A Brief and Strange History of the First Internal Combustion Engine

Have you ever stopped and thought about the magic known as your car’s engine? How this machine somehow converts gas into enough power to move tons of metal. Well, it all began over a century ago. Before then people were using steam by burning fuel outside the engine.

The first internal combustion engine concept was invented in 1854. Italian inventors Barsanti and Matteucci created the first blueprint, although it never made it to production. It wouldn’t be until decades later before this concept was applied to a working prototype.

Powering the First Internal Combustion Engine

Once that cat was out of the bag, the first gas engine was built by a Belgian by the name of Lenoir in 1860. His engine was nothing but mixing fuel, air, and igniting it. He was missing one important facet of the internal combustion engine: pressure. Without compression, fuel was being burned faster than any power could be used.

Two years later, a French engineer named Rocas updated the internal combustion engine to a four-stroke compression system. His engine never went to production, either. It wouldn’t be until 1876 when the world-famous Nikolaus Otto would invent his own four-stroke engine.

Otto’s engine was more powerful, more efficient, and smaller.

The Four-Stroke Engine

This engine design is when the internal combustion engine starts to look familiar. Its basic concept is the foundation of modern engine design. The process goes as follows:

The piston moves downward, drawing fuel and air through a valve.

1. A vacuum is created at the same time as the valve closes.
2. The piston then ascends upward, creating pressure in the cylinder.
3. The fuel and air mixture is ignited and the piston is pushed back down.
4. As the piston makes its way back up, the valve is open for gases to escape.

The ignition of the fuel mixture and subsequent rising is what produces the power to the vehicle. This operation is the basis of all modern automobile engines. Modern fuel injectors have replaced the carburetor, followed by a direct injection.

Evolution of the Four-Stroke

Otto’s former colleague, Gottlieb Daimler, made a crucial upgrade to the design of the four-stroke engine in 1883. He added the ability to use petrol or gasoline as the source of fuel. This greatly increased the power capabilities. He did this by introducing the carburetor, which greatly improved the mix of petrol with air.

Another major improvement was made by Karl Benz. He added the electrical induction coil for igniting the fuel–the precursor to the spark plug. After these two refinements, the internal combustion engine took off.

The power to overcome the massive weight of the combustion engine meant driving automobiles would become a reality. Horse-powered transportation would begin to be replaced by cars. Other major transportation and sources of energy would be born, thanks to lighter aluminum-built engines.

This gave way to airplanes, tanks, submarines, the powerboat, the generator, and more.

Modern Transformations

Entering the 20th century, gasoline consumption increased tremendously. The internal combustion engine multiplied demand from 3B gallons in 1919 to 15B in just 10 years. Gasoline shot up to 46B gallons in 1955, to over 135B gallons in 2002.

The world’s infrastructure changed as well. The introduction of the highway connected the rural with the city populations. Cars became a status symbol, a tool of freedom, and a culture overnight.

Sports cars, muscle cars, lowriders, and tons of weird cars have made their marks in human history. The modern internal combustion engine has been refined to its peak production. We wonder if the original inventors ever imagined cars reaching speeds of over 200mph?

Beyond the Car

Modern aircraft would not be possible without the first internal combustion engine. As we moved past the old propeller-powered airplanes, new possibilities opened up. Of course, like most engineering breakthroughs, this also extended into war.

Wars could be fought with great destructive power. Wars would subsequently be fought for the rights to the new lifeblood of society: oil. Countries that would already sit on large oil reserves gained more power and influence.

The world simultaneously became a freer and more dangerous space because of this. The evolution of the engine also brought more tools for agriculture. The farm machinery today can do the work of hundreds of farmers.

Science Rules

The revolutionary discoveries surrounded the internal combustion engine helped scientists understand gases and vacuums better. The properties of gases when heated, in a vacuum, and under pressure continues to be examined to this day.

Of course, the IC engine does have its shortcomings, which is leading to the push for alternative energy. Electric vehicles use entirely combustion-free engines that simply transfer energy directly to the driveshaft. This process produces no heat and reduces the loss of energy due to all the friction in an IC engine.

The IC engine isn’t dead, of course. Alternative biofuels and hybrid vehicles try to take the best from both worlds. This is all crucial for eliminating dependence on oil reserves that are running dry.

More Weird History

The earliest versions of the internal combustion engine were definitely a little weird. Most early inventions in the past were like that. What wasn’t weird, though, was how much this invention changed society as we know it.

Human evolution is all about achieving new sources of power. Our power has propelled us to the skies, ocean floors, and onto the moon. Engineers are working towards putting us on our first planet. Life will get really weird then.

If you liked our weird history on the first internal combustion engine, there’s more where that came from. Head on over to our weird news section to check out what’s making headlines. We keep the weirdness fresh and hot, so bookmark us so you don’t miss anything.

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