Simulation of the turbulent flow inside the combustion chamber of a reciprocating engine with a finite element method

We present numerical simulations of turbulent flows during the intake and the compression strokes of a model engine. The Faure average Navier-Stokes equations are solved with a k-e turbulence model. The numerical procedure uses a time dependent semi-implicit scheme and a finite element method with a moving mesh. Results of 2-D axisymmetrical calculations with and without inlet swirl are presented. The influence of different turbulence models and the numerical precision of the simulations are also discussed