Computational fluid dynamics simulation of the combustion process, emission formation and the flow field in an in-direct injection diesel engine

In the present paper, the combustion process and emission formation in the Lister 8.1 I.D.I Diesel engine have been investigated using a Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) code. The utilized model includes detailed spray atomization, mixture formation and distribution model which enable modeling the combustion process in spray/wall and spray/swirl interactions along with flow configurations. The analysis considers both part load and full load states. The global properties are presented separately resolved for the swirl chamber (pre-chamber) and the main chamber. The results of model verify the fact that the equal amount of the fuel is burned in the main and pre-chamber at full load state while at part load the majority of the fuel is burned in the main chamber. Also, it is shown that the adherence of fuel spray on the pre-chamber walls is due to formation of a stagnation zone which prevents quick spray evaporation and plays an important role in the increase of soot mass fractions at this zone at full load conditions. The simulation results, such as the mean in-cylinder pressure, heat release rate and exhaust emissions are compared with the experimental data and show good agreement. This work also demonstrates the usefulness of multidimensional modeling for complex chamber geometries, such as in I.D.I Diesel engines, to gain more insight into the flow field, combustion process and emission formation