how does burning gasoline make a car move?
106407
The purpose of a gasoline car engine is to convert gasoline into motion so that your car can move. Currently the easiest way to create motion from gasoline is to burn the gasoline inside an engine. \nTherefore, a car engine is an internal combustion engine -- combustion takes place internally.\nThere is such a thing as an external combustion engine. A steam engine in old-fashioned trains and steam boats is the best example of an external combustion engine. The fuel (coal, wood, oil, whatever) in a steam engine burns outside the engine to create steam, and the steam creates motion inside the engine. Internal combustion is a lot more efficient (takes less fuel per mile) than external combustion, plus an internal combustion engine is a lot smaller than an equivalent external combustion engine. This explains why we don't see any cars using steam engines. \n\nTo understand the basic idea behind how a reciprocating internal combustion engine works, it is helpful to have a good mental image of how "internal combustion" works. \n\nOne good example is an old Revolutionary War cannon. You have probably seen these in movies, where the soldiers load the cannon with gun powder and a cannon ball and light it. That is internal combustion, but it is hard to imagine that having anything to do with engines.\n\nA potato cannon uses the basic principle behind any reciprocating internal combustion engine: If you put a tiny amount of high-energy fuel (like gasoline) in a small, enclosed space and ignite it, an incredible amount of energy is released in the form of expanding gas. You can use that energy to propel a potato 500 feet. In this case, the energy is translated into potato motion. You can also use it for more interesting purposes. For example, if you can create a cycle that allows you to set off explosions like this hundreds of times per minute, and if you can harness that energy in a useful way, what you have is the core of a car engine!
845422
This is related to Newton's law: An object in motion or at rest will stay in motion or at rest unless acted upon by an external force.\n\nTo elaborate, an object travelling in a straight line will keep on travelling in that straight line at a constant speed unless something acts on it.\n\nWhen you are in the car with your ball, everything in the car is travelling at the same speed, so you through the ball up and it comes straight back down. But if you throw the ball up and then jam on the cars brakes, the ball will keep moving at its original speed but the car is slowing down, so the ball would fly forward into the front windshield.\n\nLast point, if you throw the ball out the window, it will appear to fly backwards - It is just slowing down compared to the car because unlike the air inside the car, the air outside is at rest, so the ball will be flying through the air at a high speed and the wind drag will slow it quite rapidly.
392330
The ability of gasoline to float on water is not CALLED any of those.\n\nIt is an effect that arises from the specific gravity of gasoline being less than one.\n(this implies that the density of petrol is less than the density of water, and so petrol floats on water.)
1023626
the science between the movement of a rocket ship is governed in the third law (i think). The law of action and reaction.\nactually the air acts as a friction. but in space the rocket will fly faster because space is frictionless, due to no air.\nthe flame coming out from its butt's side is opposite to where the rocket is moving.\nthe flame is going < < < = = = \nwhile the movement of the rocket is = = = > > >\nLaw of action and reaction.
611670
It doesn't make the car faster; it decreases the frictional force that is slowing the car down.\n\nAn object has to move the air out of it's way for it to pass through.  Buses, for example, have a big, flat front end that sorta traps air in front.  You really want to cut through the air, like a sports car.  Also, the air flowing over the body can create drag.  Hence, a nice smooth surface with little variation is good.  Finally, the back side of a car makes a difference.  Again, the bus will create a low pressure area as air has to fill the space that it leaves.  This is bad.  It's much better to slowly close the space behind the vehicle.
832651
A candle flame is often used to illustrate the complicated physio-chemical processes of combustion. The flame surface itself represents the location where fuel vapor and oxygen mix at high temperature and with the release of heat. Heat from the flame melts the wax at the base of the exposed wick. The liquid wax rises by capillary action up the wick, bringing it into closer proximity to the hot flame. This close proximity causes the liquid wax to vaporize. The wax vapors then migrate toward the flame surface, breaking down into smaller hydrocarbons enroute. Oxygen from the surrounding atmosphere also migrates toward the flame surface by diffusion and convection. The survival and location of the flame surface is determined by the balance of these processes. \n\nIn normal gravity, buoyancy-driven convection develops due to the hot, less dense combustion products. This action has several effects: (a) the hot reaction products are carried away due to their buoyancy, and fresh oxygen is carried toward the flame zone; (b) solid particles of soot form in the region between the flame and the wick and are convected upward, where they burn off, yielding the bright yellow tip of the flame; (c) to overcome the loss of heat due to buoyancy, the flame anchors itself close to the wick; (d) the combination of these effects causes the flame to be shaped like a teardrop.
1004904
While moving at constant speed there are no forces acting on any of the objects inside the car in the direction of motion and therefore they remain at a constant speed.  During accelerations the mosquitoes will get left slightly behind, however the air resistance from the air molecules inside the car will quickly bring it up to speed.  The air molecules have a slight deflection as well.  Try this fun experiment: tether some helium balloons inside of your car and close all the windows, now accelerate, turn or stop.  The balloons don't go the direction you expected do they.  They go forward when you accelerate and backwards when you decelerate, they even point in towards the inside of a turn.  The reason for this is that the air molecules congregate to the outside of the turn, or towards the back when accelerating, this pushes the less dense helium away towards the lower density areas.
55157
Chemical energy. When gasoline is burned, oxidized, it is the release of heat from the chemical bonds which provide work. In a car the gasoline and oxygen mixture is ingnited by a spark causing an explosive release of chemical energy into mechanical energy and heat.
688996
Sparks not hot enough. Diesel fuel requires a very hot spark. Diesel ignites best under pressure. Gasoline would ignite with any spark. Do I want to know what you are using this for?
202316
petrol burn to give stam\nthis energy of steam makes the crankshaft move\nthis crankshaft rotates the wheel
344866
this isn't a question about astronomy.\n\nhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Astronomy\n\nit is newton's third law.  for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction.  the burning fuel converts to exhaust gasses and increases in volume so it escapes from the combustion chamber under great pressure.  the exhaust gasses are focused into moving in one direction creating a force in that direction.  the rocket creates a force in the opposite direction so the rocket accelerates in that direction.
923574
It goes into thermal energy (heat) as the brakes heat up due to friction and perhaps to other, less significant sources of energy loss (e.g. sound of brakes squealing).\n\nNote: The car doesn't really gain energy, it just converts its gravitational potential energy (from being at the top of the hill) into kinetic energy (the energy associated with motion).
212472
Any car that can leave smoke has alot of power to begin with, a really heavy duty transmission, two wheel dis brakes, and rear wheel drive. If you do the front wheel drive thing with the emergency brake, you will absolutely screw your emergency brake to hell. What you do is hold the brake as tight to the floor as you can, and press the accelerator all the way to the floor. If your engine doesn't blow up, and your clutch doesn't melt away, your wheels will spin freely, while the friction froom the asphault (always us asphault) heats them up and burns them away. It's a really good way to waste your old tires. But it's also a way to completely ruin your engine and transmission beyond repair. Not a good idea if you like your money and your car, Joe.
996533
It's all about the fumes.\n\n"Fumes", for the purposes of this answer, are gasoline vapors in an oxygen-rich environment (e.g., air).\n\nLiquid gasoline by itself will usually "drown" a lit match.  You need oxygen to sustain a fire, so if there aren't any fumes, the flame will die as the match becomes submerged, and loses its oxygen supply.\n\nIf there are gasoline fumes present, however, you'll lose a bit more than your eyebrows when the fireball comes.\n\nNote that this is how we get cars to run -- by injecting a fine, vapor-like spray of gasoline into an air-filled cylinder.
449720
If  You  Put  It  In   Your   Cars   Gas  Tank   The  Car  Will  Go  Faster  \n\n AKA:Nitrus  Oxide
303776
Gasoline + Oxygen = CO2 + H2O + NOx + SO4 + energy
737797
It can set the gasoline on fire. Eventually there could be an explosion. I've seen films of people being lit on fire while pumping gas. \nHere's a link that verifies fire can happen.\n.