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 would have varying engine layout and design. Forklifts are made more toward producing high torque rather than for speed. They usually are geared to low speeds. The engine powers the drive wheels of the forklift. The engine is also required to raise and lower the forks via a series of chain pulleys. Nearly all forklift engines that are modern are fueled by propane because they would be used for indoor applications, where diesel and gasoline engines would be inappropriate due to the exhaust they create.
Usually, the lift truck is a four-cylinder engine-block. Forklift engines are similar to automobile engines since they contain pistons connecting to a camshaft. The head of every cylinder has an exhaust hatch, a spark plug and an exhaust hatch, each of them one-way and spring-loaded.
Engine Function
Propane passes through the opened throttle-plate in a fine spray, once the driver starts up the forklift engine. This fine spray mixes with air coming from the mass air intake before moving into the cylinder's head intake hatches. Each one of the four pistons is staggered to rise in an exact sequence, compressing the mixture of propane and air as every piston rises to the top of the head. With extremely precise timing, the battery and alternator of the engine create an electrical current that passes through the spark plug. The fuel ignites leading to an explosion which drives the piston back down to the bottom of the cylinder, causing a continuous turning of the camshaft. An air pressure imbalance in the cylinder causes the exhaust to be drawn out through the exhaust hatch as more fuel passes into the cylinder. Propane burns cleaner than gasoline and diesel and the exhaust is not as harmful.