Presented free with Issue 181 of Diesel Car
The ultimate guide to diesel motoring
GLOSSARY OF TERMS
We unwrap those techie terms that may otherwise have you quite flummoxed
Biodiesel
A diesel fuel made from vegetable
material, most often rape-seed oil. Burns
particularly cleanly and is carbon
neutral.
Common rail (CR)
Popular, accurate and flexible computer-
controlled diesel injection systems
favoured by many manufacturers.
Currently limited to 1600 bar injection
pressure.
CO2 (carbon dioxide)
Principal greenhouse gas created by fuel
combustion; the lower the fuel
consumption, the lower the CO2
emissions (measured in grammes of the
stuff per kilometre).
DeNOx catalyst
A forthcoming catalytic converter for use
in the diesel exhaust system to convert
harmful oxides of nitrogen to harmless
nitrogen. Requires diesel fuel with a
sulphur content no greater than 10ppm
(parts per million).
Diesel knock
The stray rattling sounds caused by the
incorrect combustion of diesel fuel
usually because of faulty fuel injection or
bad injection timing.
Direct injection (DI)
Current, more efficient combustion
chamber design for diesel cars where fuel
is injected straight into the engines
cylinder rather than an antechamber.
Dual-fuel
A petrol-powered vehicle that has been
converted to run on gas or petrol.
Because the two fuels cannot be injected
into a petrol engine at the same time, the
vehicle runs one or the other, hence dual-
fuel.
Euro2, 3, 4
A set of emission standards agreed by the
European Union that all motor
manufacturers must abide by. Diesels
currently need to meet Euro3, though
Euro4 standards will be imposed at the
start of 2005.
Glowplugs
Tiny electrical elements that heat the
engines combustion chambers when
cold to aid initial ignition of fuel before
the heat induced by compressing the
intake air can do this fully by itself.
DIESEL POWER
Hydrocarbons (HC)
Any chemical compound composed only
of carbon and hydrogen. The principal
constituent of petroleum, diesel and
natural gas. Not good to release into the
atmosphere as it can cause
photochemical smog.
Indirect injection (IDI)
Old, less efficient combustion chamber
design for car diesels where fuel is
injected into a pre-combustion or swirl
chamber before being fed into the
cylinder.
Injector
The valve that allows diesel fuel at high
pressure to be injected into the engine
cylinder. On non-electronic injection
systems the valve is opened purely by the
pressure of the fuel acting against a
spring, while with common rail and
pumpe dse systems the injectors are
opened by solenoid.
In-line injection pump
The original mechanical diesel injection
pump, driven from the engine, and
comprising a camshaft over the cams of
which are individual high-pressure
pumping elements, one serving each
cylinder injector.
LPG (Liquified Petroleum Gas)
A gaseous natural by-product of the
refining process of petrol that makes a
particularly clean fuel for petrol engines
to combust. Also known as propane.
NOX (oxides of nitrogen)
Harmful gases produced by high
combustion pressures and an excess of
oxygen; can cause respiratory disorders
and acid rain.
Particulates
Solid carbon-based particles in exhaust
gases, which come in an array of sizes,
all microscopic. The larger particulates
produced by diesels (compared with
petrol engines) have for long been a
cause of concern for health reasons,
although now the weight of scientific
evidence suggests that the even smaller
particulates from petrol engines can be
more harmful to health.
G LO SS A R Y O F T E R M S
Particulate trap
A device in the exhaust system that
collects particulates in order to avoid
them being liberated into the
atmosphere, and occasionally burns
them off to prevent clogging of the
exhaust.
Pilot injection
Instead of a single injection of fuel,
modern diesel engines inject different
quantities of fuel at different stages of
the combustion process in order to lower
emission and noise levels.
Power
The maximum amount of work an
engine can do - a function of torque
multiplied by revs. It is measured in
brake horsepower (bhp) or kilowatts
(kW).
Pumpe-dse (PD)
Unit injection system where injector and
high-pressure pump are integrated as
one unit per cylinder. Allows incredibly
high injection pressures (2050 bar) for
higher torque and reduced emissions.
Favoured by Volkswagen.
Rotary distributor pump
The most ubiquitous car-diesel injection
pump, driven from the crankshaft, which
draws fuel from the tank, pressurises it to
700-1200 bar, and injects it to each
cylinder injector in turn, at the correct
time.
Thermal efficiency
The amount of energy usefully derived
from a fuel, compared with the fuel's
energy content.
Torque
In simple terms, pulling power, which is
more relevant than absolute power to
everyday performance. Torque is
measured in pounds feet (lb ft) or Newton
metres (Nm).
Turbo-intercooling
An engine that is turbocharged and
intercooled is more powerful, cleaner and
more thermally efficient than one that
isn't. The turbocharger, driven by heat
energy in the exhaust gases, compresses
intake air to pack more oxygen into the
engine cylinders. The intercooler takes
out much of the heat generated by
compressing the air, so making the intake
charge denser (so ultimately getting more
oxygen into the cylinders).
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