The U.S. economy is linked to efficient heavy vehicle (diesel) transportation. There is an urgent need for a cost effective technology that would help reduce pollutants such as NOx and particulates from the exhaust of diesel engines. This project will develop a plasma-assisted catalyst in which a non-thermal plasma, generated across a catalytic-packed bed, provides an active surface and a synergistic effect and offers the potential for selective NOx and particulate removal. In Phase I, the technical feasibility of this concept was demonstrated using novel catalytic materials. Lab tests on diesel exhausts containing in excess of 10% O2 have demonstrated more than 70% removal of NOx and 80% removal of particulates, using less than 7% of engine brake horse power (bhp). Phase II will further develop this plasma-assisted catalyst technology. Efforts will be focused on further optimization of the catalytic materials for NOx and particulate removal, scale-up of the system to an integrated plasma muffler on a representative size engine, and continuous operation at exhaust temperature.
Commercial Applications and Other Benefits as described by the awardee: This technology should lead to a 90% reduction in NOx and particulates and a 10% improvement in fuel efficiency on engine reoptimization. Other potential benefits include pollution reduction from diesel engines, lean burn gasoline engines, natural gas engines, boilers and other combustion equipment.
