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A swirl flap is a small
A swirl flap is a small butterfly valve
A butterfly valve is a valve that isolates or regulates the flow of a fluid. The closing mechanism is a disk that rotates.
Principle of operation
Operation is similar to that of a ball valve, which allows for quick shut off. Butterfly valves ...
fitted to four-stroke
A four-stroke (also four-cycle) engine is an internal combustion (IC) engine in which the piston completes four separate strokes while turning the crankshaft. A stroke refers to the full travel of the piston along the cylinder, in either directio ...
internal combustion engine
An internal combustion engine (ICE or IC engine) is a heat engine in which the combustion of a fuel occurs with an oxidizer (usually air) in a combustion chamber that is an integral part of the working fluid flow circuit. In an internal combus ...
s with at least two intake valve
A poppet valve (also called mushroom valve) is a valve typically used to control the timing and quantity of gas or vapor flow into an engine.
It consists of a hole or open-ended chamber, usually round or oval in cross-section, and a plug, usual ...
s. It is installed inside or just before one of a cylinder's two intake ports, allowing to throttle its intake port's air flow, causing a swirl in the other intake port not fitted with a swirl flap. The swirl improves the air-fuel mixing process in direct injected engines, typically diesel engine
The diesel engine, named after Rudolf Diesel, is an internal combustion engine in which ignition of the fuel is caused by the elevated temperature of the air in the cylinder due to mechanical compression; thus, the diesel engine is a so-call ...
s, under low load conditions.Konrad Reif: ''Dieselmotor-Management im Überblick.'' Springer Vieweg, 2014, ISBN 978-3-658-06555-3, p. 50.
Operation
Swirl flap position is adjusted by an electrical or vacuum-actuatedservo
Servo may refer to:
Mechanisms
* Servomechanism, or servo, a device used to provide control of a desired operation through the use of feedback
** AI servo, an autofocus mode
** Electrohydraulic servo valve, an electrically operated valve that ...
mechanism which is under the control of the engine management system
An engine control unit (ECU), also commonly called an engine control module (ECM), is a type of electronic control unit that controls a series of actuators on an internal combustion engine to ensure optimal engine performance. It does this by re ...
. In a typical implementation the flaps will be closed at idle speed, creating additional turbulence in the intake. As engine speed increases, the flaps are gradually opened until, at around 2,000/min, they are parallel to the airflow and present virtually no resistance. Their purpose is to ensure that the air entering the cylinder is sufficiently turbulent for good fuel-air mixing even at low engine speeds. This aids in reducing emissions
Emission may refer to:
Chemical products
* Emission of air pollutants, notably:
**Flue gas, gas exiting to the atmosphere via a flue
** Exhaust gas, flue gas generated by fuel combustion
** Emission of greenhouse gases, which absorb and emit rad ...
and may also improve low-end torque
In physics and mechanics, torque is the rotational equivalent of linear force. It is also referred to as the moment of force (also abbreviated to moment). It represents the capability of a force to produce change in the rotational motion of th ...
.
Disadvantages
The disadvantages of swirl flaps are mainly associated with fouling byexhaust gas recirculation
In internal combustion engines, exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) is a nitrogen oxide () emissions reduction technique used in petrol/gasoline, diesel engines and some hydrogen engines. EGR works by recirculating a portion of an engine's exhaust ...
, which leaves tarry deposits on the flaps and the inside of the intake manifold. Over time the flaps can begin to stick in one position and the engine management system may report an error code if the correct flap position cannot be achieved within a few percent of the design specification.
See also
*Tumble flap
A tumble flap is a flap housed in the intake area of many modern automotive gasoline engines to produce a swirl at right-angles to the cylinder axis. This swirling motion improves the air-fuel mixture and enhances power and torque, while at the sa ...
References