| Diesel engine | |
|---|---|
 Diesel engine built by Langen & Wolf under licence, 1898 | |
| Classification | Internal combustion engine |
| Industry | Automotive |
| Application | Energy transformation |
| Inventor | Rudolf Diesel |
| Invented | 1893 |
The diesel engine, named after the German engineer Rudolf Diesel, is an internal combustion engine in which ignition of the fuel is caused by the elevated temperature of the air in the cylinder due to mechanical compression; thus, the diesel engine is called a compression-ignition engine (CI engine). This contrasts with engines using spark plug-ignition of the air-fuel mixture, such as a petrol engine (gasoline engine) or a gas engine (using a gaseous fuel like natural gas or liquefied petroleum gas).