| 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] |
| flame-out |
failure of the combustion of a jet engine while the aircraft is in flight. |
| flare |
a device used for signaling or illumination that produces a bright light, usu. by combustion. [1/8 definitions] |
| fuel injection |
any of several systems by which fuel is sprayed directly into an engine's combustion chamber. [1/2 definitions] |
| gasoline |
a volatile, flammable liquid of hydrocarbons, derived from petroleum and used primarily as fuel for internal-combustion engines. |
| hybrid vehicle |
any motor vehicle that can use two or more types of power, such as an internal combustion engine and an electric generator. |
| ignis fatuus |
a phosphorescent light that appears to hover over marshes at night, possibly arising from spontaneous combustion of marsh gases; will-o'-the-wisp. [1/2 definitions] |
| ignition |
a device for igniting something by means of friction, an electrical spark, or the like; in an internal combustion engine, the device or system that ignites the fuel to start the engine. [1/3 definitions] |
| jet engine |
an engine that develops thrust by the backward expulsion of a jet of fluid or gaseous products of combustion, used esp. in aircraft. |
| particulate |
any substance made of distinct particles, such as smoke or other waste from combustion. [1/2 definitions] |
| petrol |
(chiefly British) a volatile, flammable liquid of hydrocarbons, derived from petroleum and used primarily as fuel for internal-combustion engines; gasoline. |
| phlogiston |
a nonexistent chemical that was once believed to be the cause of combustion and to be released by anything burning. |
| precombustion |
combined form of combustion. |
| preignition |
in an internal-combustion engine, the ignition of fuel before the spark plug fires. |
| pulsejet engine |
a jet engine in which the pulsating thrust is provided by intermittent combustion produced by rapid opening and closing of the air intake valves. |
| put-put |
the popping sound made by a small internal combustion engine. [1/2 definitions] |
| radial engine |
an internal combustion engine in which the cylinders are arranged around a central shaft, formerly used to power propeller-driven aircraft. |
| Rankine-cycle engine |
a type of steam engine in which the water that is evaporated into steam is condensed and recycled, developed experimentally as a pollution-reducing alternative to the internal combustion engine. |
| spark plug |
a device threaded into the cylinder of an internal-combustion engine that produces sparks that ignite fuel. [1/2 definitions] |
| Stirling engine |
an external-combustion engine in which the fuel ignited outside the cylinder releases heat that is transferred into the cylinder to a pressurized gas, which moves the pistons. |
| sulfur dioxide |
a colorless, suffocating gas produced by the combustion of sulfur, used in the manufacture of sulfuric acid and for other industrial purposes. |