| afterburner |
a device for burning partially burned carbon compounds in the exhaust fumes of an internal-combustion engine. [1/2 definitions] |
| air-fuel |
pertaining to the air and fuel injected at the same time into a combustion engine. |
| alternative fuel |
a fuel other than fossil fuel used to power an internal combustion engine. |
| antiknock |
reducing or preventing knocking in an internal combustion engine, by being added to the gasoline. |
| ash1 |
the soft residue that remains after combustion. [1/3 definitions] |
| backfire |
to emit a loud noise as the result of inefficient functioning of the engine of a car or other internal-combustion vehicle. [2/4 definitions] |
| blow-by |
a device attached to the crankcase that carries such gases back to the cylinders for combustion. [1/2 definitions] |
| carbon dioxide |
a colorless, odorless, incombustible gas that is produced naturally in breathing, combustion, and decomposition, and commercially for use in dry ice, fire extinguishers, and carbonated beverages. |
| carbon monoxide |
a colorless, odorless, combustible, and very poisonous gas, produced by the incomplete combustion of material containing carbon, such as gasoline, because of insufficient air. |
| carburetor |
a device in an internal-combustion engine that produces a combustible mixture of vaporized fuel and air. |
| choke |
to enrich the fuel mixture of (an internal-combustion engine) by reducing the flow of air to the carburetor. [1/9 definitions] |
| CO2 |
abbreviation of "carbon dioxide," a colorless, odorless, incombustible gas that is produced naturally in breathing, combustion, and decomposition, and commercially for use in dry ice, fire extinguishers, and carbonated beverages. |
| combustor |
the apparatus in a jet engine in which combustion occurs. |
| compression |
the reduction in volume and increase in pressure of air or air mixed with fuel in the cylinder of an internal combustion engine prior to ignition, or the engine cycle in which this process takes place. [1/3 definitions] |
| compression ratio |
in an internal-combustion engine, the ratio of the largest to the smallest volume of a cylinder measured at the top and bottom of the piston stroke. |
| cylinder head |
of the cylinder in an internal-combustion engine, the closed, often detachable end opposite to that from which the piston or connecting rod projects. |
| diesel |
shortened form of "diesel engine," a type of internal-combustion engine that burns fuel oil which is ignited by being sprayed into a chamber in which highly compressed air, rather than an electric spark, provides the heat. [1/3 definitions] |
| diesel engine |
a type of internal-combustion engine that burns fuel oil which is ignited by being sprayed into a chamber in which highly compressed air, rather than an electric spark, provides the heat. |
| distributor |
an electrical device in an internal combustion engine that transmits current in proper sequence to the spark plugs. [1/2 definitions] |
| external-combustion engine |
an engine in which the combustion of fuel occurs outside the cylinder or turbine, as in a steam engine. |
| fanjet |
a jet engine that uses an impeller fan to draw in more air than is needed for fuel combustion, the excess being mixed with the products of the combustion to form an exhaust jet that provides extra thrust; turbofan. [1/2 definitions] |