Nick Molzahn

CBE 555
What is an Aftertreatment System?
A system that treats post-combustion exhaust gases
prior to tailpipe emission
Differs from emission reduction techniques in the
combustion process
Allows for greater power from the engine without
worrying about emissions increasing
Why Diesel?
Higher energy density per unit volume of fuel than
gasoline
147,000 BTU in diesel versus 125,000 BTU in gasoline

Fuel economies of up to 45 MPG

Higher torque for similar sized engines
Greater compression ratios than gasoline

Exhaust pollution can be mitigated by modern

technologies
Solution for decreasing Western gasoline demands
Including passenger cars
Regulation Background
Clean Air Act of 1963: First government look into stationary emissions
Clean Air Act 1970: Regulation of 6 criteria pollutants
CO, SOx, NOx, Hydrocarbons, Ozone, & Particulate Matter

Clean Air Act of 1990: Acid rain control plus 189 secondary pollutants
Since then, numerous periodic reductions
Ultra-Low Sulfur Diesel (ULSD) mandatory 2007
Aftertreatment System Overview
EGR Exhaust Gas Recirculation
DOC Diesel Oxidation Catalyst
DPF Diesel Particulate Filter
DRT Decomposition Reaction Tube
SCR Selective Catalytic Reduction
DEF Diesel Exhaust Fluid (Urea)
Exhaust Gas Recirculation (EGR)
A portion of exhaust stream gets recycled back into the combustion
chambers
Low oxygen makes this function as an inert gas
Reduces engine operating temperatures to decrease NOx formation

At high temperatures: O2+N2 NO + NO2

Diesel Oxidation Catalyst (DOC)
Platinum group metals catalyze the complete oxidation of unburnt
hydrocarbons to CO2
Reactions heat exhaust gases up to temperatures in excess of 450C
Catalyst material coats flow channel matrix
Channels are a ceramic honeycomb

Very efficient catalysis (Upwards of 90% conversion to oxidized products)

Diesel Particulate Filter (DPF)
Alternating plugged channels force exhaust to flow through cordierite
walls, which traps the soot
Soot is a complex linked carbon structure which is a combustion byproduct

Soot reduction can approach 100% efficiency with full DPFs

Characteristic
Wall-flow DPF Cell Soot Structure
Diesel Particulate Filter (DPFs) Cont.
Trapped soot is periodically burnt off through a regeneration event
Active Regeneration:
Fuel is injected into the Aftertreatment system, combusts in the DOC, and this
800 exhaust is able to fully oxidize the soot
Passive Regeneration:
NO2 + C (s) CO2 + NO
Catalyzed filter elements allow for exhaust NO2 to oxidize soot
Requires hot temperatures such as highway driving to function
Decomposition Reactor Tube (DRT)
Urea is injected after the DPF onto a special mixing plate
Hot exhaust gas breaks urea into ammonia
Side reactions sometimes form solid deposits of aromatic cyclic rings
These deposits can block exhaust flow
Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR)
Function is to use NH3 to reduce NOx to diatomic Nitrogen
Base metals (vanadium, tungsten):
Lack thermal durability, cheap, SO3 is produced

Zeolites:
High thermal durability, expensive, lower SO3 conversion
Can approach 99% reduction in NOx emission

Newest technology only necessary in developed markets (US and

Europe)
Worldwide Implementation
Mature Emission Regulation
US EPA, California Air Resources Board (CARB), European
Standards (Euro), Japanese Standards (JMOE)
Emerging Emission Regulation
Chinese Standard, India Bharat Stage Standard, Brazil
CONAMA, Korean KMOE
Must engineer solutions specific
to the region
Additional Retrofit Solutions
Only new engines are required to pass emission standards
Diesel engines are very reliable fleet turnover time is many years
Retrofitting technologies can help to modernize diesel engines at little
cost to trucking companies
Drawbacks of Aftertreatment Systems
Requires more pressure to force exhaust through the filtering
mechanisms
Turbochargers are not able to use as much of this available backpressure to increase
engine efficiency

Biodiesel cannot be used with current active regeneration DPF

technology
Passive regeneration systems require highway driving to clean
accumulated soot
Urea injection requires additional tanks, piping, and refueling stations to
operate
Entire refueling infrastructure must be put in place
Summary
Diesel exhaust gas can be cleaned through the use of catalyst and
filtration technologies
Use of diesel engines allows for greater fuel diversity in the
transportation sector
Technology is mature and ready
Combine efficiency and power of diesel with low emissions of gasoline
The dirty image that diesel has is a thing of the past
References
US EPA
California Air Research Board (CARB)
Cummins Emission Solutions
Clean Air Task Force
Dieselnet.com
Volkswagen TDI-Institute
Thank you!