The following lesson plan is courtsey of Virginia Tech University
Agricultural Education, author unknown. It is reprinted here unedited.
Carburetion
Principles and Types
Performance Objectives
Students will be able to list and
explain the principles of operation
pertaining to small engine
carburetors.
Enabling Objectives
Given the instruction in class students
will be able to define and describe the
following terms with 80% accuracy:
Carburetor
Air-fuel mixture
Vacuum
Atmospheric Pressure
Venturi
Interest Approach
Has this ever happened to you?
It’s spring, and you get you mower out of the
garage to give the lawn that first grooming.
The gas tank still has gas in it so you try to
fire it up. You crank the engine several
times but nothing happens. What is wrong
with this mower that worked last year?
What is a Carburetor?
A carburetor’s primary purpose is to
produce a mixture of fuel and air to operate
the engine.
Carburetion
Gasoline engines cannot run on liquid
gasoline. It must be vaporized and
mixed with air in the proper
proportions for varying conditions.
Carburetion
The carburetor must create an air fuel
mixture that is correct for different
circumstances such as:
Cold or hot starting
Idling
Part throttle
Acceleration
High speed operation
How does it work?
Air enters the top
of the carburetor
and is mixed with
liquid fuel.
How does it work?
The air fuel
mixture is forced
into the intake
manifold by
atmospheric
pressure and
burned in the
combustion
chamber of the
engine.
Air-Fuel Mixture
The mixture will
vary depending on
the conditions.
The proportion is
given as the
number of pounds
of air compared to
the number of
pounds of gasoline.
Air-Fuel Mixture
At normal
operating speed a
small engine will
use an air-fuel
mixture of about
15 pounds air to 1
pound of gasoline
Pressure Differences
Carburetors work on the principle of
air pressure differences. When
discussing pressure differences we
will talk about
Vacuum
Atmospheric Pressure
Venturi
Vacuum
An absolute vacuum is an area completely
free of air or atmospheric pressure.
Although an absolute vacuum is not
reached in a small engine, any pressure
less that atmospheric pressure is generally
referred to as a vacuum
Atmospheric Pressure
Atmospheric pressure is the pressure
produced by the weight of air
molecules above the earth.
A partial vacuum is produced by the
piston on the intake stroke. When
the intake valve opens, atmospheric
pressure forces air through the
carburetor to fill it.
Venture Principle
A venturi is a
restriction in an air
passage that
increases air speed
or velocity.
Venturi
This increase in
velocity reduces
pressure causing
fuel to be drawn
into the air stream.
Particles of fuel are
vaporized by air
rushing through
the venturi.
Vaporization
Although the venturi breaks the fuel
into fine particles, it is further
vaporized by the heat of the engine in
the intake manifold and by the
swirling action of the air in the
combustion chamber.
Combustion
Cold fuel is difficult to vaporize, this is
why we choke or prime a cold engine
to help get it started.
Over choking or priming can cause
raw fuel to be pulled into the
combustion chamber resulting in
bypass or a condition known as
flooding.
Summary
Since a gasoline engine does not
operate on liquid fuel, it is the
responsibility of the carburetor to
provide it with an air-fuel mixture.
The carburetor operates on the
principles of the following:
Vacuum
Atmospheric Pressure
Venturi
