver starts up the engine of the forklift, propane passes through the opened throttle-plate in a fine spray and mixes together with air which comes from the mass air intake before moving into the head intake hatches of the cylinder. Each and every one of the four pistons is staggered to rise in a precise sequence, compressing the propane and air mixture as every piston rises to the top of the head. With really exact timing, the battery and alternator of the engine create an electrical current that passes through the spark plug. The fuel ignites leading to an explosion that drives the piston back down to the bottom of the cylinder, leading to a continuous turning of the camshaft. In the cylinder, an air pressure imbalance causes the the exhaust hatch to draw out exhaust when more fuel passes into the cylinder. Propane burns cleaner than diesel and gasoline and the exhaust is not as harmful.