Proceedings of the 19th National Conference on I.C.

Engines and Combustion,

Annamalai University, Chidambaram. Dec. 21 - 23, 2005. pp. 247 - 251.
247
CFD MODELING OF SUCTION AND COMPRESSION PROCESSES IN A FOUR-STROKE
FOUR-VALVE DISI ENGINE
E. James Gunasekaran and V. Ganesan

Internal Combustion Engines Laboratory, Department of Mechanical Engineering
Indian Institute of Technology Madras, Chennai 600 036, India
vganesan@acer.iitm.ernet.in
ABSTRACT
Present work is concerned with the flow field
analysis of a SI engine modified for direct injection,
taking into consideration moving valves and realistic
port geometries. The numerical model is based on the
CFD code STARCD and flow velocities are computed for
the modeled engine during the suction and compression
strokes at three different speeds viz., 750 rpm, 1500
rpm and 3000 rpm. Numerical results show that the
incylinder flow pattern is well simulated in the vertical
section plane passing through the centers of the intake
and exhaust valves. The computed axial velocities
during suction and compression strokes show
reasonably good agreement with experimental results of
Stanglmaier et al. [4]. Results of intake flow modeling
also show that in-cylinder mass averaged turbulent
kinetic energy, mass inducted and velocity of air
through the ports increase with the engine speed. The
tumble ratio is not affected by speed and found to be a
function of engine geometry.
INTRODUCTION
Direct Injection Spark-Ignition (DISI) technology has
been considered to be of great potential for future
automobile engines. Engine in-cylinder flow has long
been recognized as one of the key issues influencing the
engine performance [Fan et.al.]. Both large flow
structures and turbulence are important. One of the
important flow structures of a pent-roof shaped DISI
engine is the tumble structure (rotating about the axis
normal to the cylinder axis).Tumble motion is rather
recently identified organized rotary charge motion
occurring in an axial plane. A tumble plane is parallel
to the plane containing cylinder axis and that
containing the centers of inlet and exhaust valves.
Through the production of well timed turbulence, which
is more intense than swirl generated turbulence, an
optimized tumble charge motion can enable better
combustion in spark ignition engine [Arcoumanis et al].
The complete evaporation of fuel and mixing with the
cylinder gas in of paramount importance, especially in
DISI engines as there is a very limited time available for
the injected fuel to evaporate completely and mix with
the air, to produce homogenous mixture for high load(
injection during induction stroke) condition and
stratified mixture for low load ( injection during
compression stroke) condition. Hence it is necessary to
study the physics of air motion inside the engine
cylinder.
Recently with new techniques to handle valve
motions and increased computing power, three
dimensional simulations of intake flows have become
practical [Khalighi et.al]. In this kind of simulation both
valves and piston are moved according to the real lift
curve and crank angle speed. The realistic geometry
including pent-roof head and valves can be represented
by the computational mesh.
The goal of the present study is to simulate the
overall intake and incylinder flow fields of an engine.
Numerical simulation is carried out using the STAR CD
code which could account for the moving valves and the
valve port geometries. Computed flow velocities are
compared with experimental data [Stanglmaier et al] to
access the performance of the code. The effect of engine
speed on the intake-generated turbulence, mass flow
rate, mean averaged incylinder velocity etc are also
analyzed during the suction stroke.
ENGINE AND COMPUTATIONAL DETAILS
The Engine under study is a 0.633 litter CLR single
cylinder engine with modified quad 4 valve [Michael et
al (1998)]. The engine features a pent-roof combustion
chamber with two intake valves (Fig.1) and a flat piston
crown. The modeled engine has a compression ratio of
7.5:1.Simulation is carried out for three different speeds
viz., 750 rpm, 1500 rpm and 3000 rpm. The details of
the engine and the operating conditions are also given
in Fig 1.
The computational mesh used for the present study
consists of 520000 cells, of hexahedral structure. The
entire mesh including the ports is created in GAMBIT a
mesh generation utility and imported into STAR-CD for
solving. Incylinder flow consists of compressible,
transient, turbulent fluid stream. Governing equations
of fluid flow viz, continuity, momentum and energy
equations are solved to simulate the flow. Turbulence is
modeled using RNG k- model, a variant of eddy
viscosity model with standard wall function.
CFD Modeling ... Disi Engine

248
Computations were started at the intake TDC (0) and
ended at compression TDC (360). Fully temporal
implicit scheme and higher order spatial discretization
finite volume scheme is used for the present simulation.


FIG.1 COMPUTATIONAL GRID AND DETAILS OF THE
DISI ENGINE [STANGLMAIER (1998)]
BOUNDARY AND INITIAL CONDITION
A constant pressure boundary condition is used for
the inlet port. Constant pressure boundary condition is
prescribed where other parameters of flow like velocity
are not known at the boundary. The turbulent intensity
was taken as 5% and the mixing length scale was taken
as 1 mm. The pressure at the inlet boundary at the
start of computation is 1.016 bar to realistically
represent the atmospheric pressure. Attach boundary
condition is used for connecting the valve region with
the cylinder region. This boundary is used to define the
interface between cells that may be activated or
deactivated. All other open surfaces are taken as default
wall boundaries, which have wall boundary conditions
with no slip. Temperature of the cylinder wall is
Bore 92.0 mm
Stroke 95.5 mm
Compression Ratio 7.5:1
Piston Flat Top
Cylinder Head GM Quad-4,4 valve,
Modified for DI
Valve diameter 38 mm
Valve lift 8 mm
Intake Valve Opening 22 bTDC
Intake Valve closing 45 aBDC
assumed to be uniform. Pressure inside the cylinder at
the start of the computation is assumed as 1.0 bar with
ambient temperature of 296 K. Air is used as a working
medium for the simulation. Density is considered to be
an ideal function of temperature.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
The model is validated by comparing the simulated
results with the experimental results of Stanglmaier et
al. There a single component LDV system was used to
make the axial velocity measurements with the engine
motored at 750 rpm. The measurements were
performed at five locations across the cylinder, on the
plane through the cylinder center line 38 mm below the
cylinder head.
The measurement points were along the radial
direction equally spaced from the cylinder axis (-30, -
15, 0, 15 and 30 mm respectively).The five
measurement locations are shown on Fig.2a and on
Fig.2b by section plane A-A. This distance was chosen
to be the approximate average tumble axis. In the
simulation also the same locations are chosen to make
the validation of the code.
Figure 3 shows the comparison of the predicted and
experimental axial velocities at 750 rpm. The results
from the computation are reasonably in good agreement
with the experimental results. Regarding the
quantitative comparison a close agreement can be seen
at location 30 mm radially from the axis. At other
locations except -30 mm the computation over predicts
the velocity. This discrepancy may be due to the
absence of exact port dimensions.
Figure 2b shows the section plane B-B which is
considered for the flow field analysis. The simulated
flow velocity vectors at the section plane B-B are shown
in Fig 4 for selected crank angles. The vector lengths
are not normalized for plots of different crank angles,
thus the maximum velocity is shown for every plot. The
vector plots can be analysed together with the mesh in
fig.1 to identify the motion of fluid of a plane to observe
the flow structure. In fig.4a which is at crank angle 40
a small vortex structure A which is rotating in counter
clockwise direction is formed near the intake valve. It is
observed that the some part of the intake fluid bound
by the piston face on the bottom and the cylinder wall
on its left forces the formation of the vortex A when
the jet impinges on the face of the piston. At the
maximum valve lift position (crank angle 100) it can be
seen that tumble flow is established. At this point the
already created vortex A is strengthened and it moves
towards the centre of the cylinder. This vortex is
counteracted by the downward movement of air coming
on the exhaust valve side and the low pressure region
prevailing beneath the vortex due to the downward
moving piston. By the time the piston reaches BDC
(crank angle 180) these two forces succeed in
destroying the vortex A and creation of another vortex
structure B. In Fig.4d at a crank angle of 250 the
upward movement of the piston destroys the vortex A
and Vortex B is now pushed towards the top centre of
E. James Gunasekaran and V. Ganesan
249
the cylinder head. In Fig 4e and 4f the vortex B even
though very small, is sustained near the top. When Figs
4e and 4f are analysed in comparing with Figures 5a
and 5b, it establishes the fact that the deforming
vortices results in increased turbulent kinetic energy
near the central region as the piston is nearing the Top
Dead Center (TDC).


FIG. 2 MEASUREMENT LOCATIONS AND LOCATION
OF PLANE FOR FLOW FIELD ANALYSIS
-16
-11
-6
-1
4
-45 -30 -15 0 15 30 45
Radial Position, mm
A
x
i
a
l

v
e
l
o
c
i
t
y
,

m
/
s
exp
simulation

(A) 120 CRANK ANGLE
-11
-6
-1
4
-45 -30 -15 0 15 30 45
Radial Position (mm)
A
x
i
a
l

v
e
l
o
c
i
t
y
,

m
/
s
Exp
Simulation

(B) 160 CRANK ANGLE
-6
-1
4
-45 -30 -15 0 15 30 45
Radi al Posi ti on (mm)
A
x
i
a
l

V
e
l
o
c
i
t
y
,

m
/
s
Exp
Simulat ion

(C) 220 CRANK ANGLE
-6
-1
4
-45 -30 -15 0 15 30 45
Radi al Posi ti on (mm)
A
x
i
a
l

v
e
l
o
c
i
t
y
,
m
/
s
Exp
Simulat ion

(D) 240 CRANK ANGLE
FIG. 3 RADIAL DISTRIBUTION OF AXIAL VELOCITIES
AT DIFFERENT CRANK ANGLES, MEASURED AT
LOCATION 38 MM BELOW CYLINDER HEAD WITH
ENGINE SPEED OF 750 RPM

(A) CRANK ANGLE 40

(B) CRANK ANGLE 100
CFD Modeling ... Disi Engine

250

(C) CRANK ANGLE 180

(D) CRANK ANGLE 250

(E) CRANK ANGLE 300

(F) CRANK ANGLE 340
FIG. 4 VELOCITY VECTOR AT SECTION PLANE B-B
FOR DIFFERENT CRANK ANGLES AT A SPEED OF
1500 RPM

(A) CRANK ANGLE 300

(B) CRANK ANGLE 340
FIG. 5 TURBULENT KINETIC ENERGY PLOTS DURING
COMPRESSION STROKE FOR DIFFERENT CRANK
ANGLES AT A SPEED OF 1500 RPM
Figure 6a and 6b shows the turbulent kinetic energy
variation and tumble ratio for different crank angles
with different engine speeds (750, 1500 and 3000 rpm).
It is observed in Fig.6a the turbulent kinetic energy
increases directly with respect to the speed of the
engine, which may help in better mixing of fuel and air
inside the cylinder. In Fig.6b, it is seen that the tumble
ratio is not varying much with respect to the change in
speed, but with 750 rpm it is slightly higher during the
compression process. (starting with crank angle 240).
This may be due to the less turbulence prevailing inside
the engine in destroying the tumble vortex structure at
a lower speed.
0
5
10
15
20
0 100 200 300 400
Crank angle (deg)
T
K
E


(
m
2
/
s
2
)
TKE@750 rpm
TKE@1500 rpm
TKE@3000 rpm

(A) TURBULENT KINETIC ENERGY
Figure 7 shows the variation of mass trapped
against speed of the engine. It can be observed that the
mass inducted inside the cylinder increases with
respect to speed of the engine. The variation is 2.4 % for
E. James Gunasekaran and V. Ganesan
251
the 1500 rpm over 750 rpm and it is 4 % for the 3000
rpm over the 750 rpm.
-0.2
0.0
0.2
0.4
0.6
0 100 200 300 400
Crank angl e (deg)
T
u
m
b
l
e

R
a
t
i
o
TRz @ 750 rpm
TRz @ 1500 rpm
TRz@ 3000 rpm

(B) TUMBLE RATIO AT DIFFERENT SPEEDS
FIG. 6 TURBULENT KINETIC ENERGY AND TUMBLE
RATIO FOR DIFFERENT SPEEDS
GRID SENSITIVITY ANALYSIS
A further analysis has been carried out to study the
effect of grid refinement on the simulated results. For
the purpose, the initial grid with approximately 520000
cells had been made coarser to produce an
approximately half the grid consisting of 270000 cells,
an approximately twice refined grid of 1030000 cells
.The models applied to the refined grid are as same as
that applied on the initial model, with the RNG k-
model invoked for simulation of turbulence phenomena.
The analysis of contour plots shows the same location
of maximum turbulent kinetic energy and its magnitude
to be almost same for the different cases. These results
convince the usage of moderate grid size of 520000
cells.
750 rpm
1500 rpm
3000 rpm
8.10E-04
8.20E-04
8.30E-04
8.40E-04
8.50E-04
8.60E-04
8.70E-04
1 speed
m
a
s
s

(
K
g
)

FIG. 7 MASS OF AIR TRAPPED INSIDE THE CYLINDER
FOR VARIOUS SPEEDS
CONCLUSION
1) Turbulent kinetic energy is a function of speed. As
the speed increases the intake air velocity increases
causing significant increase in kinetic energy.
Whereas it can be seen that the tumble ratio does
not vary with the engine speed, and hence it can be
said that the tumble ratio is a function of engine and
valve geometry only.
2) It can be seen that the vortex structures created
during the induction process are not sustained
during the compression process. The tumbling
vortex structures are destroyed even as early as 240
crank angle, which may lead to poor conversion to
turbulence during the late stages of compression
near the cylinder head.
Thus it can be said that the tumble motion created
in this engine with the present valve configuration
may not be adequate.
3) The inducted mass increases with the increase in
speed. The present investigation conveys that it is
possible to study the in-cylinder flow field with
reasonable accuracy. This will lead to better
modeling of combustion taking place inside the
cylinder and also better prediction of pollutants.
REFERENCE
[1] Arcoumanis, C., Hu, Z., Vafidis, C. and whitlaw,
J.H. (1990) Tumbling motion: a mechanism for
turbulence enhancement in spark ignition engines.
SAE Paper 900060.
[2] Fan, L., Reitz, R.D., (1999) Intake flow simulation
and comparison with PTV measurements. SAE
Paper 1999-01-0176
[3] Khalighi, S.H., Tahry, E.I., Haworth, D.C. and
Hubler, M.S., (1995) Computation and
measurement of flow and combustion in a four
valve engine with intake variations. SAE Paper
950287.
[4] Michael.H.Koenig and Matt.J.Hall (1998) Cycle
resolved measurements of Pre-combustion fuel
concentration near the spark plug in a Gasoline SI
engine SAE Paper 981053.
[5] Stanglmaier, R.H., Matt.J.Hall and Mathews, R.D.,
(1998) Fuel-spray/Charge motion interaction
within the cylinder of a Direct Injected, 4 Valve SI
Engine. SAE Paper 980155.