Lift truck Engines
Forklifts are classified as vehicles with small engines, the same category in which lawnmowers are categorized. The engines of the forklifts all follow the principles of internal combustion. Different forklift brand names and models will have varying engine design and layout. Forklifts are designed more toward producing high torque than for speed. They generally are geared to low speeds. The engine runs the forklift's drive wheels. The engine is also required to lower and lift the forks through a series of chain pulleys. Nearly all forklift engines that are modern are powered by propane since they will be utilized indoors, where diesel and gasoline engines would be unsuitable due to the exhaust they make.
Normally, the lift truck is a four-cylinder engine-block. The engines of the forklift are like car engines because they hold pistons connecting to a camshaft. Each and every cylinder head has an exhaust hatch, a spark plug and an exhaust hatch, 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 which comes from the mass air intake prior to moving into the head intake hatches of the cylinder. Each one of the four pistons is staggered to rise in a precise sequence, compressing the mixture of air and propane as every piston rises to the top of the head. With timing that is very precise, the alternator and battery of the engine create an electrical current which passes through the spark plug. The fuel ignites causing an explosion that drives the piston back down to the bottom of the cylinder, resulting in a continuous turning of the camshaft. In the cylinder, an air pressure imbalance causes the exhaust to be drawn out through the exhaust hatch when more fuel passes into the cylinder. Propane burns a lot cleaner than diesel and gasoline and the exhaust is not as harmful.