Forklift Engines
Forklifts are classified as vehicles with small engines. Forklift engines all follow the principles of internal combustion, while the many models and makes of lift truck would have a different layout and design. Forklifts are made more toward generating high torque than for speed. They usually are geared to low speeds. The engine powers the drive wheels of the forklift. The engine is also needed to lower and lift the forks via a series of chain pulleys. Most forklift engines that are modern are powered by propane because they will be utilized for indoor applications, where diesel and gasoline engines will be inappropriate because of the exhaust they create.
Normally, the lift truck is a four-cylinder engine-block. The engines of the forklift are like car engines since they contain pistons connecting to a camshaft. The head of each and every cylinder has an exhaust hatch, a spark plug and an exhaust hatch, each of them spring-loaded and one-way.
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 together with air coming from the mass air intake before moving into the head intake hatches of the cylinder. Every one of the four pistons is staggered to rise in an exact sequence, compressing the air and propane mixture as each piston rises to the top of the head. With extremely precise timing, the engine's battery and alternator 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, leading to 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 than gasoline and diesel and the exhaust is not as harmful.