Lift truck Engines
Forklifts are classified as small-engine vehicles, the same class in which lawnmowers are classed. Forklift engines all follow the principles of internal combustion. Different forklift models and brand names would have varying engine design and layout. Forklifts are designed more toward producing high torque rather than for speed. They normally are geared to low speeds. The engine powers the forklift's drive wheels. The engine is also needed to lower and raise the forks via a series of chain pulleys. Nearly all forklift engines which are modern are fueled by propane since they would be used indoors, where gasoline and diesel engines would be unsuitable due to the exhaust they produce.
A four-cylinder engine-block is typically found in a forklift. A lot similar to the engine in small cars, the engines of the forklift have cylinders that contain pistons connecting to a camshaft. Each and every cylinder head consists of an exhaust hatch, a spark plug and an exhaust hatch, each of them one-way and spring-loaded.
Engine Function
Propane passes through the opened throttle-plate in a fine spray, once the operator starts up the forklift engine. This fine spray mixes with air which comes from the mass air intake before moving into the head intake hatches of the cylinder. Each one of the four pistons is staggered to rise in a precise sequence, that compresses the mixture of propane and air as each piston rises to the top of the head. With timing which is very precise, the battery and alternator of the engine generate an electrical current which passes through the spark plug. The fuel ignites resulting in 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 exhaust to be drawn out through the exhaust hatch as more fuel passes into the cylinder. Propane burns cleaner compared to gasoline and diesel and the exhaust is not as harmful.