6.0.

CHAPTER PRELIMINARIES
INTAKE AND EXHAUST PROCESSES IN THE FOUR-STROKE CYCLE

VOLUMETRIC EFFICIENCY

FLOW THROUGH VALVES AND PORTS

RESIDUAL GAS FRACTION

EXHAUST GAS FLOW RATE AND TEMPERATURE VARIATION

SCAVENGING IN TWO-STROKE CYCLE ENGINES

FLOW THROUGH TWO-STROKE ENGINE PORTS

SUPERCHARGING AND TURBOCHARGING

PROBLEMS

REFERENCES

This chapter deals with the fundamentals of the gas exchange process—intake and exhaust in four-stroke cycle engines and
scavenging in two-stroke cycle engines. The purpose of the exhaust and intake processes, or of the scavenging process, is to
remove the burned gases at the end of the power stroke and admit the fresh charge for the next cycle. Equation (2.45) shows
that the brake power of an internal combustion engine at a given speed is proportional to the mass flow rate of air into the
cylinders. Inducting the maximum amount of air into the engine at wide-open throttle (full load) and retaining that mass within
each cylinder maximizes engine power and is thus a primary goal of the gas exchange process. Engine gas exchange
processes are characterized by overall parameters such as volumetric efficiency (for four-stroke cycles), and scavenging
efficiency and trapping efficiency (for two-stroke cycles). These overall parameters depend on the design of engine
subsystems such as manifolds, valves, and ports, and the rest of the exhaust and intake systems, as well as engine operating
conditions. Thus, the flow through individual components in the engine intake and exhaust system has been extensively
studied. Supercharging and turbocharging are used to increase air flow through engines, and hence power density, by
increasing the density of the air entering each cylinder. Obviously, whether the engine is naturally aspirated (draws air directly
from the atmosphere), or is supercharged or turbocharged, significantly affects the gas exchange processes. The above topics
are the subject of this chapter.

The amount of air inducted into each cylinder limits the amount of fuel that can be burned. Thus the ability of the total engine
system to flow as much air as possible into each cylinder—its breathing capacity at a given speed—is a very important design
objective. The degree to which the burned gases from the previous cycle are expelled from the cylinder also affects the airflow
into the cylinder. The exhaust process is therefore important, too. In a spark-ignition engine, the torque produced at any given
speed is regulated by controlling the air flow rate into the engine. A valve—usually a throttle plate—partly closes off the intake
to limit air flow. This causes the pressure, and hence air density, in the intake manifold to decrease thereby reducing the
torque and power. The maximum airflow at any given speed occurs at wide-open throttle or full load.

For spark-ignition engines, the fresh charge comprises fuel, air, and (if used for emission control) recycled exhaust, so mixture
preparation is also an important goal of the intake process. Mixture preparation includes both achieving the appropriate
mixture composition and achieving equal distribution of air, fuel, and recycled exhaust amongst the different cylinders. In
diesels, only air (or air plus recycled exhaust) is inducted. Mixture preparation and manifold flow phenomena are discussed in
Chap. 7. A third goal of the gas exchange processes is to set up the flow field within the engine cylinders that will give a fast-
enough combustion process for satisfactory engine operation. In-cylinder flows are the subject of Chap. 8.

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