Lab Session # 1

To draw the valve timing diagram of a 4 stroke petrol engine

EQUIPMENT REQUIRED:
1. Petrol engine model
2. Measuring tape
3. Scale
4. Thread
5. Marking Pencil

FORMULA:
𝐷 × 360°
𝑅𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑖𝑟𝑒𝑑 𝐴𝑛𝑔𝑙𝑒 =
𝐶𝑖𝑟𝑐𝑢𝑚𝑓𝑒𝑟𝑒𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑓𝑙𝑦𝑤ℎ𝑒𝑒𝑙
Where,
D = Distance of the valve opening or closing position marked on the flywheel with respect to their
dead center.

PROCEDURE:
1. T.D.C. is identified and marked on the fly wheel with respect to one fixed point in the
engine.
2. The circumference of fly wheel is measured using thread and scale.
3. The BDC is marked on the flywheel by taking half the circumference.
4. By slowly cranking the camshaft in the direction of rotation the opening of inlet valve
5. is marked on the fly wheel w.r.t. fixed point when the push rod of inlet valve becomes
tight to move.
6. Mark a point on the fly wheel where the inlet valve is completely closed.
7. In the same way mark the points where the exhaust valve open and close.
8. The distance of opening of inlet valve and closing of exhaust valve from TDC and
closing of inlet valve and opening of the exhaust valve from BDC are measured using
thread and scale.
9. The angles of opening and closing of inlet and exhaust valves are calculated w.r.t. TDC
and BDC.

OBSERVATIONS AND CALCULATIONS:

Distance from their respective DC in Valve opening period in
Event
“in” Degrees
Inlet valve opens 1.2 13.2
Inlet valve closes 7.8 83.9
Exhaust valve opens 1.8 18.9
Exhaust valve closes 3 32.5
DIAGRAM:

COMMENTS:

1. Errors maybe present because we cannot measure the exact point at which valve opens or
close. Error can also be due to measurement of thread to record circumference.
2. Cranking should be done carefully and slowly so that the salient points are located
carefully.
3. In a practical diagram inlet valve opens before TDC while in an ideal diagram it opens at
TDC. An ideal diagram assumes that valves open and close instantaneously. On the other
hand, in a real engine, the valve begins its lift, holds its lift at maximum opening and then
begins its descent.
4. Inlet valve closes after BDC in a practical diagram instead of at BDC. The reason for that
piston moves down from TDC to BDC very quickly. Reason for this delay in closing the
inlet valve is to allow the rushing inlet gases to push out the exhaust gases out of the
cylinder before the beginning of compression stroke.

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Page 2
Lab Session # 2
To draw the valve timing diagram of a 4-stroke diesel engine.

EQUIPMENT REQUIRED:
1. Petrol engine model
2. Measuring tape
3. Scale
4. Thread

FORMULA:
𝐷 × 360°
𝑅𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑖𝑟𝑒𝑑 𝐴𝑛𝑔𝑙𝑒 =
𝐶𝑖𝑟𝑐𝑢𝑚𝑓𝑒𝑟𝑒𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑓𝑙𝑦𝑤ℎ𝑒𝑒𝑙
Where,
D = Distance of the valve opening or closing position marked on the flywheel with respect to their
dead center.

PROCEDURE:
1. T.D.C. is identified and marked on the fly wheel with respect to one fixed point in the
engine.
2. The circumference of fly wheel is measured using thread and scale.
3. The BDC is marked on the flywheel by taking half the circumference.
4. By slowly cranking the camshaft in the direction of rotation the opening of inlet valve
5. is marked on the fly wheel w.r.t. fixed point when the push rod of inlet valve becomes
tight to move.
6. Mark a point on the fly wheel where the inlet valve is completely closed.
7. In the same way mark the points where the exhaust valve open and close.
8. The distance of opening of inlet valve and closing of exhaust valve from TDC and
closing of inlet valve and opening of the exhaust valve from BDC are measured using
thread and scale.
9. The angles of opening and closing of inlet and exhaust valves are calculated w.r.t. TDC
and BDC.

RESULTS:
Thus the valve timing for the given four stroke engine is found out and is drawn.

TABLE:
Distance from their respective DC in Valve opening period in
Event
“in” Degrees
Inlet valve opens 1.1 12
Inlet valve closes 5.3 59.1
Exhaust valve opens 1.8 19.7
Exhaust valve closes 1.6 18.3

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DIAGRAM:

COMMENTS:
1. Errors maybe present because we cannot measure the exact point at which valve opens or
close. Error can also be due to measurement of thread to record circumference.
2. Cranking should be done carefully and slowly so that the salient points are located
carefully.
3. In a practical diagram inlet valve opens before TDC while in an ideal diagram it opens at
TDC. An ideal diagram assumes that valves open and close instantaneously. On the other
hand, in a real engine, the valve begins its lift, holds its lift at maximum opening and then
begins its descent.
4. Inlet valve closes after BDC in a practical diagram instead of at BDC. The reason for that
piston moves down from TDC to BDC very quickly. Reason for this delay in closing the
inlet valve is to allow the rushing inlet gases to push out the exhaust gases out of the
cylinder before the beginning of compression stroke.
5. The diesel engine valve timing varies slightly from the petrol engine valve timings

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Lab Session # 3
To draw the valve lift diagram of a 4-stroke petrol engine.

EQUIPMENT REQUIRED:
1. Petrol engine model
2. Dial indicator
3. Measuring tape
4. Scale
5. Thread

PROCEDURE:
1. Initially we are to find the following points TDC, BDC, IVO, IVC, EVO and EVC by
repeating the procedure of Experiment # 1.
2. After that we have to find the Valve lift of the intake valve and the exhaust valve.
3. The lift of the Valves is found using the dial gage/dial indicator.
4. Place the dial gage on the desired valve while the engine is running, the lift will be
calculated by reading the value shown in the dial gage.

RESULTS:
It is obvious that the maximum valve lift will take place exactly between the two events i.e. valve
opening and valve closing.
State down the values in degrees of crank rotation.
Inlet Valve Opens (bTDC) = 0.327
Inlet Valve Closes (aBDC) = 0.327
Exhaust Valve Opens (bBDC) = 0.297
Exhaust Valve Closes (aTDC) = 0.296
Maximum Valve Lift of Intake Valve = 0.34
Maximum Valve Lift of Exhaust Valve = 0.31

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DIAGRAM:

COMMENTS:
1. The experiment was performed with extreme care and precaution
2. Errors are due to personal errors
3. The lift of valves is of same values; maximum being a little higher
4. Lift diagram for diesel engine cannot be drawn

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 Lab session # 4
To draw the port timing diagram for the given two stroke engine.

EQUIPMENT REQUIRED:
1. 2-stroke petrol engine model
2. Measuring tape
3. Scale
4. Thread

FIXING THE DEAD CENTRES:

For fixing up the dead center a chalk mark is made on the piston. The fly wheel is rotated. When
the chalk mark coincides with the end of the cylinder a mark is made on the flywheel and it
represents TDC.
Now the flywheel is again rotated and the position at which the piston reaches the lower most
position is noted on flywheel and it represents the BDC.

IDENTIFICATION OF PORTS:
The port which has more area and is nearer to the TDC is the exhaust port and the other is the inlet
port.

DIRECTION OF ROTATION:
As the port opening and closing are symmetrical about the dead center any arbitrary direction of
rotation may be selected.

FORMULA:
𝐷 × 360°
𝑅𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑖𝑟𝑒𝑑 𝐴𝑛𝑔𝑙𝑒 =
𝐶𝑖𝑟𝑐𝑢𝑚𝑓𝑒𝑟𝑒𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑓𝑙𝑦𝑤ℎ𝑒𝑒𝑙
Where,

D = Distance of the valve opening or closing position marked on the flywheel with respect
to their dead center.

PROCEDURE:
1. The flywheel is turned in any arbitrary direction.
2. During the downward traverse position when it just uncovers a port it is marked as the
opening of the port on the flywheel.
3. The rotation is further continued until the piston covers the port during its upward travel.
4. A mark is made on the flywheel against the fixed mark. This gives the closing of the port.
5. The same procedure is repeated for other ports also.

RESULTS:
Thus the port time for the given two stroke engine is found out and the port timing diagram is
drawn.

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TABLE:

Position w.r.t TDC or

Sr. No. Event Distance (cm) Angle (degrees)
BDC

1 IPO Before TDC 2.5 25

2 IPC After TDC 5.5 55
3 EPO Before BDC 8.5 85
4 EPC After BDC 10.5 105
5 TPO Before BDC 5.7 57
6 TPC After BDC 9.5 95

DIAGRAM:

COMMENTS:
1. Port timing is the determination of points in the cycle at which the ports are set to open
and close. In the ideal cycle inlet, exhaust and transfer port opens and closes at dead
centers, but there is a difference between actual and ideal cycle.

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 2. Cranking should be done carefully and slowly so that the salient points are located
carefully.

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Lab Session # 5
Introduction to Alternative Fuel and Preparation of Bio-Diesel

WHAT IS BIO-DIESEL?
Biodiesel (mono alkyl ester) is a liquid fuel obtained from vegetable oils, animal fats and recycled
cooking oil through a chemical process known as Transesterification. It can be used in
compression ignition engines as a fuel either in its pure form or as a mixture blended with diesel
oil.
The oils mostly used for biodiesel production around the globe are rapeseed, canola, soybean, palm
and sunflower. Given the cost of production of biodiesel, many non-edible vegetable oils (castor
oil and cotton oil) have been under research and usage for several years.

BLEND WITH DIESEL OIL:

Blends with diesel fuel are indicated as “BX”, where ‘X’ shows the percentage of biodiesel in the
mixture. For instance, “B20” indicates a blend with 20% biodiesel and 80% Diesel Oil, similarly
B100 indicates pure biodiesel.

TRANSESTERIFICATION PROCESS:

WHY RAW PLANT OIL CAN’T BE USED DIRECTLY IN TO THE CI ENGINE

Raw or refined plant oil or recycled greases that have not been processed into biodiesel, are not
biodiesel and should be avoided. Research shows that plant oils or greases used in CI engines at
concentrations as low as 10% - 20% can cause long-term engine deposits, ring sticking, lube oil
gelling and other maintenance problems and can reduce engine life. These problems are caused
mostly by the greater viscosity or thickness of the raw oils (around 40 mm2/s) compared with that
of the diesel fuel for which the engines and injectors were designed (1.3 – 4.1 mm2/s). Through the
process of converting plant oils or greases to biodiesel by transesterification, the viscosity of the

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fuel is reduced to values similar to conventional diesel fuel (biodiesel values are typically 4-5
mm2/s).

ADVANTAGES OF DIODIESEL
1. It is a renewable form of energy.
2. Low toxicity as compared to diesel.
3. Lower emissions of contaminants; carbon monoxide, unburned hydrocarbon and
aldehydes.
4. Less carcinogenic emissions.
5. No sulfur dioxide emissions.
6. It can be used in a diesel engine without any modification if used as a B20 blend. For higher
blend or pure biodiesel i.e. B100, a slight modification can be required.
7. It is an excellent lubricant.
8. Raw materials like used cooking oil and fat residue can easily be accessed.

DISADVANTAGES OF DIODIESEL
1. Slightly higher fuel consumption as compared to pure diesel fuel due to less calorific value.
2. When used in pure form i.e. B100, produces more nitrous oxide (NOx) in comparison to
diesel engine.
3. Less stable than diesel so storage for longer periods of time can create problems.
4. B100 can degrade plastics and rubber gaskets so slight modification in engine is required
to use it.
5. Cleaning of fuel tanks prior to the filling of biodiesel must be done.
6. One of the disadvantages of pure biodiesel is its higher cloud point temperature than pure
diesel.

PROCEDURE OF PREPARAITON:
1. Add 200 ml of methanol in a glass blender/mixture slowly without producing any splashes.
The blender should be set at low speed.

2. Add 3.5 grams of Sodium Hydroxide (NaOH) called as lye. A proper mixture of lye and
methanol should be formed in about two minutes.

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 3. After all the lye is completely dissolved in methanol, sodium methoxide will form.
4. Add one liter of vegetable oil in this mixture. Blend for further 20-30 minutes.
5. Pour the mixture in a wide-mouthed glass container.

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 6. The mixture should separate in two layers – biodiesel and glycerin. The top layer will be
of biodiesel (less dense than glycerin).

7. Allow the mixture to set for several hours so that the layers are completely formed.
8. Separate the top layer by carefully pouring it off.

COMMENTS:
1. Major precautions are necessary to avoid personal poisoning, fire, and contamination of
soil and water resources. Methanol and lye are two dangerous chemicals that are required
to convert vegetable oil into biodiesel. Methanol presents a significant fire risk and
overexposure can cause neurological damage. Lye can cause skin and lung irritation and
eye damage.
2. Biodiesel blends are denoted as, "BXX" with "XX" representing the percentage of
biodiesel contained in the blend (ie: B20 is 20% biodiesel, 80% petroleum diesel).
3. B20 has demonstrated significant environmental benefits with a minimum increase in
cost
4. The fuel should be stored in a clean, dry, dark environment
5. Biodiesel can be operated in any diesel engine with little or no modification to the engine
or the fuel system.

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