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History of Diesel Engine
For many manufacturers of diesel injection pumps there are almost no design changes in the past 25 years. For most diesel fuel pumps the only change is the addition of a computer controlled solenoid that has replaced some of the control parts in the units dealing with fuel flow. The overall diesel injection pump housing and internal mechanisms have changed little.
1893
Rudolph Diesel invents the first internal combustion engine in August 10, 1893 in Augsburg a city in the south-west of Bavaria in Germany. This first engine was primitive as we know the diesel engine. It had a 10 foot cast Iron piston as well as a flywheel at its base. The investor was almost killed by this first engine.
1896
Rudolph Diesel’s second diesel model is created; this model is 75% efficient, compared to 12% efficiency of the steam engine at that time.
1903
The first Diesel Oil tanker, the “Vandal” is built at the shipyards in Krasnoye Sormovo Russia.
1904
The French Government builds the “Z” the first diesel powered submarine.
1908
The diesel needle injector nozzle is invented with the attachment of a precise diesel pump. Prosper L’ Orange is the inventor of this diesel part.
1909
An inventor Prosper L’ Orange while working at Benz invents the diesel pre-combustion chamber that makes possible much smaller and more light weight diesel engines. This replaces the more complicated air injection method.
1912
The Danish build the Selandia the world’s first diesel powered ship. The diesel powered locomotive was first introduced on the Winterthur-Romanshorn Railroad in Switzerland. Because of the poor power to weight ration the locomotive was not an instant success as was the diesel powered sea vessel.
1913
Rudolph Diesel disappears over the side of a ship. Speculation is that he was assassinated by the German government as he was refusing to give them access to his invention for military use in their submarine program. His death paved the way for the formation of the German Wolf-Pack.
1920
Diesel Injection Pump is invented which no longer requiring compressed air to force the fuel into the diesel cylinder. The diesel injection pump gave way for the diesel engine to become much smaller and light weight.
1921
The first continuously variable output diesel fuel injection pump is invented by Prosper L’ Orange.
1922
Benz builds the first diesel powered agricultural vehicle a tractor.
1923
First motorized Lorries built using a diesel engine for fair and exhibitions. The first diesel powered trucks are built by Diamler, Benz and MAN were built and tested.
1930
Caterpillar begins building diesel powered farm equipment in the United States.
1934
Maybach first puts to use the turbo diesel in a locomotive. This greatly enhances the power to weight ratio of the locomotive engine and begins to make locomotives using diesel power more viable as a long-term rail solution.
1936
Mercedes Benz builds the first production car the 260 D powered with the use of a diesel powered engine.
1941
A distributor style rotor diesel injection pump is built which gives manufacturers the ability to make small high power diesel engines that can compete with gasoline engines. The rotary diesel injection pump was invented by Vernon Roosa at the Hartford Machine Screw Company and was first commercially available in 1952.
1977
Mercedes Benz introduces the first production model car powered with a turbo diesel engine, the 300 D.
1994
Bosch invents the unit injection system. It combines the injection pump and injection nozzle in one unit working simultaneously together.
2004
The number of passenger cars in Europe with diesel engines compared to historically popular gas powered engines exceeds 50%.
2008
In road tests conducted between BMW’s 2.0L turbo diesel powered automobile compared to the most fuel efficient hybrid gasoline powered cars. The modern turbo diesel powered automobile is found to be more fuel efficient on a mpg basis.