ME3302
Internal Combustion Engines and
Gas Turbines
Ignition System
Ignition system in a multi-cylinder SI engine
Engine
head
Spark Plug
Photograph of an engine with spark plugs in a passenger
car
External view of spark plug and ignition coil located in a
cut section of an engine
Need of an ignition system
In SI engine, the compression ratio is lower compared to CI
engine and the self ignition temperature of gasoline (petrol) is
higher.
Hence, SI engine requires some device to ignite the compressed
air-fuel mixture.
The ignition takes place inside the cylinder at the end of the
compression stroke. Ignition system serves this purpose.
It is a part of the electrical system which carries the electrical
current to a current plug.
It gives the spark to ignite the air-fuel mixture at the correct
time.
Actual valve timing diagram of a four stroke petrol engine [2]
The air fuel mixture is ignited with the help of an ignition
device(spark plug) at the end of the compression stroke.
Actual port timing diagram of a two stroke petrol engine [2]
The air fuel mixture is ignited with the help of an ignition device(spark plug)
at the end of the compression stroke.
Energy for ignition
The energy required for ignition and sustainable flame is the
product of surface area of the spherical flame and the enthalpy
per unit area.
The intensity of ignition (spark) supply should be sufficient to
initiate combustion between the specified limits, because too
high intensity may burn the electrodes and too low intensity
may not ignite the mixture properly to sustain a flame.
The ignition process is made such a way that it obeys the law of
conservation.
The ignition process must meet the following;
(a)It (electrical input) is provided by
an external source
(b)Heat is released by a chemical
reaction
(c)Heat is dissipated to the surroundings by means of
thermal conduction, convection and radiation.
About 1 mJ of spark energy is required to ignite the air fuel
mixture with in a few milliseconds.
If the spark energy exceeds 40mJ and the duration is longer
than 0.5 ms, then the ignition will be reliable.
Pressure, temperature and the density of charge present in
the ignition system influences the voltage required for
The duration of the spark must be long enough with sufficient
energy to ensure that ignition of the mixture has a high chance of
occurring.
The system must distribute this high voltage to each of the
spark plugs at the exact time in every cycle, i.e., it must have in it
a distributing device.
It should function efficiently over the entire range of engine
speed. It should be light, effective and reliable in service.
It should have source of electrical energy.
The usual voltage requirements are between 10000 V to 30000
V depending upon the compression ratio and operating
conditions of the engine.
A system is necessary to supply high voltage to each spark
plug at the correct timing on each cylinder of multi cylinder
conditions of the engine. A distributor is used to this purpose.
An adjustment of spark advance with variation of load on the
engine and its speed.
Requirement of an ignition system
A good ignition system should have the following;
It should provide a good spark between two electrodes
of the plugs at correct time
It should function efficiently over the entire range of
engine operation
It should be light and reliable
It should be compact and easy to maintain
Types of Ignition System
There are three types of ignition system used;
Coil or Battery ignition system (or coil ignition system)
Magneto ignition system.
Electronic Ignition System.
The battery ignition system is mostly used in passenger
cars and light trucks.
Coil or battery ignition system
Components:
• Primary and secondary coils wound on a soft iron core
• Ignition switch
• Ammeter
• Battery
• Condenser
• Contact breaker
• Distributor
Prevents sparking across the gap between the contact
breaker points
Causes a more rapid break of primary current giving a
higher voltage in the secondary circuit.
Battery ignition system
Schematic Diagram of a battery ignition system
Arrangement of a battery ignition system
In the battery ignition system, the current in the primary winding is
supplied by the battery.
Ignition Switch
Used for turning On or Off the
Ignition
Battery
• Used to Store Electrical Energy
• It is charged using DYNAMO which is driven by engine
Ignition Coil
Source of Ignition
Steps up the low voltage to High Voltage
PW: 200-300 turns
SW: 2100 turns
Contact Breaker
Helps in making and breaking the circuit
Consist of 2 metal points
Spring keeps the metal point in contact which closes the
circuit
Condenser
Prevents burning of metals
Provides Ignition energy to secondary winding
Distributor
Distributes the Ignition surges to individual Spark plug
Consist of rotor and metallic electrodes
The rotor is connected to the Secondary
Spark Plug
Potential difference b/w the electrode ionize the gap and
produces spark.
When the ignition switch is turned ON the primary circuit
gets closed and the current starts flowing through it.
This primary current sets up a magnetic field around the
soft iron core
When the breaker point opens the current starts flowing to
the condenser
As the condenser charges the primary current falls and the
magnetic field collapses
This change in magnetic field induces a current in primary
winding and charges the condenser to a voltage much higher
than the battery, thus stopping the current flow from battery.
Due to this the condenser discharges into the battery, thus
reversing the direction of both primary current and
magnetic field.
This rapid collapse of magnetic field induces a very high
voltage in the secondary winding of ignition coil.
This high voltage is then carried to the distributor rotor
where it passes through one of the metal electrodes and
produces a spark
Magneto ignition system
Magneto Ignition System
It has the same principle of working like that of the battery
ignition system. In this, no battery is required, as the magneto
acts as its own generator.
Battery is replaced by magnet.
It consists of either rotating magnets in fixed coils, or rotating
coils in fixed magnets.
The current produced by the magneto is made to flow to the
induction coil which works in the same as that of the battery
ignition system.
The magneto is located on the outer rim of the flywheel and
revolves around the stationary coil.
Primary coil(winding), ignition switch, condenser and contact
breaker forms the primary circuit.
Secondary coil(winding) and distributer forms the secondary
circuit.
When the contact point closes the current flows in the
primary circuit and produce magnetic field in the primary
circuit.
When the contact breaker opens the very high voltage is
generated in the secondary coil due to sudden collapse of
magnetic field.
This high voltage current is then made to flow to the
distributor which connects the sparking plugs in rotation
depending upon the firing order of the engine.
This type of ignition system is used small spark-ignition
engines for example Scooters, Motorcycles and small
motorboat engines.
Electronic Ignition System
The conventional electro-mechanical ignition system uses
mechanical contact breakers.
The electro mechanical ignition system is simple. But it has the
following limitations;
The contact breaker points handle the heavy current and
damages contact points. Hence, it requires periodical servicing
and settings.
The mechanically operated contact breaker has inertial effects.
Hence at higher speeds, the make or break of contact may not be
timed.
At higher speeds, the dwell time for building up the current in
the coil to its maximum value is low. Thus the spark strength
may be reduced.
To overcome the above drawbacks, in the modern
automobiles, electronic ignition systems are used.
This electronic ignition system has its best performance at all
varying conditions and speed, unlike electro-mechanical
systems.
The electro ignition system consists of transistors, capacitors,
diodes and resistors. These acts as heavy-duty switches in
controlling the primary current for the high voltage ignition
coil.
Electronic Ignition System
In electronic ignition system, breaker(contact) points are
replaced by armature.
Armature sends signals to ignition modules to make and
break the circuit.
When the ignition switch is turned on, current flows from the
battery to coil primary winding through ignition switch.
When the armature comes in contact with the pick up coil, a
voltage is generated.
The electronic module senses the signal produced by the pick
up coil and stops the current to flow from the primary circuit.
A timing circuit inside the ignition module turns ON the
current flow again when the armature disconnects from the
pick up coil.
Due to the continuous make and break of the coil, a magnetic
field is generated in the ignition coil.
Due to the magnetic field, an emf is induced in the secondary
winding which is increased to about 40000-50000 volts.
This voltage is transferred to the distributor.
A rotor inside the distributor rotates according to the ignition
timing.
When rotor comes exactly in front of the distributor point,
the voltage jumps to the air gap from the rotor to the point.
High voltage is then transferred to the spark plug terminals
from the distributor through a high tension cable. A voltage
difference between the central electrode and the ground
electrode.
When the voltage exceeds the dielectric strength of the gases
between the electrodes, the gases are ionized.
Due to ionizations, the gases become electrical conductor,
allows the current to flow through the gap and finally the
spark is produced.
Spark Plug
Spark Plug
Spark plugs in automobiles generally have a gap between 0.6
and 1.8 mm (0.024 and 0.071 in)
The spark plug consists of a steel shell or covering.
Inside the shell, there is a central electrode, and a ground
electrode is mounted on the top of the shell.
Both these electrodes are made of nickel alloys.
The central electrode carries the high tension current from the
ignition coil. It is insulated using porcelain all over it's surface,
except the tip.
The ground electrode mounted over the steel casing gets
grounded when the spark plug is connected to the cylinder
head.
There lies a small gap between the naked tip of the central
electrode and the ground electrode.
The high tension current flowing in the central electrode
ionizes the gases between the electrodes.
This produces spark causing the air-fuel mixture inside the
engine to ignite.
The operating temperature of a spark plug is the actual
physical temperature at the tip of the spark plug within the
running engine, normally between 500 and 800 °C.
This is important because it determines the efficiency of plug
self-cleaning and is determined by a number of factors, but
primarily the actual temperature within the combustion
chamber.
There is no direct relationship between the actual operating
temperature of the spark plug and spark voltage.
Firing order
• Engine vibrations
• Engine cooling
• Development of back pressure
Generally in four cylinder engines;
1-3-4-2 or 1-2-4-3
Six cylinder engines
1-5-3-6-2-4 1-5-4-6-2-3
1-2-4-6-5-3 1-2-3-6-5-4
References
1. V. Ganesan, Internal Combustion Engines, 4th Edition, TMH
Publications, New Delhi.
2. J.B. Heywood, Internal Combustion Engines Fundamentals,
TMH Publications, New York.
3. https://www.ingenieriaymecanicaautomotriz.com/valve-
timing-diagram-of-two-stroke-and-four-stroke-engines-
theoretical-and-actual/
4. https://www.theengineerspost.com/types-of-ignition-
system/
5. R. K. Rajput, Thermal Engineering, 6th Edition, Laxmi
Publications. New Delhi
6. https://www.aa1car.com/library/copign.htm
