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This paper describes an alternative catalyst aging process using a hot gas test stand for thermal aging. The solution presented is characterized by a burner technology that is combined with a combustion enhancement, which allows stoichiometric and rich operating conditions to simulate engine exhaust gases. The resulting efficiency was increased and the operation limits were broadened, compared to combustion engines that are typically used for catalyst aging. The primary modification that enabled this achievement was the recirculation of exhaust gas downstream from catalyst back to the burner. The burner allows the running simplified dynamic durability cycles, which are the standard bench cycle that is defined by the legislation as alternative aging procedure and the fuel shut-off simulation cycle ZDAKW. The hot gas test stand approach has been compared to the conventional engine test bench method.

The aftertreatment challenge in the non-road market is making the same system work and fit not just in one machine, but in hundreds of different machines, some of which can be used for many different purposes. This huge diversity of applications and the relatively small unit numbers for each application, coupled with the rapid introduction of new standards and the very high performance needed from the engines and machines, requires a sophisticated approach to product development. Furthermore, as emissions requirements become ever more stringent, designing a system to meet the legislation subject to packaging and cost constraints becomes progressively more difficult. This is further exacerbated by increasing system complexity, where more than one technology may be required to control all the legislated pollutants and/or an active control strategy is involved. Also a very high degree of component integration is required.

The DEXA Cluster consisted of three closely interlinked projects. In 2003 the DEXA Cluster concluded by demonstrating the successful development of critical technologies for Diesel exhaust particulate after-treatment, without adverse effects on NOx emissions and maintaining the fuel economy advantages of the Diesel engine well beyond the EURO IV (2000) emission standards horizon. In the present paper the most important results of the DEXA Cluster projects in the demonstration of advanced particulate control technologies, the development of a simulation toolkit for the design of diesel exhaust after-treatment systems and the development of novel particulate characterization methodologies, are presented. The motivation for the DEXA Cluster research was to increase the market competitiveness of diesel engine powertrains for passenger cars worldwide, and to accelerate the adoption of particulate control technology.

Future heavy-duty diesel (HDD) engines are designed to have higher engine out NOx, for improved fuel economy, while reduction of the emission control technology footprint is also desired. Consequently, higher NOx reduction across compact emission control systems is required. Selective catalytic reduction (SCR) catalyst coating combined with a wall flow particulate filter (SCRF®1) is a technology that enables abatement of NOx emissions in addition to oxidation of soot from diesel engine exhausts. Vanadia based-SCR is well known for NOx reduction and is active for hydrocarbon (HC) and particulate matter (PM) oxidation. This dual functionality (oxidation and reduction reactions) of the V.SCR catalysts plus the filtration achieved by the filter substrate can help certain diesel engine applications achieve the legislative limits with a reduced packaging volume.