Praise for this boating classic: “The most up-to-date and readable book we've seen on the subject.”― Sailing World “Deserves a place on any diesel-powered boat.”― Motor Boat & Yachting “Clear, logical, and even interesting to read.”― Cruising World Keep your diesel engine going with help from a master mechanic Marine Diesel Engines has been the bible for do-it-yourself boatowners for more than 15 years. Now updated with information on fuel injection systems, electronic engine controls, and other new diesel technologies, Nigel Calder's bestseller has everything you need to keep your diesel engine running cleanly and efficiently. Marine Diesel Engines explains how to: Diagnose and repair engine problems - Perform routine and annual maintenance - Extend the life and improve the efficiency of your engine Nigel Calder , a diesel mechanic, boatbuilder, and machinist, is widely acknowledged as the world’s foremost writer on boat systems maintenance. Praise for this boating classic: “The most up-to-date and readable book we've seen on the subject.”— Sailing World “Deserves a place on any diesel-powered boat.”— Motor Boat & Yachting “Clear, logical, and even interesting to read.”— Cruising World Keep your diesel engine going with help from a master mechanic Marine Diesel Engines has been the bible for do-it-yourself boatowners for more than 15 years. Now updated with information on fuel injection systems, electronic engine controls, and other new diesel technologies, Nigel Calder's bestseller has everything you need to keep your diesel engine running cleanly and efficiently. Marine Diesel Engines explains how to: Diagnose and repair engine problems - Perform routine and annual maintenance - Extend the life and improve the efficiency of your engine Nigel Calder is widely acknowledged as the world's foremost writer on boat systems maintenance. A diesel mechanic for more than 35 years, he has also been a boatbuilder, cabinetmaker, and machinist. Calder is the author of How to Read a Nautical Chart , Nigel Calder's Cruising Handbook , and Boatowner’s Mechanical and Electrical Manual . Learn how to: Cure overheating - Fix your transmission - Retrofit a new diesel engine - Flush your cooling system - Change your oil - Clean your electrical system - Replace fuel filters and bleed air from the fuel system - Troubleshoot virtually any problem Nigel Calder , a diesel mechanic, boatbuilder,and machinist, is widely acknowledged as the world’s foremost writeron boat systems maintenance. MARINE DIESEL ENGINES Maintenance, Troubleshooting, and Repair By NIGEL CALDER McGraw-Hill Copyright © 1992 International Marine & 2007 by Nigel Calder All right reserved. ISBN: 978-0-07-147535-8 Contents Chapter One PRINCIPLES OF OPERATION In the technical literature, diesel power plants are known as compression ignition (CI) engines. Their gasoline counterparts are of the spark ignition (SI) variety. This idea of compression ignition is central to understanding a diesel engine. When a given amount of any gas is compressed into a smaller volume, its pressure and temperature rise. The increase in temperature is in direct relation to the rise in pressure, which is directly related to the degree of compression. That is, the rise in temperature is the result of compressing the existing gas into a smaller space, rather than by the addition of extra heat. For a better understanding, imagine two heaters with exactly the same output. Each has been placed in a separate room. To begin with, both rooms are the exact same temperature, but one is twice the size of the other. Both heaters are turned on. The small room will heat up faster than the large one, even though the output of the heaters is the same. In other words, although the same quantity of heat is being added to both rooms, the temperature of the smaller one rises faster because the heat is concentrated into a smaller space. This is crudely analogous to what happens when a gas is compressed. At the outset, it has a given volume and contains a certain amount of heat. As the gas is compressed, this quantity of heat is concentrated into a smaller space and the temperature rises, even though no more heat is being added to the gas. Compression Ignition All internal-combustion engines consist of one or more cylinders that are closed off at one end and have a piston driving up the other. In a diesel engine, air enters the cylinder, then the piston is forced up into it, compressing the air. As the air is compressed, the heat contained in it is concentrated into a smaller and smaller space. The pressure and temperature rise steadily. In a compression ignition engine, this process continues until the air is extremely hot, say around 1,000°F (538°C). This temperature has been attained purely and simply by compression (see Figure 1-1 ). Diesel fuel ignites at around 750°F (399°C); therefore, any fuel sprayed into a cylinder filled with air superheat