Importance Of Purge Valves

Importance Of Purge Valves

The Purge Valve, also known as Canister Purge Valve, is a very important component of a car’s Evaporative Emission Control (EVAP) system. Nowadays, modern cars come with an EVAP system – a system that reduces the amount of pollution caused by the combustion of fuel in a car, which is emitted in form of vapor. The EVAP system traps the fuel vapor from the fuel tank in the charcoal canister, thereby preventing them from reaching the atmosphere. When the car engine starts to run, the EVAP system gradually opens and slowly allows the fuel vapor into the engine to burn like regular fuel.

                                       

The flow of the fuel vapor into the engine is regulated by the purge valve. The purge valve precisely controls when and how much fuel vapor is allowed into the engine. The purge valve in modern cars is an electrically-poweredsolenoid which is controlled by the engine computer.

The purge valve is a very crucial component of a car and a faulty or damaged purge valve can lead to several engine problems. Here are some of the major importance of the purge valve:

Higher Gas Mileage

Your gas mileage in other words is your fuel efficiency. It is the ratio of the number of miles travelled to the number of gallons of fuel used. A high gas mileage means your fuel is effectively used. The purge valve allows and controls the use of fuel vapor as regular fuel, thereby increasing your gas mileage.

Performance

The condition of the purge valve can significantly affect the performance of an engine. The purge valve is responsible for maintaining the right air-fuel ratio in the engine. A faulty purge valve may cause a vacuum leak which results from unmetered air entering into the engine. This will disturb the air-fuel ratio and may give rise to several performance issues in the engine such as difficulty in starting.

Rough Idle

Having a rough idle means your car will feel rough, shaky or bouncy when it starts running. One of the major causes of a rough idle is a vacuum leak, which occurs when the air-fuel ratio is disturbed. The purge valve helps to regulate and maintain the right air-fuel ratio which allows the engine to run smoothly. 

Smooth Running

The smooth running of a car depends on a lot of factors. One of these factors is the right air-fuel ratio. If this ratio is disturbed, it can significantly affect several processes in the car’s engine and result in serious engine problems. The canister purge valve is an important component that must be present in the EVAP system in order to keep a balanced air-fuel ratio and ensure smooth running of the engine.

EVAP Pollution

Unlike modern day cars, cars in the old days were not equipped with an EVAP system. Instead, Evaporative emission pollutions in form of vapors from the car’s fuel were allowed to escape into the atmosphere causing issues of air pollution. Nowadays, cars have an EVAP system that ensures that the fuel vaporis used and does not escape into the atmosphere. The EVAP system relies on the purge valve to effectively control the use of fuel vapor and prevent it from escaping into the atmosphere, thereby reducing EVAP pollution.

Conclusion

The purge valve is a very important component of a car engine. When a purge valve gets faulty or damaged, it could give rise to several engine problems, lower the gas mileage and may even cause the engine not to start.Having a fully functional purge valve is quite important to ensure the smooth running of an engine.