Study of the steady and transient temperature field and heat flow in the combustion chamber components of a medium speed diesel engine using finite element analyses

The present work describes the development of a model for the calculation of the temperature field and heat flow in the combustion chamber components of internal combustion piston engines, which occur both under steady and transient engine operating conditions. Two and three-dimensional finite-element analyses were implemented for the representation of the complex geometry metal components (piston, liner and cylinder head). The model is applied for the piston and liner of a medium speed diesel engine, for which relevant experimental data exist in the literature. Special care is given for accurately specifying the thermal boundary conditions (temperatures and heat transfer coefficients). Gas side boundary conditions are calculated using a thermodynamic cycle simulation code, including spatial variation of the gas side heat transfer coefficient. Coolant sides (water on the external liner surface and oil on the piston undercrown surface) boundary conditions are calculated using correlations pertaining to real engine conditions. Also an effort is made to model the piston-ring belt-liner complex thermal paths using equivalent thermal circuits. A satisfactory degree of agreement is found between theoretical predictions and experimental measurements, revealing that the finite-element methods presented are successful in formulating this kind of problem, giving accurate results with reasonable computational cost. The utilization of the model reveals very clearly the essential role of engine operating transients (sudden changes in speed and/or load) in the generation of sharp temperature excursions in the metal components until a new steady state is reached. The phenomenon should be taken into account for correct engine design and safe operation (i.e. the avoidance of high local stresses).