In-cylinder Motion

The induction of air or an air-fuel mixture into the engine cylinder leads to a complex fluid motion. There can be an ordered air motion such as swirl, but always present is turbulence. The bulk air motion which approximates to a forced vortex about the cylinder axis is known as axial swirl, and it is normally associated with direct injection Diesel engines. When the air motion rotates about an axis normal to the cylinder axis (this is usually parallel to the cylinder axis), the motion is known as barrel swirl or tumble. Such a motion can be found in spark ignition engines (normally those with two inlet valves per cylinder). Barrel swirl assists the rapid and complete combustion of highly diluted mixtures, for instance those found in lean-burn engines, or engines operating with stoichiometric mixtures but high levels of exhaust gas recirculation (EGR).