Lift truck Engines
Forklifts are classified as vehicles with small engines, the same category in which lawnmowers are classed. Forklift engines all follow the principles of internal combustion. Various lift truck models and brand names will have varying engine design and layout. Forklifts are designed more toward generating high torque than for speed. They generally are geared to low speeds. The engine powers the forklift's drive wheels. The engine is also required to lower and lift the forks via a series of chain pulleys. The majority of modern lift truck engines are fueled by propane since they would be used indoors, where gasoline and diesel engines would be unsuitable due to the exhaust they create.
A four-cylinder engine-block is typically found in a forklift. A lot like the engine in small automobiles, forklift engines have cylinders containing pistons connecting to a camshaft. Every cylinder head consists of an intake hatch, an exhaust hatch and a spark plug, each of them one-way and spring-loaded.
Engine Function
Once the operator starts up the forklift engine, propane passes through the opened throttle-plate in a fine spray and mixes together with air that comes 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, that compresses the air and propane mixture as every piston rises to the top of the head. With timing that is very precise, the alternator and battery of the engine generate an electrical current that passes through the spark plug. The fuel ignites causing an explosion that 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 when more fuel passes into the cylinder. Propane burns much cleaner compared to gasoline and diesel and the exhaust is not as harmful.