Forklift Engines
Forklifts are classed as small-engine vehicles. The engines of the forklift all follow the principles of internal combustion, though the numerous makes and models of forklift would have a different design and layout. Forklifts are made more toward producing high torque than for speed. They generally are geared to low speeds. The engine runs the drive wheels of the forklift. The engine is also needed to lift and lower the forks via a series of chain pulleys. Most modern lift truck engines are fueled by propane as they will be used for indoor applications, where diesel and gasoline engines will be inappropriate due to the exhaust they create.
Typically, the lift truck is a four-cylinder engine-block. Forklift engines are similar to automobile engines because they hold pistons connecting to a camshaft. The head of each and every cylinder consists of 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, when the driver starts up the engine of the forklift. This fine spray mixes with air that 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 each piston rises to the top of the head. With extremely exact timing, the engine's battery and alternator generate an electrical current which passes through the spark plug. The fuel ignites resulting in an explosion that drives the piston back down to the bottom of the cylinder, resulting in a continuous turning of the camshaft. An air pressure imbalance in the cylinder causes the the exhaust hatch to draw out exhaust as more fuel passes into the cylinder. Propane burns cleaner than diesel and gasoline and the exhaust is not as harmful.