A first course on thermodynamics may teach the efficiency of the

Otto cycle (which is the ideal cycle used to simulate the gasoline
spark ignition auto engine). Such a course would derive the
following equation for the Otto cycle efficiency:

 = 1 – 1/rv-1

The compression ratio of the engine is rv. Actually, this is a volume

ratio. It is the ratio of the volume in a cylinder when the piston is at
the bottom of the cylinder to the volume in the cylinder when the
piston is at its top position: rv = Vbottom/Vtop.

Most auto engines have compression ratios in the 9 to 10.5 range.

We note: the higher the compression ratio, the higher the
efficiency! The  parameter is the ratio of the specific heats, ie, the
constant pressure specific heat over the constant volume specific
heat. In practical terms, the higher the , the higher the efficiency.
A gas such as helium or argon, composed only of atoms, has the
highest  possible, 1.67. Room air on the other hand, being mainly
composed of O2 and N2 molecules has a  of 1.4. Fuel vapor
has  less than that of air. The mixture of air and gasoline vapor
inducted into the engine has a  of about 1.35. As this mixture is
compressed and heated during the compression stroke, its  drops
to about 1.33. Upon combustion (when the piston is near its top
position), the fuel is oxidized to CO2 (and some CO) and H2O,
and  drops further. It drops into the 1.20-1.25 range. The overall,
effective  for the whole cycle for use in the efficiency equation
above is about 1.27.

The rule of thumb is: the greater the complexity of the molecules,
the lower the . The lower limit is 1. Argon and helium atoms only
translate, that is, they move along straight paths until they
encounter another atom. Room air molecules translate and rotate
(about 2 of their axes). Hot air starts to vibrate (as two nuclei
connected by a spring). Molecules of fuel vapor have a lot of
opportunity to vibrate, even at room temperature. The products of
combustion vibrate. However, only the translation of the molecules
PUSHES the piston. The other modes of molecular motion do
nothing for pushing the piston. Thus, as  drops (indicating more
vibration of the molecules),  drops. A lean engine (ie, an engine
with excess air) has a cooler combustion process and more air
relative to fuel than the typical engine with a chemically correct
mixture. Thus, its  is higher, and its  is greater.

Plug  = 1.27 into the efficiency equation above, assume rv = 10,
and you get  = 0.46. Multiply this by about 0.75 to account for real
cycle effects (such as the time it takes to burn, heat losses to the
coolant, and exhaust valves that open before the piston fully
reaches bottom position) and you have  = 0.35. This is the
efficiency (given above) of using the chemical energy of the fuel to
push the pistons. Multiply this by the mechanical efficiency of the
engine, which accounts for the mechanical friction in the engine
and for the air (and fuel) pumping work that has to be done, and
you have the final, or overall efficiency of the engine. Of course the
mechanical efficiency varies with driving conditions. The higher
the RPM of the engine, the greater the friction loss. The more
closed the throttle (ie, the farther your foot is off the pedal), the
higher the pumping loss. For typical US driving, the resultant
overall efficiency of the engine is about 20%. Note, your pedal is
not really a gas pedal, it is an air pedal! Add the tranny and real
axle mechanical friction losses (or the transaxle friction losses)
and the drain of a few essential accessories, and you arrive at a
15% fuel-to-wheel efficiency for the typical auto driven in the US.