An Aerodynamically Regenerated Diesel Particulate Trap with a Flow-Through Soot Incinerator Section 940461

The development of an Aerodynamically Regenerated Trap (ART) with a flow-through incinerator section is discussed herein. The ART system presented herein employes a single high-collection efficiency ceramic monolith to filter particulate emissions. Regeneration is performed aerodynamically, using compressed air flowing in the direction opposite to the exhaust flow. Dislodged particulates are captured in the incineration section of the trap directly below the ceramic monolith, where they are burned using an electric heater. This work concentrates on the design and development of the incinerator sections of the diesel particulate trap, whose function is to retain the soot from the regeneration air stream, without impeding the flow of the regeneration air itself. Three variations in the design of the incinerator chambers were developed: (a) a dead flow system, (b) a flow-through system with a secondary revolving-disk filter, and (c) a completely passive flow-through cylindrical secondary filter. The secondary filters in the flow-through designs are used to clean the regeneration air itself and retain the soot in the chamber for burning. The evaluation of the ART systems was conducted with the aid of a computational fluid dynamics package and extensive road tests. All systems were constructed and road-tested in a diesel-powered vehicle. The trap that was fitted with the cylindrical secondary filter proved to be the most reliable and effective. It solved the problem of the conflicting needs of unobstructed flow of regeneration air through the trap and of soot retention for subsequent burning in an incineration chamber. These incineration chambers may replace the fiber bags used in earlier versions for collecting particulates from the regeneration air [1].¹