CFD analysis of the scavenging process in marine two-stroke diesel engines

The scavenging process is an integral part of any two-stroke internal combustion engine regardless of being spark ignited (SI) or compression ignited (CI). The scavenging process is responsible for replacing the burned gas from the combustion process from the previous working stroke with fresh air/charge before the subsequent compression stroke. This implies that the scavenging process is integral to engine performance as it influence the initial condition for the combustion process, thus affecting the fuel economy, power output and emission of hazardous gases. Two-stroke diesel engines for marine propulsion normally operates by the uniflow scavenging method, where the scavenge air enters the cylinder via inlet ports located near the bottom dead center and exits through one or several exhaust valves located in the cylinder head. This arrangement concentrates the airflow in one direction through the cylinder thus giving the method its name. The inlet ports are angled with respect to the local radius which will introduce a tangential velocity component to the airflow. The air moves axially through the cylinder in a swirling motion that favors mixing of fuel and air as the injected fuel is transported with the swirling air in the combustion chamber during fuel injection. A known characteristic of swirling flows is an adverse pressure gradient in the center of the rotating flow which might lead to a local deficit in axial velocity and the formation of central recirculation zones, known as vortex breakdown. Optimal scavenging is achieved when the gas exchange is done by displacement, the local deficit in axial velocity will increase the mixing of burned gas and scavenge air thus decreasing the amount of pure displacement.