92-644: The Ford Bridgend Engine Plant was an internal combustion engine factory owned by Ford of Europe and located in Bridgend , Wales . Between 1980 and 2020, it made over 22 million engines used in Ford, Volvo , Jaguar and Land Rover cars. The plant's last Ford engine was the "Dragon" EcoBoost engine , produced from 2018 until February 2020. During its final months, it only made Jaguar AJ-V8 and AJ-V6 engines, themselves discontinued in September 2020. Amid
184-433: A carburetor or fuel injection as port injection or direct injection . Most SI engines have a single spark plug per cylinder but some have 2 . A head gasket prevents the gas from leaking between the cylinder head and the engine block. The opening and closing of the valves is controlled by one or several camshafts and springs—or in some engines—a desmodromic mechanism that uses no springs. The camshaft may press directly
276-434: A combustion chamber that is an integral part of the working fluid flow circuit. In an internal combustion engine, the expansion of the high- temperature and high- pressure gases produced by combustion applies direct force to some component of the engine. The force is typically applied to pistons ( piston engine ), turbine blades ( gas turbine ), a rotor (Wankel engine) , or a nozzle ( jet engine ). This force moves
368-409: A deflector head . Pistons are open at the bottom and hollow except for an integral reinforcement structure (the piston web). When an engine is working, the gas pressure in the combustion chamber exerts a force on the piston crown which is transferred through its web to a gudgeon pin . Each piston has rings fitted around its circumference that mostly prevent the gases from leaking into the crankcase or
460-428: A gas engine . Also in 1794, Robert Street patented an internal combustion engine, which was also the first to use liquid fuel , and built an engine around that time. In 1798, John Stevens built the first American internal combustion engine. In 1807, French engineers Nicéphore Niépce (who went on to invent photography ) and Claude Niépce ran a prototype internal combustion engine, using controlled dust explosions,
552-470: A locomotive operated by electricity.) In boating, an internal combustion engine that is installed in the hull is referred to as an engine, but the engines that sit on the transom are referred to as motors. Reciprocating piston engines are by far the most common power source for land and water vehicles , including automobiles , motorcycles , ships and to a lesser extent, locomotives (some are electrical but most use diesel engines ). Rotary engines of
644-594: A battery and charging system; nevertheless, this system is secondary and is added by manufacturers as a luxury for the ease of starting, turning fuel on and off (which can also be done via a switch or mechanical apparatus), and for running auxiliary electrical components and accessories. Most new engines rely on electrical and electronic engine control units (ECU) that also adjust the combustion process to increase efficiency and reduce emissions. Surfaces in contact and relative motion to other surfaces require lubrication to reduce wear, noise and increase efficiency by reducing
736-456: A belt drive to start the internal combustion engine (ICE) through its motor–generator unit (MGU), then once started the engine drives the 14.5 kW motor-generator to charge the batteries. The BAS hybrid system also utilizes regenerative braking to replenish the system's 36 V battery and can provide moderate levels of power assist. According to the EPA, a 2009 Saturn Vue Greenline equipped with
828-404: A carefully timed high-voltage to the proper cylinder. This spark, via the spark plug, ignites the air-fuel mixture in the engine's cylinders. While gasoline internal combustion engines are much easier to start in cold weather than diesel engines, they can still have cold weather starting problems under extreme conditions. For years, the solution was to park the car in heated areas. In some parts of
920-499: A common power source for lawnmowers , string trimmers , chain saws , leafblowers , pressure washers , snowmobiles , jet skis , outboard motors , mopeds , and motorcycles . There are several possible ways to classify internal combustion engines. By number of strokes: By type of ignition: By mechanical/thermodynamic cycle (these cycles are infrequently used but are commonly found in hybrid vehicles , along with other vehicles manufactured for fuel efficiency ): The base of
1012-617: A form of internal combustion engine, though of a type so specialized that they are commonly treated as a separate category, along with weaponry such as mortars and anti-aircraft cannons.) In contrast, in external combustion engines , such as steam or Stirling engines , energy is delivered to a working fluid not consisting of, mixed with, or contaminated by combustion products. Working fluids for external combustion engines include air, hot water, pressurized water or even boiler -heated liquid sodium . While there are many stationary applications, most ICEs are used in mobile applications and are
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#17327877393361104-490: A global cost-cutting drive and citing a lack of demand for its manufacturing capacity, Ford closed the plant on 25 September 2020. After signing an investment deal with the Welsh Development Agency , construction was started on the greenfield site in 1977. The 1,525,270 square feet (141,702 m) plant began production in 1980, and specialised in producing high-efficiency petrol engines. Its first product
1196-452: A hand crank. Larger engines typically power their starting motors and ignition systems using the electrical energy stored in a lead–acid battery . The battery's charged state is maintained by an automotive alternator or (previously) a generator which uses engine power to create electrical energy storage. The battery supplies electrical power for starting when the engine has a starting motor system, and supplies electrical power when
1288-410: A minimally extended battery and an auxiliary electric combined motor and generator in a parallel hybrid configuration that is only enough for an electric-only mode of propulsion at slow speed and allow the engine to be stopped whenever the car is coasting, braking, or stopped, and then restarted once power is required again. Mild hybrids may employ regenerative braking and some level of power assist to
1380-408: A problem would occur as the compression ratio increased as the fuel was igniting due to the rise in temperature that resulted. Charles Kettering developed a lead additive which allowed higher compression ratios, which was progressively abandoned for automotive use from the 1970s onward, partly due to lead poisoning concerns. The fuel mixture is ignited at different progressions of the piston in
1472-731: A reciprocating internal combustion engine is the engine block , which is typically made of cast iron (due to its good wear resistance and low cost) or aluminum . In the latter case, the cylinder liners are made of cast iron or steel, or a coating such as nikasil or alusil . The engine block contains the cylinders . In engines with more than one cylinder they are usually arranged either in 1 row ( straight engine ) or 2 rows ( boxer engine or V engine ); 3 or 4 rows are occasionally used ( W engine ) in contemporary engines, and other engine configurations are possible and have been used. Single-cylinder engines (or thumpers ) are common for motorcycles and other small engines found in light machinery. On
1564-422: A separate ICE as an auxiliary power unit . Wankel engines are fitted to many unmanned aerial vehicles . ICEs drive large electric generators that power electrical grids. They are found in the form of combustion turbines with a typical electrical output in the range of some 100 MW. Combined cycle power plants use the high temperature exhaust to boil and superheat water steam to run a steam turbine . Thus,
1656-481: A separate blower avoids many of the shortcomings of crankcase scavenging, at the expense of increased complexity which means a higher cost and an increase in maintenance requirement. An engine of this type uses ports or valves for intake and valves for exhaust, except opposed piston engines , which may also use ports for exhaust. The blower is usually of the Roots-type but other types have been used too. This design
1748-416: A separate crankcase ventilation system. The cylinder head is attached to the engine block by numerous bolts or studs . It has several functions. The cylinder head seals the cylinders on the side opposite to the pistons; it contains short ducts (the ports ) for intake and exhaust and the associated intake valves that open to let the cylinder be filled with fresh air and exhaust valves that open to allow
1840-733: A threat of strike action by members of Unite the Union , and a protest outside Ford's UK headquarters by fifty-five members of the Bridgend male voice choir. Neither succeeded in reversing it. Ford of Europe's president stated that the decision was unrelated to the United Kingdom's planned 2021 withdrawal from the European Union Customs Union . The then Member of Parliament for Bridgend considered this unlikely, saying that Ford executives had repeatedly warned that
1932-481: Is intermittent , such as the more familiar two-stroke and four-stroke piston engines, along with variants, such as the six-stroke piston engine and the Wankel rotary engine . A second class of internal combustion engines use continuous combustion: gas turbines , jet engines and most rocket engines , each of which are internal combustion engines on the same principle as previously described. ( Firearms are also
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#17327877393362024-405: Is a fly-back system, using interruption of electrical primary system current through some type of synchronized interrupter. The interrupter can be either contact points or a power transistor. The problem with this type of ignition is that as RPM increases the availability of electrical energy decreases. This is especially a problem, since the amount of energy needed to ignite a more dense fuel mixture
2116-421: Is also why diesel and HCCI engines are more susceptible to cold-starting issues, although they run just as well in cold weather once started. Light duty diesel engines with indirect injection in automobiles and light trucks employ glowplugs (or other pre-heating: see Cummins ISB#6BT ) that pre-heat the combustion chamber just before starting to reduce no-start conditions in cold weather. Most diesels also have
2208-503: Is commonplace in CI engines, and has been occasionally used in SI engines. CI engines that use a blower typically use uniflow scavenging . In this design the cylinder wall contains several intake ports placed uniformly spaced along the circumference just above the position that the piston crown reaches when at BDC. An exhaust valve or several like that of 4-stroke engines is used. The final part of
2300-542: Is driven downward with power, it first uncovers the exhaust port where the burned fuel is expelled under high pressure and then the intake port where the process has been completed and will keep repeating. Later engines used a type of porting devised by the Deutz company to improve performance. It was called the Schnurle Reverse Flow system. DKW licensed this design for all their motorcycles. Their DKW RT 125
2392-415: Is held in place relative to the engine block by main bearings , which allow it to rotate. Bulkheads in the crankcase form a half of every main bearing; the other half is a detachable cap. In some cases a single main bearing deck is used rather than several smaller caps. A connecting rod is connected to offset sections of the crankshaft (the crankpins ) in one end and to the piston in the other end through
2484-406: Is higher. The result was often a high RPM misfire. Capacitor discharge ignition was developed. It produces a rising voltage that is sent to the spark plug. CD system voltages can reach 60,000 volts. CD ignitions use step-up transformers . The step-up transformer uses energy stored in a capacitance to generate electric spark . With either system, a mechanical or electrical control system provides
2576-445: Is not possible to dedicate a stroke exclusively for each of them. Starting at TDC the cycle consists of: While a 4-stroke engine uses the piston as a positive displacement pump to accomplish scavenging taking 2 of the 4 strokes, a 2-stroke engine uses the last part of the power stroke and the first part of the compression stroke for combined intake and exhaust. The work required to displace the charge and exhaust gases comes from either
2668-631: Is often so low that the impact on environment is negligible and may be seen as greenwashing . General Motors mild hybrids including the Parallel Hybrid Truck (PHT) and numerous cars and SUVs equipped with the BAS Hybrid system, often use a 36- to 48-volt system to supply the power needed for the startup motor, as well as a source of power to compensate for the increasing number of electronic accessories on modern vehicles. GM's belt alternator starter (BAS) mild hybrid system uses
2760-514: Is the Wärtsilä-Sulzer RTA96-C turbocharged 2-stroke diesel, used in large container ships. It is the most efficient and powerful reciprocating internal combustion engine in the world with a thermal efficiency over 50%. For comparison, the most efficient small four-stroke engines are around 43% thermally-efficient (SAE 900648); size is an advantage for efficiency due to the increase in the ratio of volume to surface area. See
2852-528: The BAS Hybrid system delivers a 27% improvement in combined fuel economy over the non-hybrid version (FWD 4cyl). During the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing in August, Chinese automobile manufacturer Chang'an Motors supplied a number of hybrid-drive cars as taxis for the athletes and spectators. The power electronics for the "mild hybrid" drive was supplied by Infineon . Toyota sold mild hybrid versions of
Ford Bridgend Engine Plant - Misplaced Pages Continue
2944-618: The Pyréolophore , which was granted a patent by Napoleon Bonaparte . This engine powered a boat on the Saône river in France. In the same year, Swiss engineer François Isaac de Rivaz invented a hydrogen-based internal combustion engine and powered the engine by electric spark. In 1808, De Rivaz fitted his invention to a primitive working vehicle – "the world's first internal combustion powered automobile". In 1823, Samuel Brown patented
3036-807: The Toyota Crown executive sedan between 2001 and 2003 and the mid-size Crown Sedan between 2002 and 2008 in the Japanese domestic market. MINI and BMW have start and stop, and some with regenerative braking, in all of their vehicles sold in Europe running 4-cylinder engines with manual transmissions. Citroën proposes a stop and start system on its C2 and C3 models. The concept-car C5 Airscape has an improved version of that, adding regenerative braking and traction assistance functionalities, and ultracapacitors for energy buffering. In 2004 VW brought two mild hybrid concept cars to Shanghai for
3128-473: The external links for an in-cylinder combustion video in a 2-stroke, optically accessible motorcycle engine. Dugald Clerk developed the first two-cycle engine in 1879. It used a separate cylinder which functioned as a pump in order to transfer the fuel mixture to the cylinder. In 1899 John Day simplified Clerk's design into the type of 2 cycle engine that is very widely used today. Day cycle engines are crankcase scavenged and port timed. The crankcase and
3220-426: The two-stroke oil in the air-fuel-oil mixture which is then burned along with the fuel. The valve train may be contained in a compartment flooded with lubricant so that no oil pump is required. Mild hybrid Mild hybrids ( MHEV ) (also known as smart hybrids , power-assist hybrids , battery-assisted hybrid vehicles or BAHVs ) are generally cars with an internal combustion engine (ICE) equipped with
3312-458: The Bridgend plant totalling 990 by 2021. This would have left around 700 employees, 40% more than previously expected to be employed for the Dragon, but a fall of two thirds from 2015. Ford also said at the time that it would consider plant closures. By mid-2019, according to Wells, the Bridgend plant had become clearly uneconomic due to its under-utilisation, in turn arising from lack of demand for
3404-401: The Ford corporate office. The initial plan was to invest £ 181 million ( US$ 277 million) to retool the factory for an annual production capacity of 250,000 engines, a third of the plant's existing capacity. The Welsh Government provided a £15M investment grant to support the retooling. Making the Dragon was expected to employ around 500 people. The Dragon engine did not repeat the success of
3496-726: The Fox. The engine was too large for Ford's Fiesta and Ka , was difficult to mate with larger models designed to accept four-cylinder engines, and was not suited to Ford's mild hybrid drivetrain design. By 2017, Ford's planned investment had been cut by 45% to £100M ($ 129M), for a 125,000-unit annual capacity. In 2019, in an Autocar feature that forecast final-year production of only 80,000 units, Dr Peter Wells of Cardiff Business School said, "Ford’s product planning has just gone wrong." Amid Ford's global cost-cutting programme, downsizing plans leaked in January 2019 called for phased redundancies at
3588-525: The UK. Ford failed to find a buyer for the site. Ineos expressed interest in acquiring the plant to build its Grenadier offroader , but later announced that it would build a new factory adjacent to Ford's. It eventually acquired a former Mercedes-Benz factory in Hambach , France instead. The Welsh Government, which later said it had "strained every sinew" and met "very regularly" with Ford to try to avert
3680-619: The Wankel design are used in some automobiles, aircraft and motorcycles. These are collectively known as internal-combustion-engine vehicles (ICEV). Where high power-to-weight ratios are required, internal combustion engines appear in the form of combustion turbines , or sometimes Wankel engines. Powered aircraft typically use an ICE which may be a reciprocating engine. Airplanes can instead use jet engines and helicopters can instead employ turboshafts ; both of which are types of turbines. In addition to providing propulsion, aircraft may employ
3772-489: The associated process. While an engine is in operation, the crankshaft rotates continuously at a nearly constant speed . In a 4-stroke ICE, each piston experiences 2 strokes per crankshaft revolution in the following order. Starting the description at TDC, these are: The defining characteristic of this kind of engine is that each piston completes a cycle every crankshaft revolution. The 4 processes of intake, compression, power and exhaust take place in only 2 strokes so that it
Ford Bridgend Engine Plant - Misplaced Pages Continue
3864-461: The closure, created a taskforce to try to save the plant, but it did not officially convene for over eight months between July 2018 and March 2019. An offer of state aid, similar to the £61M awarded to Nissan in 2018, was refused. In June 2019, Ford briefed trade unions that the plant would close in September 2020, with production of the Dragon engine to end in February 2020. The decision prompted
3956-619: The combustion gases to escape. The valves are often poppet valves but they can also be rotary valves or sleeve valves . However, 2-stroke crankcase scavenged engines connect the gas ports directly to the cylinder wall without poppet valves; the piston controls their opening and occlusion instead. The cylinder head also holds the spark plug in the case of spark ignition engines and the injector for engines that use direct injection. All CI (compression ignition) engines use fuel injection, usually direct injection but some engines instead use indirect injection . SI (spark ignition) engines can use
4048-533: The component over a distance. This process transforms chemical energy into kinetic energy which is used to propel, move or power whatever the engine is attached to. The first commercially successful internal combustion engine was created by Étienne Lenoir around 1860, and the first modern internal combustion engine, known as the Otto engine , was created in 1876 by Nicolaus Otto . The term internal combustion engine usually refers to an engine in which combustion
4140-455: The compressed air and combustion products and slide continuously within it while the engine is in operation. In smaller engines, the pistons are made of aluminum; while in larger applications, they are typically made of cast iron. In performance applications, pistons can also be titanium or forged steel for greater strength. The top surface of the piston is called its crown and is typically flat or concave. Some two-stroke engines use pistons with
4232-432: The compressed charge, four-cycle engine. In 1879, Karl Benz patented a reliable two-stroke gasoline engine. Later, in 1886, Benz began the first commercial production of motor vehicles with an internal combustion engine, in which a three-wheeled, four-cycle engine and chassis formed a single unit. In 1892, Rudolf Diesel developed the first compressed charge, compression ignition engine. In 1926, Robert Goddard launched
4324-410: The corresponding ports. The intake manifold connects to the air filter directly, or to a carburetor when one is present, which is then connected to the air filter . It distributes the air incoming from these devices to the individual cylinders. The exhaust manifold is the first component in the exhaust system . It collects the exhaust gases from the cylinders and drives it to the following component in
4416-400: The crankcase or a separate blower. For scavenging, expulsion of burned gas and entry of fresh mix, two main approaches are described: Loop scavenging, and Uniflow scavenging. SAE news published in the 2010s that 'Loop Scavenging' is better under any circumstance than Uniflow Scavenging. Some SI engines are crankcase scavenged and do not use poppet valves. Instead, the crankcase and the part of
4508-401: The crankcase pressure is slightly below intake pressure, to let it be filled with a new charge; this happens when the piston is moving upwards. When the piston is moving downwards the pressure in the crankcase increases and the reed valve closes promptly, then the charge in the crankcase is compressed. When the piston is moving downwards, it also uncovers the exhaust port and the transfer port and
4600-413: The crankcase to the port in the cylinder to provide for intake and another from the exhaust port to the exhaust pipe. The height of the port in relationship to the length of the cylinder is called the "port timing". On the first upstroke of the engine there would be no fuel inducted into the cylinder as the crankcase was empty. On the downstroke, the piston now compresses the fuel mix, which has lubricated
4692-431: The cylinder below the piston is used as a pump. The intake port is connected to the crankcase through a reed valve or a rotary disk valve driven by the engine. For each cylinder, a transfer port connects in one end to the crankcase and in the other end to the cylinder wall. The exhaust port is connected directly to the cylinder wall. The transfer and exhaust port are opened and closed by the piston. The reed valve opens when
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#17327877393364784-411: The cylinder block has fins protruding away from it to cool the engine by directly transferring heat to the air. The cylinder walls are usually finished by honing to obtain a cross hatch , which is able to retain more oil. A too rough surface would quickly harm the engine by excessive wear on the piston. The pistons are short cylindrical parts which seal one end of the cylinder from the high pressure of
4876-407: The cylinder. Because there is no obstruction in the cylinder of the fuel to move directly out of the exhaust port prior to the piston rising far enough to close the port, early engines used a high domed piston to slow down the flow of fuel. Later the fuel was "resonated" back into the cylinder using an expansion chamber design. When the piston rose close to TDC, a spark ignited the fuel. As the piston
4968-414: The cylinder. At low rpm, the spark is timed to occur close to the piston achieving top dead center. In order to produce more power, as rpm rises the spark is advanced sooner during piston movement. The spark occurs while the fuel is still being compressed progressively more as rpm rises. The necessary high voltage, typically 10,000 volts, is supplied by an induction coil or transformer. The induction coil
5060-413: The early engines which used Hot Tube ignition. When Bosch developed the magneto it became the primary system for producing electricity to energize a spark plug. Many small engines still use magneto ignition. Small engines are started by hand cranking using a recoil starter or hand crank. Prior to Charles F. Kettering of Delco's development of the automotive starter all gasoline engined automobiles used
5152-453: The efficiency is higher because more energy is extracted from the fuel than what could be extracted by the combustion engine alone. Combined cycle power plants achieve efficiencies in the range of 50–60%. In a smaller scale, stationary engines like gas engines or diesel generators are used for backup or for providing electrical power to areas not connected to an electric grid . Small engines (usually 2‐stroke gasoline/petrol engines) are
5244-543: The engine is off. The battery also supplies electrical power during rare run conditions where the alternator cannot maintain more than 13.8 volts (for a common 12 V automotive electrical system). As alternator voltage falls below 13.8 volts, the lead-acid storage battery increasingly picks up electrical load. During virtually all running conditions, including normal idle conditions, the alternator supplies primary electrical power. Some systems disable alternator field (rotor) power during wide-open throttle conditions. Disabling
5336-465: The engines made there. Ford decided against manufacturing batteries at Bridgend due to the plant's distance from their vehicle assembly factories, which are all located outside the United Kingdom , hence beyond a customs frontier from January 2021. In the first half of 2019, Honda and Jaguar Land Rover had already announced UK job losses, and Nissan had cancelled a planned investment in
5428-435: The field reduces alternator pulley mechanical loading to nearly zero, maximizing crankshaft power. In this case, the battery supplies all primary electrical power. Gasoline engines take in a mixture of air and gasoline and compress it by the movement of the piston from bottom dead center to top dead center when the fuel is at maximum compression. The reduction in the size of the swept area of the cylinder and taking into account
5520-623: The first internal combustion engine to be applied industrially. In 1854, in the UK, the Italian inventors Eugenio Barsanti and Felice Matteucci obtained the certification: "Obtaining Motive Power by the Explosion of Gases". In 1857 the Great Seal Patent Office conceded them patent No.1655 for the invention of an "Improved Apparatus for Obtaining Motive Power from Gases". Barsanti and Matteucci obtained other patents for
5612-595: The first liquid-fueled rocket. In 1939, the Heinkel He 178 became the world's first jet aircraft . At one time, the word engine (via Old French , from Latin ingenium , "ability") meant any piece of machinery —a sense that persists in expressions such as siege engine . A "motor" (from Latin motor , "mover") is any machine that produces mechanical power . Traditionally, electric motors are not referred to as "engines"; however, combustion engines are often referred to as "motors". (An electric engine refers to
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#17327877393365704-604: The following conditions: The main advantage of 2-stroke engines of this type is mechanical simplicity and a higher power-to-weight ratio than their 4-stroke counterparts. Despite having twice as many power strokes per cycle, less than twice the power of a comparable 4-stroke engine is attainable in practice. In the US, 2-stroke engines were banned for road vehicles due to the pollution. Off-road only motorcycles are still often 2-stroke but are rarely road legal. However, many thousands of 2-stroke lawn maintenance engines are in use. Using
5796-517: The gudgeon pin and thus transfers the force and translates the reciprocating motion of the pistons to the circular motion of the crankshaft. The end of the connecting rod attached to the gudgeon pin is called its small end, and the other end, where it is connected to the crankshaft, the big end. The big end has a detachable half to allow assembly around the crankshaft. It is kept together to the connecting rod by removable bolts. The cylinder head has an intake manifold and an exhaust manifold attached to
5888-505: The high temperature and pressure created by the engine in its compression process. The compression level that occurs is usually twice or more than a gasoline engine. Diesel engines take in air only, and shortly before peak compression, spray a small quantity of diesel fuel into the cylinder via a fuel injector that allows the fuel to instantly ignite. HCCI type engines take in both air and fuel, but continue to rely on an unaided auto-combustion process, due to higher pressures and temperature. This
5980-416: The higher pressure of the charge in the crankcase makes it enter the cylinder through the transfer port, blowing the exhaust gases. Lubrication is accomplished by adding two-stroke oil to the fuel in small ratios. Petroil refers to the mix of gasoline with the aforesaid oil. This kind of 2-stroke engine has a lower efficiency than comparable 4-strokes engines and releases more polluting exhaust gases for
6072-451: The highest thermal efficiencies among internal combustion engines of any kind. Some diesel–electric locomotive engines operate on the 2-stroke cycle. The most powerful of them have a brake power of around 4.5 MW or 6,000 HP . The EMD SD90MAC class of locomotives are an example of such. The comparable class GE AC6000CW , whose prime mover has almost the same brake power, uses a 4-stroke engine. An example of this type of engine
6164-419: The intake manifold is an air sleeve that feeds the intake ports. The intake ports are placed at a horizontal angle to the cylinder wall (I.e: they are in plane of the piston crown) to give a swirl to the incoming charge to improve combustion. The largest reciprocating IC are low speed CI engines of this type; they are used for marine propulsion (see marine diesel engine ) or electric power generation and achieve
6256-526: The internal combustion engine. The mild hybrid's electric motor provides greater efficiency through the use of a single device that is essentially an integrated starter/alternator sometimes known as a generator-motor unit. A typical mild-hybrid setup uses a belt-powered generator-motor unit driven off the engine to supply power to a small battery. The generator is also powered through regenerative braking, enabling power that would otherwise be dissipated as heat to be recaptured and recovered for use in powering
6348-429: The inventor of the diesel engine, Rudolf Diesel , was using peanut oil to run his engines. Renewable fuels are commonly blended with fossil fuels. Hydrogen , which is rarely used, can be obtained from either fossil fuels or renewable energy. Various scientists and engineers contributed to the development of internal combustion engines. In 1791, John Barber developed the gas turbine . In 1794 Thomas Mead patented
6440-488: The local average salary. It was estimated to support around 12,000 other jobs, and was also the largest business ratepayer in Bridgend, contributing £1.6M in 2019–20. Redundancy and pension payments, described to the Guardian as "the most generous [their source] had ever seen," were estimated at $ 650M (£510M as of 2019). Ford was also to repay £11M of the £15M Welsh Government grant supporting its failed 2015 investment in
6532-407: The oil into the combustion chamber. A ventilation system drives the small amount of gas that escapes past the pistons during normal operation (the blow-by gases) out of the crankcase so that it does not accumulate contaminating the oil and creating corrosion. In two-stroke gasoline engines the crankcase is part of the air–fuel path and due to the continuous flow of it, two-stroke engines do not need
6624-402: The outer side of the cylinder, passages that contain cooling fluid are cast into the engine block whereas, in some heavy duty engines, the passages are the types of removable cylinder sleeves which can be replaceable. Water-cooled engines contain passages in the engine block where cooling fluid circulates (the water jacket ). Some small engines are air-cooled, and instead of having a water jacket
6716-460: The part of the cylinder below the exhaust port is used as a pump. The operation of the Day cycle engine begins when the crankshaft is turned so that the piston moves from BDC upward (toward the head) creating a vacuum in the crankcase/cylinder area. The carburetor then feeds the fuel mixture into the crankcase through a reed valve or a rotary disk valve (driven by the engine). There are cast in ducts from
6808-427: The path. The exhaust system of an ICE may also include a catalytic converter and muffler . The final section in the path of the exhaust gases is the tailpipe . The top dead center (TDC) of a piston is the position where it is nearest to the valves; bottom dead center (BDC) is the opposite position where it is furthest from them. A stroke is the movement of a piston from TDC to BDC or vice versa, together with
6900-412: The piston in the cylinder and the bearings due to the fuel mix having oil added to it. As the piston moves downward it first uncovers the exhaust, but on the first stroke there is no burnt fuel to exhaust. As the piston moves downward further, it uncovers the intake port which has a duct that runs to the crankcase. Since the fuel mix in the crankcase is under pressure, the mix moves through the duct and into
6992-452: The plant's Ford engines were expected to end production "in the next few years." Production of the Jaguar engines was then expected to end in 2018, with their replacements also made elsewhere. This left the plant redundant by 2018 in the absence of new work. In the 2000s, Ford's strategy to reduce its vehicles' tailpipe pollution ahead of its eventual transition to battery electric vehicles
7084-563: The plant. A taskforce, sponsored jointly by the Welsh Economy Minister and the Secretary of State for Wales , was convened on 1 July 2019 to support former Ford employees in Bridgend. Fifty employees were transferred to other Ford sites, while by the time of closure "most" had taken retraining offered by the company. In June 2024, a planning application was submitted to Bridgend County Borough Council by new owners of
7176-409: The power wasting in overcoming friction , or to make the mechanism work at all. Also, the lubricant used can reduce excess heat and provide additional cooling to components. At the very least, an engine requires lubrication in the following parts: In 2-stroke crankcase scavenged engines, the interior of the crankcase, and therefore the crankshaft, connecting rod and bottom of the pistons are sprayed by
7268-403: The primary power supply for vehicles such as cars , aircraft and boats . ICEs are typically powered by hydrocarbon -based fuels like natural gas , gasoline , diesel fuel , or ethanol . Renewable fuels like biodiesel are used in compression ignition (CI) engines and bioethanol or ETBE (ethyl tert-butyl ether) produced from bioethanol in spark ignition (SI) engines. As early as 1900
7360-452: The same invention in France, Belgium and Piedmont between 1857 and 1859. In 1860, Belgian engineer Jean Joseph Etienne Lenoir produced a gas-fired internal combustion engine. In 1864, Nicolaus Otto patented the first atmospheric gas engine. In 1872, American George Brayton invented the first commercial liquid-fueled internal combustion engine. In 1876, Nicolaus Otto began working with Gottlieb Daimler and Wilhelm Maybach , patented
7452-405: The site Vantage Data Centres, to demolish all the remaining structures at the former factory, with the intention of constructing a data center on the site. The plant formerly produced the following engines: Internal combustion engine An internal combustion engine ( ICE or IC engine ) is a heat engine in which the combustion of a fuel occurs with an oxidizer (usually air) in
7544-400: The stem of the valve or may act upon a rocker arm , again, either directly or through a pushrod . The crankcase is sealed at the bottom with a sump that collects the falling oil during normal operation to be cycled again. The cavity created between the cylinder block and the sump houses a crankshaft that converts the reciprocating motion of the pistons to rotational motion. The crankshaft
7636-483: The sub-1.0-litre category every year until 2017. Hoping to repeat the Fox's success for heavier and sportier vehicles, Ford designed a scaled-up version with a displacement of 1.5 litres (91 cu in), producing up to 150 kW (200 PS ), which they named "Dragon." Ford of Europe conducted a review to decide where to build the Dragon, with the choice of plants in Bridgend, Cologne , Craiova ( Romania ), and Valencia . In March 2015 it endorsed Bridgend to
7728-659: The technology - a saving of 2 to 8 percent These contain two different energy recovery systems. The Mercedes-Benz C-Class (W206) , Mercedes-AMG SL 43 (R232) , the Mercedes-AMG CLE 53, the petrol Mercedes C254/X254 , and the Porsche 911 Carrera GTS T-Hybrid have an electrically-assisted turbocharger / MGU-H . There is doubt on whether mild hybrids should be classified as hybrid or have EV (electric vehicle) in their MHEV abbreviation as they cannot be powered only by electricity at any time. Their emissions reduction
7820-434: The vehicle. The small power assist generated by mild-hybrid systems can help supplement the internal combustion engine in low-speed situations or handle the demands of engine start/stop functionality. Vehicles equipped with a mild-hybrid system typically see anywhere from a 0.4 to 1.7 km/l (1.1 to 4.8 mpg ‑imp ; 0.9 to 4.0 mpg ‑US ) improvement in fuel economy relative to comparable models without
7912-423: The volume of the combustion chamber is described by a ratio. Early engines had compression ratios of 6 to 1. As compression ratios were increased, the efficiency of the engine increased as well. With early induction and ignition systems the compression ratios had to be kept low. With advances in fuel technology and combustion management, high-performance engines can run reliably at 12:1 ratio. With low octane fuel,
8004-543: The withdrawal "would make it impossible to operate here". The Ford Bridgend plant closed on 25 September 2020, with decommissioning expected to be complete a few months later. The plant's closure was a significant blow to the economy of Bridgend, which in December 2019 had an estimated GDP per capita 6% below the EU average. The Ford plant was the town's biggest employer. Its 1,700 workers earned an average of £41,000, 70% above
8096-549: The world, the oil was actually drained and heated overnight and returned to the engine for cold starts. In the early 1950s, the gasoline Gasifier unit was developed, where, on cold weather starts, raw gasoline was diverted to the unit where part of the fuel was burned causing the other part to become a hot vapor sent directly to the intake valve manifold. This unit was quite popular until electric engine block heaters became standard on gasoline engines sold in cold climates. For ignition, diesel, PPC and HCCI engines rely solely on
8188-476: Was on a just-in-time manufacturing basis. JLR moved the production of its engines to its new Wolverhampton plant in September 2020. At the start of 2015, the Bridgend plant had an annual production capacity of 750,000 engines, including 250,000 for Jaguar Land Rover, and employed a total of 2,137 people. The Volvo SI6 engine made there was discontinued in March that year, with its replacement to be made elsewhere;
8280-405: Was one of the first motor vehicles to achieve over 100 mpg as a result. Internal combustion engines require ignition of the mixture, either by spark ignition (SI) or compression ignition (CI) . Before the invention of reliable electrical methods, hot tube and flame methods were used. Experimental engines with laser ignition have been built. The spark-ignition engine was a refinement of
8372-503: Was the CVH engine used in the then new third generation European Escort of that year. Jaguar Land Rover had a plant-within-a-plant at Bridgend, which saved considerable investment costs by JLR. Staffed by workers dedicated to Jaguar production of the AJ-V8 engine , it included a linked flow-line of computer numerically controlled machines with automated loading and assembly. Component supply
8464-454: Was to invest in more efficient engines rather than hybrid drivetrains. To this end, they designed a series of small, direct-injected , turbocharged engines branded "EcoBoost." The 2012 "Fox" EcoBoost , a straight-three with a displacement of 1.0 litre (61 cu in ), producing up to 90 kW (120 PS ), was introduced in 2012 and won International Engine of the Year in
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