Internal combustion engine

A mixture-lubricated internal combustion engine comprising:

• a cylinder defining a longitudinal cylinder axis;
• a piston movably mounted in said cylinder so as to move through a piston stroke (h) during operation of said engine;
• said cylinder and said piston conjointly delimiting a combustion chamber;
• a crankcase connected to said cylinder;
• said crankcase defining a crankcase interior space and having a mixture inlet into said crankcase interior space through which an air/fuel mixture flows into said crankcase;
• a crankshaft having an outer periphery and being rotatably mounted in said interior space of said crankcase;
• a connecting rod connecting said piston to said crankshaft to permit said piston to drive said crankshaft in a rotational direction causing said air/fuel mixture to flow in the region of said crankshaft;
• an imaginary plane perpendicular to said cylinder axis and tangential to said outer periphery of said crankshaft and said imaginary plane being arranged on the side of said crankshaft facing toward said piston;
• at least one flow conducting element fixedly mounted in said interior space of said crankcase at a predetermined location therein;
• said flow conducting element projecting into said interior space and being directed opposite to said rotational direction of said crankshaft;
• said flow conducting element having a flow edge directed opposite to said rotational direction of said crankshaft;
• said flow edge of said flow conducting element being spaced from said imaginary plane at a distance corresponding to less than 40% of said piston stroke (h);
• and,
• said flow edge being configured to branch off a component flow of said air/fuel mixture flowing in the region of said crankshaft and to divert said component flow to said piston thereby cooling said piston during operation of said engine.