Reduction of NOx and CO emissions in stoichiometric diesel combustion using a 3-way catalyst

Abstract

Experimental and numerical studies were performed to investigate the simultaneous reduction of NOx and CO for stoichiometric diesel combustion with a 3-way catalyst. A single-cylinder engine was used for the experiments and KIVA simulations were used in order to characterize the combustion efficiency and emissions of throttled stoichiometric diesel combustion at 0.7 bar boost pressure and 90MPa injection pressure. In addition, the efficiency of emission conversion with the 3-way catalysts in stoichiometric diesel combustion was investigated experimentally. The results showed CO and NOx emissions can be controlled with the 3-way catalyst in spite of the fact that CO increases more at high equivalence ratios compared to conventional diesel combustion (i.e., lean combustion). At stoichiometric operation, the 3-way catalyst reduced CO and NOx emissions by up to 95%, which achieves lower emissions compared to conventional diesel combustion or low temperature diesel combustion, while keeping better fuel consumption than a comparable gasoline engine.