knocking, in an internal-combustion engine, sharp sounds caused by premature combustion of part of the compressed air-fuel mixture in the cylinder. In a properly functioning engine, the charge burns with the flame front progressing smoothly from the point of ignition across the combustion chamber. However, at high compression ratios, depending on the composition of the fuel, some of the charge may spontaneously ignite ahead of the flame front and burn in an uncontrolled manner, producing intense high-frequency pressure waves. These pressure waves force parts of the engine to vibrate, which produces an audible knock.
Knocking can cause overheating of the spark-plug points, erosion of the combustion chamber surface, and rough, inefficient operation. It can be avoided by adjusting certain variables of engine design and operation, such as compression ratio and burning time; but the most common method is to burn gasoline of higher octane number.