Basic ignition
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The ignition system is the means by which the fuel is ignited in the gasoline/petrol engines and allows the engine to run.
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Ignition principles
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When the air/fuel mixture in the cylinders is richer or leaner than the ideal ratio of 14.7 to 1, a higher level of electrical energy is required to ignite it.
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Ignition components
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The primary components of the automotive ignition system are: Battery; Spark plug; Engine timing; Distributor; Spark intensifiers; High tension (HT) leads.
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Vacuum & centrifugal units
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The timing of the spark is critical to the operation of the engine. For any given engine speed the correct spark timing varies according to a number of factors.
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Plug firing voltage
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The plug firing voltage needed to establish the spark is higher than the spark voltage needed to sustain the spark.
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| Faraday's law |
A practical automotive example of Faradays law is contained in automotive ignition systems which use an induction coil, to step up the nominal battery voltage of 12 volts to the voltage needed to bridge the gap across the spark plug electrodes. |
