What is the four-stroke cycle in a gasoline engine?

The four-stroke cycle is a process that is used in a gasoline engine to convert fuel into energy. It consists of four different stages: intake, compression, combustion, and exhaust.

• Intake: During this stage, the piston moves down, allowing the fuel and air mixture to enter the combustion chamber.
• Compression: The piston then moves back up, compressing the fuel and air mixture into a smaller space. This increases the pressure and temperature inside the cylinder, making the fuel easier to ignite.
• Combustion: The spark plug ignites the fuel and air mixture, causing a small explosion. This explosion creates pressure, which pushes the piston down.
• Exhaust: The piston then moves back up, pushing the exhaust gases out of the cylinder and into the exhaust system.

The four-stroke cycle is designed to maximize the efficiency of the engine, by allowing it to produce more power with less fuel. By carefully controlling the timing of each stage, engineers can optimize the performance of the engine for a variety of different applications.