What
is a Diesel Engine? The diesel engine is a type of internal combustion engine; more
specifically, it is a compression ignition engine. The fuel in a diesel
engine is ignited by suddenly exposing it to the high temperature and
pressure of a compressed gas containing oxygen (usually atmospheric
air), rather than a separate source of ignition energy (such as a spark
plug). This process is known as the diesel cycle after Rudolf Diesel,
who invented it in 1892. While traditional diesel engine generators may
not fit into our definition of 'alternative energy' sources, they are
still a valuable addition to a remote power or grid back-up system.
Types of Diesel Engines
There are two classes of diesel engines: two-stroke and four-stroke.
Most diesel engines generally use the four-stroke cycle, with some
larger engines operating on the two-stroke cycle. Normally, banks
of cylinders are used in multiples of two, though any number of
cylinders can be used as long as the load on the crankshaft is
counterbalanced to prevent excessive vibration.
Generator sets produce either single or three phase power. Most
homeowners require single phase whereas industrial or commercial
applications usually require three phase power. Diesel engine generators
are recommended due to their longevity and lower operating costs. Modern
diesel engines are quiet and generally require much less maintenance
than comparably sized gas (natural gas or propane) units.
Diesel Engine Generators - Commercial/Industrial
Applications
Diesel generators are designed to meet
the needs of small and medium-sized businesses apart from heavy usage in
industries. A generator is a revolutionary product that brings clean and
affordable standby power within the reach of millions of enterprises,
homes and small businesses. Reducing the cost of backup power and making
generators easy to install is becoming the norm these days.
Businesses lose money when they shut down during a blackout.
Considering the impact of significant revenue loss, the economics of
investing in standby power is compelling. To illustrate the point: If a
retail business averages $1000 an hour at the cash register, the loss of
revenue during an extended outage will be very high, not to mention the
cost of having employees idle during that time. However, diesel
powered generators eliminate the risk of a blackout. Add the advantages
of being open while competitors without backup power are shut down and
the cost / benefit analysis looks even better. Investing in
generators is a simple way to safeguard revenue, maintain security,
avoid losses, and protect the bottom line.
Most modern generators are engineered to meet emergency power needs.
These units continuously monitor the electrical current and
automatically start up if power is interrupted and shut off when utility
service is returned. In industries, during critical processes,
generators can supply emergency power to all vital and selected loads as
desired. This quality leads to widespread use of diesel-powered
generators across recreational, residential, commercial, communication,
and industrial applications. Today, most state-of-the-art- hospitals,
five star hotels, business process outsourcing centers, manufacturing
plants, telecommunications organizations, commercial buildings, data
centers, emergency facilities, large industries, and mining companies
require uninterrupted power and have backup diesel engine generators.
On
the Road:
The vast majority of modern heavy road vehicles like trucks and buses,
ships, long-distance trains, large-scale portable power generators, and
most farm and mining vehicles have diesel engines. However, in some
countries they are not nearly as popular in passenger vehicles as they
are heavier, noisier, have performance characteristics that make them
slower to accelerate. In general, they are also more expensive than
petrol vehicles. Modern diesel engines have come a long way and with
Turbo Direct Injection systems now in vehicles, one would be
hard-pressed to notice a difference between diesel and gasoline engines.
In some
countries, where tax rates make diesel fuel much cheaper than petrol,
diesel vehicles are very popular. Newer designs have significantly
narrowed differences between petrol and diesel vehicles in these areas.
The BMW diesel lab in Austria is considered to be the worldwide leader
in the development of automotive diesel engines. After a long spell with
relatively few diesel cars in its lineup, Mercedes Benz has returned to
diesel-powered cars in the 21st century with an emphasis on high
performance.
In the
agricultural field, tractors, irrigation pumps and threshing machines
and other equipment are predominantly diesel powered. Construction is
another sector that relies heavily on diesel power. All concrete pavers,
scrapers, rollers, trenchers and excavators run on diesel.
In the Sky: A few airplanes have been using diesel engines since the late
1930s. The newer automotive diesel engines have power-weight ratios
comparable to the ancient spark-ignition designs and have far superior
fuel efficiency. Their use of electronic ignition, fuel injection, and
sophisticated engine management systems also makes them far easier to
operate than mass-produced spark-ignition aircraft engines. The cost of
diesel fuel compared to petrol has led to considerable interest in
diesel-powered small general aviation planes, and several manufacturers
have recently begun selling diesel engines for this purpose.
On
Water: High-speed engines are used to power tractors, trucks, yachts,
buses, cars, compressors, generators and pumps. The largest diesel
engines are used to power ships and liners along the high seas. These
huge engines have power outputs up to 90,000 kW, turn at about 60 to 100
rpm, and are 15 meters tall.
Underground: The mining and mineral extraction sector worldwide relies
heavily on diesel power to harness natural resources such as aggregates,
precious metals, iron ore, oil, gas, and coal. Diesel-powered shovels
and drills excavate these products and load them into enormous mining
trucks or onto conveyer belts that also operate on the same fuel.
Overall, diesel accounts for 72 percent of the energy used by the mining
sector.
Both
surface and underground mining operations rely on diesel-powered
equipment to extract materials and load trucks. The largest
rubber-tired, diesel-powered equipment used in mining are enormous
off-road trucks with engines of over 2,500 horsepower, capable of
hauling over 300 tons per load. These giant trucks trundling across the
land are a sight to behold.
In Hospitals Emergency backup generators are a must have for any major
medical healthcare facilities. Due to the critical nature of the
work these facilities do and the position their patients are in, power
failures are simply not an option. For many years, both military and
public hospitals have relied on
industrial strength generator sets to take over whenever the power goes
out, whether it's from a local outage or major natural disaster like a
hurricane or flood.
Behind Datacenters Computers are at the heart of today's
industry. When servers and systems go down, communications can be
lost, business stops, data is lost, workers sit idle, and just about
everything comes to a halt. It is for that reason that almost all
communications and telecommunications
companies of all shapes turn to diesel generators as their primary
backup power option. With the reliability of their services
affecting so many people, they really have no choice but to have a solid
backup power option in place for both their business, and the customers
they serve.
Summary Diesel is used in most industrial sectors overwhelmingly
because it provides more power per unit of fuel and its lower volatility
makes it safer to handle. One really exciting prospect of diesel over
petrol is the possibility of eliminating petroleum consumption entirely.
Most diesel engines can be coaxed into burning vegetable oil instead of
diesel and all of them can burn various processed forms of vegetable oil
without loss in life or efficiency.
With
GeneratorJoe, your search for a cost-effective, efficient diesel engine
or generator starts here. We offer a large selection of industrial
diesel generators. To get more information, simply
contact us
today!
