Aftertreatment R&D
The Aftertreatment R&D Section in the Engine, Emissions and Vehicle Research Division at Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) is principally involved with projects related to the advanced control of exhaust emissions for a range of engine types and sizes. Studies may include the effects of fuels (gasoline, diesel, and alternatives) and/or lubricants on catalyst performance, durability effects on catalyst performance, development of catalyst formulations for standard and novel applications, and much more. Catalyst testing experience includes oxidation, partial oxidation and three-way catalysts for gasoline engines, and oxidation catalysts, diesel particulate filters (DPFs), lean oxides of nitrogen (NOx) catalysts, lean NOx traps, and SCR catalysts for diesels.
Project topics range widely from accelerated aging of catalysts using bench engines rig, diesel particulate filter and exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) cooler performance and durability, and catalyst performance evaluation using synthetic gas reactors such as SwRI's USGR® (universal synthetic gas reactor system), bench engines, or vehicles on chassis dynamometers.
Phillip Weber, Manager
Aftertreatment R&D Technical Strengths
- Aftertreatment technology design, development, testing and integration
- Catalyst aging, durability and performance evaluations
- CARB Furnace-Based Incremental Aging for MIL Illumination Demonstration
- CARB Aftermarket Converter Bench Engine Aging using ARB-Modified RAT A Bench Aging Cycle
- EPA Standard Bench Cycle (SBC) for Catalytic Converter Accelerated Aging
- Various Generic and Client-Defined Catalyst/Converter Aging Procedures
- Catalyst R&D, all engine and fuel applications
- Synthetic gas reactor and non-thermal plasma studies
- Universal Synthetic Gas Reactor® (USGR®) – syntheticgas.swri.org
- Diesel particulate filter (DPF) R&D
- Filtration efficiency measurement
- PM mass and soluble organic fraction measurement
- Total and solid particle number and size distribution measurement
- cDPF catalyst formulation evaluation
- cDPF balance point determination
- Automated PM loading and regeneration
- Ash accumulation and analysis
- Regeneration survivability tests
- On-vehicle performance and durability testing
- DPF plugging investigations and cleaning strategies
- Heavy-duty DPF durability test procedure development
- On-vehicle exhaust system environment measurement
- Accelerated test development
- Durability test validation
- SCR catalyst system evaluations
- NOx reduction performance
- Urea dosing technology
- Durability testing
- LNT system evaluations
- NOx reduction performance
- Regeneration and desulfurization strategy development
- Durability testing
- System integration
- EGR cooler and system evaluations
- Thermal cycling
- PM fouling
- Accelerated corrosion testing
- Vibration durability
- Metallurgical analysis
- PM deposition rate determination
- Lubricating oil effects on diesel aftertreatment and sensors
- DPFs, cDPFs, DOCs, LNTs, SCRs, NOx sensors
- Catalyst deactivation
- Poisoning mechanisms
- Ash exposure
