Diesel engine aftertreatment warm-up through early exhaust valve opening and internal exhaust gas recirculation during idle operation

Self Cite

Aftertreatment thermal management is critical for regulating emissions in modern diesel engines. Elevated engine-out temperatures and mass flows are effective at increasing the temperature of an aftertreatment system to enable efficient emission reduction. In this effort, experiments and analysis demonstrated that increasing the idle speed, while maintaining the same idle load, enables improved aftertreatment “warm-up” performance with engine-out NOx and particulate matter levels no higher than a state-of-the-art thermal calibration at conventional idle operation (800 rpm and 1.3 bar brake mean effective pressure). Elevated idle speeds of 1000 and 1200 rpm, compared to conventional idle at 800 rpm, realized 31%–51% increase in exhaust flow and 25 °C–40 °C increase in engine-out temperature, respectively. This study also demonstrated additional engine-out temperature benefits at all three idle speeds considered (800, 1000, and 1200 rpm, without compromising the exhaust flow rates or emissions, by modulating the exhaust valve opening timing. Early exhaust valve opening realizes up to ~51% increase in exhaust flow and 50 °C increase in engine-out temperature relative to conventional idle operation by forcing the engine to work harder via an early blowdown of the exhaust gas. This early blowdown of exhaust gas also reduces the time available for particulate matter oxidization, effectively limiting the ability to elevate engine-out temperatures for the early exhaust valve opening strategy. Alternatively, late exhaust valve opening realizes up to ~51% increase in exhaust flow and 91 °C increase in engine-out temperature relative to conventional idle operation by forcing the engine to work harder to pump in-cylinder gases across a smaller exhaust valve opening. In short, this study demonstrates how increased idle speeds, and exhaust valve opening modulation, individually or combined, can be used to significantly increase the “warm-up” rate of an aftertreatment system.

Section: Motivation For Aftertreatment Tm High-speed Idle Strategiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Implementing variable valve actuation on a diesel engine at high-speed idle operation for improved aftertreatment warm-up

Vos

Shaver

Joshi

et al. 2019

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“…Being a chemical system, the reaction rates are highly temperature dependent. 5 Where possible, avoidance of heavy duty diesel engines operating in city centre environments is to be encouraged. However, public buses, delivery vehicles and plant equipment are examples of where this is often impossible.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Nonlinear model predictive control applied to multivariable thermal and chemical control of selective catalytic reduction aftertreatment

Sowman¹,

Laila

Fussey

et al. 2019

Manufacturers of diesel engines are under increasing pressure to meet progressively stricter NO x emission limits. A key NO x abatement technology is selective catalytic reduction in which ammonia, aided by a catalyst, reacts with NO x in the exhaust stream to produce nitrogen and water. The conversion efficiency is temperature dependent: at low temperature, reaction rates are temperature limited, resulting in suboptimal NO x removal, whereas at high temperatures, they are mass transfer limited. Maintaining sufficiently high temperature to allow maximal conversion is a challenge, particularly after cold start, as well as during conditions in which exhaust heat is insufficient, such as periods of low load or idling. In this work, a nonlinear model predictive controller simultaneously manages urea injection and power to an electric catalyst heater, in the presence of constraints.

“…5–11 Previous studies have demonstrated the ability to raise exhaust temperatures by increasing the exhaust manifold pressure. 2,4,12,13…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Strategies for using valvetrain flexibility instead of exhaust manifold pressure modulation for diesel engine gas exchange and thermal management control

Vos

Shaver

Joshi

et al. 2019

Self Cite

At low-to-moderate loads, modern diesel engines manipulate exhaust manifold pressure to drive exhaust gas recirculation and thermally manage the aftertreatment. In these engines, exhaust manifold pressure control is typically achieved via either a valve after the turbine, a variable geometry turbine, or wastegating. The study described here demonstrates how valvetrain flexibility enables engine operation without requiring exhaust manifold pressure control. Specifically, intake valve closure modulation and cylinder deactivation at elevated engine speeds, along with exhaust valve opening modulation at low engine speeds, can match, or improve, efficiency and thermal management compared to a stock thermal calibration that requires exhaust manifold pressure control. During low-speed, low-load operation, the stock engine uses elevated exhaust manifold pressures to increase the required fueling (for thermal management) and to drive exhaust gas recirculation. Exhaust valve opening modulation can instead be implemented to enable similar aftertreatment warm-up, while cylinder deactivation allows aftertreatment temperature maintenance with a 40% reduction in fuel consumption. During high-speed, low-to-moderate loads, the stock engine implements thermal management operation by decreasing exhaust manifold pressure. Intake valve closure modulation together with cylinder deactivation can instead be implemented to enable fuel-efficient thermal management improvements via charge flow control.