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Catalysts and filters continue to be applied widely to meet particulate matter regulations across new and retrofit diesel engines. Soot management of the filter continues to be enhanced, including regeneration methodologies. Concerns regarding in-cylinder post-injection of fuel for active regeneration increases interests in directly injecting this fuel into the exhaust. Performance of secondary fuel injection layouts is discussed, and sensitivities on thermal uniformity are measured and analyzed, providing insight to packaging challenges and methods to characterize and improve application designs. Influences of end cone geometries, mixers, and injector mounting positions are quantified via thermal distribution at each substrate's outlet. A flow laboratory is applied for steady state characterization, repeated on an engine dynamometer, which also provides transient results across the NRTC.

As emissions regulations around the world become more stringent, emerging markets are seeking alternative strategies that align with local infrastructures and conditions. A Lean NOx Catalyst (LNC) is developed that achieves up to 60% NOx reduction with ULSD as its reductant and ≻95% with ethanol-based fuel reductants. Opportunities exist in countries that already have an ethanol-based fuel infrastructure, such as Brazil, improving emissions reduction penetration rates without costs and complexities of establishing urea infrastructures. The LNC performance competes with urea SCR NOx reduction, catalyst volume, reductant consumption, and cost, plus it is proven to be durable, passing stationary test cycles and adequately recovering from sulfur poisoning. Controls are developed and applied on a 7.2L engine, an inline 6-cylinder non-EGR turbo diesel.

Nearly a third of the fuel energy is wasted through the exhaust of a vehicle. An efficient waste heat recovery process will undoubtedly lead to improved fuel efficiency and reduced greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Currently, there are multiple waste heat recovery technologies that are being investigated in the auto industry. One innovative waste heat recovery approach uses Thermoacoustic Converter (TAC) technology. Thermoacoustics is the field of physics related to the interaction of acoustic waves (sonic power) with heat flows. As in a heat engine, the TAC produces electric power where a temperature differential exists, which can be generated with engine exhaust (hot side) and coolant (cold side). Essentially, the TAC converts exhaust waste heat into electricity in two steps: 1) the exhaust waste heat is converted to acoustic energy (mechanical) and 2) the acoustic energy is converted to electrical energy.