PNNL

Abstract

Diesel engines can offer substantially higher fuel efficiency, good driving performance characteristics, and reduced carbon dioxide (CO2) emission compared to stoichiometric gasoline engines. Despite the increasing public demand for higher fuel economy and reduced dependency on imported oil, however, meeting the stringent emission standards with affordable methods has been a major challenge for the wide application of these fuel-efficient engines in the US market. The selective catalytic reduction of NOx by urea (urea-SCR) is one of the most promising technologies for NOx emission control for diesel engine exhausts. To ensure successful NOx emission control in the urea-SCR technology, both a diesel oxidation catalyst (DOC) and a urea-SCR catalyst with high activity and durability are critical for the emission control system. Because the use of this technology for light-duty diesel vehicle applications is new, the relative lack of experience makes it especially challenging to satisfy the durability requirements. Of particular concern is being able to realistically simulate actual field aging of the catalyst systems under laboratory conditions, which is necessary both as a rapid assessment tool for verifying improved performance and certifiability of new catalyst formulations. In addition, it is imperative to develop a good understanding of deactivation mechanisms to help develop improved catalyst materials. In this CRADA program, General Motors Company and PNNL have investigated fresh, laboratory- and vehicle-aged DOC and SCR catalysts. The studies have led to a better understanding of various aging factors that impact the long-term performance of catalysts used in the urea-SCR technology, and have improved the correlation between laboratory and vehicle aging for reduced development time and cost. This Final Report briefly highlights many of the technical accomplishments and documents the productivity of the program in terms of peer-reviewed scientific publications (2 total), reports (3 total including this Final Report), and presentations (5 total).