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I am an engineering student. And we have an assignments to test our abilities on working on something new that you never worked on, to help with problem solving and to allow us to tackle any problem.

I picked working on a new way to power an Internal Combustion Engine for my project. It took a while to understand how an engine works but after a long time studying I believe I understand.

In a nutshell, I found a new way to cause pressure inside the combustion chamber to force the piston down - don't want to give to much away as this project is important for me. I want to deliver it and store the systems inside the cylinder head to have direct access to the combustion chamber. My problem is I am stumped on the intricacies of the head. I need to come up with a whole new design but I don't know where to begin. And one problem I am having is how to connect this new head. I was going to use an air tight seal instead of bolts so this could work on any type of engine but I am not too sure as that lose its seal and fall off causing problems. So anyone in this field what components should I consider for making and mounting this new cylinder head?

Sorry if my question is off-topic. I have been researching cylinder heads and engines and know a lot but this part is stumping me. I'm just trying to go to every place I can for help.

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    While I respect that you don't want to share your secret sauce, I think it's fair to ask how much of the cylinder head design you expect will remain conventional. Otherwise we might as well be talking about a space elevator.
    – Zaid
    Commented Jul 15, 2016 at 9:43
  • Well I'm trying to keep it as conventional as I can. There will still be camshaft, valves etc although they will be slightly changed.
    – LostPecti
    Commented Jul 15, 2016 at 9:50

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Any design for a cylinder head for an internal combustion engine will need to be able to cope with large amounts of pressure and heat - so you'll almost certianly need bolts to hold it down. You'll still need an artight seal - that's what the Head Gasket is for.

You'll also need to consider how to get air in an exhaust gases out (valves and ports), how to control the vales (camshafts or similar), how to create the ignition (e.g. spark plugs for a petrol/gasoline engine), and how to keep it all cool (waterways or air-cooling).

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  • Well I see your point on the pressure as there will be problem double the pressure, but it wont rely on combustion so best can be ruled out. I didn't think an airtight seal would work either thanks for that. I just wanted to have as fee designs as possible to be able to fit on many different engines models
    – LostPecti
    Commented Jul 15, 2016 at 9:52
  • Well if it doesn't rely on combustion then it's not an internal combustion engine.
    – Nick C ♦
    Commented Jul 15, 2016 at 10:08
  • I know. But I asked cause it mounts on top if an ICE.
    – LostPecti
    Commented Jul 15, 2016 at 10:10
  • I would like to thank everyone here. You may not know it but you gave me a great idea. Thanks guys I love this form. You guys helped a novice learn about engines and how they work
    – LostPecti
    Commented Jul 15, 2016 at 10:30
  • "artight seal" should probably be "airtight seal". Lack the rep to propose the small edit.
    – user
    Commented Jul 15, 2016 at 14:59
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I'm not sure I see the challenge here. Cylinder heads are quite capable of handling pressurized air - that's how turbocharged and supercharged engines work.

As @Nick C says, head gaskets are an adequate means to maintain a pressure differential.

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    Well this device don't use pressurized air, the pressure will be more intense. The idea here is I want to make a head that can work well on most engine types, as there are so many different model.
    – LostPecti
    Commented Jul 15, 2016 at 9:56
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    @LostPecti it's difficult to understand what you're trying to find out here when you're so stingy on the details. The head gaskets are designed for intense pressures. What exactly is the issue?
    – I have no idea what I'm doing
    Commented Jul 15, 2016 at 10:01
  • Sorry about that friend, I'll try to explain better. I am trying to find a different way to mount my new cylinder head onto the engine and want to know is there anyway it can be done in a more interchangeable way? Since it won't rely on combustion could I cover the coolant holes and drill new holes to hold it?
    – LostPecti
    Commented Jul 15, 2016 at 10:09

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