Lift truck Engines
Forklifts are classified as vehicles with small engines, the same category wherein lawnmowers are categorized. Forklift engines all follow the principles of internal combustion. Various forklift models and brand names will have varying engine layout and design. Forklifts are made more toward generating high torque than for speed. They normally are geared to low speeds. The engine powers the drive wheels of the forklift. The engine is also required to lower and raise the forks via a series of chain pulleys. Most forklift engines which are modern are powered by propane because they will be utilized indoors, where gasoline and diesel engines would be unsuitable because of the exhaust they produce.
Usually, the lift truck is a four-cylinder engine-block. The engines of the forklift are similar to automobile engines since they contain pistons connecting to a camshaft. Each and every cylinder head has an intake hatch, an exhaust hatch and a spark plug, each of them spring-loaded and one-way.
Engine Function
Once 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 that comes from the mass air intake prior to moving into the head intake hatches of the cylinder. Each one of the four pistons is staggered to rise in a precise sequence, compressing the air and propane mixture as every piston rises to the top of the head. With timing which is really precise, the alternator and battery of the engine create an electrical current which passes through the spark plug. The fuel ignites causing an explosion which drives the piston back down to the bottom of the cylinder, causing a continuous turning of the camshaft. In the cylinder, an air pressure imbalance causes the the exhaust hatch to draw out exhaust as more fuel passes into the cylinder. Propane burns cleaner compared to diesel and gasoline and the exhaust is not as harmful.