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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.

As fuel economy regulations increase and customer preference shifts to smaller, higher power density engines it is more important to effectively cool certain areas of the cylinder head and valvetrain. In order to maximize valvetrain life and increase engine performance it is critical to maintain a near uniform valve seat temperature to enable proper sealing. As cylinder head bridges narrow, and the temperature increases, the water jacket may not be sufficient. An alternative method to ensuring equal temperature distribution across the valve is to promote low speed valve rotation. This will not only aid, cooling the valve seat, as well as cooling and cleaning the valves' seating surface. This paper describes the development and testing of a valve rotation study, utilizing the Taguchi approach in order to determine the most robust design. A test stand was utilized to examine the valve rotation in which the cam was driven directly using a DC motor.