1

Purpose of Carburetion
A carburetors primary purpose is to produce a
mixture of air and fuel for different engine
operating conditions.
2
Purpose of Carburetion
Store
Deliver
Filter
Mix air and fuel
Meter air and fuel

3
Idle Mixture screw
Idle Speed Screw
Choke Plate Throttle Plate
Float
Float Bowl
Pilot Jet
Main Jet
Pedestal
4
5
Carburetion
Air-fuel
Requirements
Ratio of air to
fuel.
Stoichiometric
ratio of 14.7:1
Example 14.7
lbs of air to 1 lb
of fuel
Fuel ratios
Rich / lean

6
Carburetor Operating Conditions
Cold
Choke / prime
Low speed
Idle
Mid speed
Idle and high speed
Acceleration
Accelerator pump
High speed
Main discharge nozzle
7
Carburetion Pressure Differences
Vacuum
Pressure less than atmospheric pressure

Atmospheric pressure
Force of air on a surface at 14.7:1psi

Venturi principle
A restriction in an air passage which causes an
increase in air speed and a decrease in air pressure
8
Carburetion Pressure Differences
Air horn
Air enters at
Atmospheric
pressure

Venturi
High vacuum is
created

Engine side
Low vacuum
created on the
intake stroke
9
Carburetion
Atomization
Turning a liquid
into little droplets


Vaporization
Turning liquid
droplets into a
vapor or gaseous
state
10
Carburetion
Types of carburetors - air direction
Up Draft
11
Carburetion
Types of carburetors - air direction
Down draft
12
Carburetor Circuits
Float circuit
To maintain
proper fuel
level

13
Carburetor Circuits
Choke circuit
Provides a
rich air-fuel
mixture for
cold starts
14
Carburetor Circuits
Throttle
Regulates
air fuel
mixture
entering the
cylinders
15
Carburetor Circuits
Idle circuit
Supplies air-
fuel mixture
when the
throttle is
closed for
low speed
operation
16
Carburetor Circuits
High Speed
circuit
Full throttle
Maximum
air fuel
flow to
develop full
speed and
power
17
Carburetor Circuits
Accelerator
circuit
Provides
additional
fuel to
maintain the
air fuel ratio
when the
throttle is
quickly
opened.
18
Carburetion / Governors
Manual throttle controls
Governor throttle controls
Limit low speed
Limit high speed
Maintain constant speed
19
Running Conditions
Too Rich
Air-fuel mixture with excessive fuel
HC and CO pollution
Exhaust black soot
Too Lean
Air-fuel mixture lacking fuel
CO and NO
X
pollution
Engine overheating
Just Right
Smooth engine operation
Rapid Acceleration
Low pollution / Clean Exhaust
Normal operating temperature
20
Carburetion
The purpose of the fuel system is store,
deliver, mix and meter air and fuel for the
engine to function over a variety of
operating conditions.