The diesel engine was invented in 1892 by Rudolf Diesel, a German engineer. Diesel's engine was based on the principle of compression ignition, in which fuel is injected into the cylinder of an engine and ignited by the heat of compression. This allowed for much greater efficiency than the gasoline engines of the time, which used spark plugs to ignite the fuel. Diesel's engine quickly became widely used in industrial applications, such as ships, trucks, and generators, and it remains a popular choice for these applications today.
