Dynamic modeling of active regeneration in catalyzed and non-catalyzed diesel particulate filters

Particulate matter (PM) emissions standards set by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) have become increasingly stringent over the years. The EPA regulation for PM in heavy duty diesel engines has been reduced to 0.01 g/bhp-hr for the year 2010. Heavy duty diesel engines make use of an aftertreatment filtration device, the Diesel Particulate Filter (DPF). DPFs are highly efficient in filtering PM (known as soot) and are an integral part of 2010 heavy duty diesel aftertreatment system. PM is accumulated in the DPF as the exhaust gas flows through it. This PM needs to be removed by oxidation periodically for the efficient functioning of the filter. This oxidation process is also known as regeneration. There are 2 types of regeneration processes, namely active regeneration (oxidation of PM by external means) and passive oxidation (oxidation of PM by internal means). Active regeneration occurs typically in high temperature regions, about 500 - 600 °C, which is much higher than normal diesel exhaust temperatures. Thus, the exhaust temperature has to be raised with the help of external devices like a Diesel Oxidation Catalyst (DOC) or a fuel burner. The O2 oxidizes PM producing CO2 as oxidation product. In passive oxidation, one way of regeneration is by the use of NO2. NO2 oxidizes the PM producing NO and CO2 as oxidation products. The passive oxidation process occurs at lower temperatures (200 - 400 °C) in comparison to the active regeneration temperatures. Generally, DPF substrate walls are washcoated with catalyst material to speed up the rate of PM oxidation. The catalyst washcoat is observed to increase the rate of PM oxidation. The goal of this research is to develop a simple mathematical model to simulate the PM depletion during the active regeneration process in a DPF (catalyzed and non-catalyzed). A simple, zero-dimensional kinetic model was developed in MATLAB. Experimental data required for calibration was obtained by active regeneration experiments performed on PM loaded mini DPFs in an automated flow reactor. The DPFs were loaded with PM from the exhaust of a commercial heavy duty diesel engine. The model was calibrated to the data obtained from active regeneration experiments. Numerical gradient based optimization techniques were used to estimate the kinetic parameters of the model.

PROSPECTS AND ISSUES FOR FUEL CELLS WITH FREIGHT RAIL TRANSPORTATION

Recent changes in the cost and availability of natural gas (NG) as compared to diesel have sparked interest at all levels of the commercial shipping sector. In particular, Class 1 heavy-duty rail has been researching NG as a supplement to diesel combustion. This study investigates the relative economic and emissions advantage of making use of the energy efficiencies if combustion is circumvented altogether by use of fuel cell (FC) technologies applied to NG. FC technology for the transport sector has primarily been developed for the private automobile. However, FC use in the automobile sector faces considerable economic and logistical barriers such as cost, range, durability, and refueling infrastructure. The heavy-duty freight sector may be a more reasonable setting to introduce FC technology to the transportation market. The industry has shown interest in adopting NG as a potential fuel by already investing in NG infrastructure and locomotives. The two most promising FC technologies are proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) and solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs). SOFCs are more efficient and capable of accepting any kind of fuel, which makes them particularly attractive. The rail industry can benefit from the adoption of FC technology through reduced costs and emissions, as well as limiting dependence on diesel, which accounts for a large portion of operation expenses for Class 1 railroads. This report provides an economic feasibility analysis comparing the use of PEMFCs and SOFCs in heavy freight rail transport applications. The scope is to provide insight into which technologies could be pursued by the industry and to prioritize technologies that need further development. Initial results do not show economic potential for NG and fuel cells in locomotion, but some minimal potential for reduced emissions is seen. Various technology configurations and market scenarios analyzed could provide savings if the price of LNG is decreased and the price of diesel increases. The most beneficial areas of needed research include technology development for the variable output of SOFCs, and hot start-up optimization.

LIFE CYCLE ASSESSMENTS (LCAs) OF PYROLYSIS-BASED GASOLINE AND DIESEL FROM DIFFERENT REGIONAL FEEDSTOCKS: CORN STOVER, SWITCHGRASS, SUGAR CANE BAGASSE, WASTE WOOD, GUINEA GRASS, ALGAE, AND ALBIZIA

Renewable hydrocarbon biofuels are being investigated as possible alternatives to conventional liquid transportation fossil fuels like gasoline, kerosene (aviation fuel), and diesel. A diverse range of biomass feedstocks such as corn stover, sugarcane bagasse, switchgrass, waste wood, and algae, are being evaluated as candidates for pyrolysis and catalytic upgrading to produce drop-in hydrocarbon fuels. This research has developed preliminary life cycle assessments (LCA) for each feedstock-specific pathway and compared the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions of the hydrocarbon biofuels to current fossil fuels. As a comprehensive study, this analysis attempts to account for all of the GHG emissions associated with each feedstock pathway through the entire life cycle. Emissions from all stages including feedstock production, land use change, pyrolysis, stabilizing the pyrolysis oil for transport and storage, and upgrading the stabilized pyrolysis oil to a hydrocarbon fuel are included. In addition to GHG emissions, the energy requirements and water use have been evaluated over the entire life cycle. The goal of this research is to help understand the relative advantages and disadvantages of the feedstocks and the resultant hydrocarbon biofuels based on three environmental indicators; GHG emissions, energy demand, and water utilization. Results indicate that liquid hydrocarbon biofuels produced through this pyrolysis-based pathway can achieve greenhouse gas emission savings of greater than 50% compared to petroleum fuels, thus potentially qualifying these biofuels under the US EPA RFS2 program. GHG emissions from biofuels ranged from 10.7-74.3 g/MJ from biofuels derived from sugarcane bagasse and wild algae at the extremes of this range, respectively. The cumulative energy demand (CED) shows that energy in every biofuel process is primarily from renewable biomass and the remaining energy demand is mostly from fossil fuels. The CED for biofuel range from 1.25-3.25 MJ/MJ from biofuels derived from sugarcane bagasse to wild algae respectively, while the other feedstock-derived biofuels are around 2 MJ/MJ. Water utilization is primarily from cooling water use during the pyrolysis stage if irrigation is not used during the feedstock production stage. Water use ranges from 1.7 - 17.2 gallons of water per kg of biofuel from sugarcane bagasse to open pond algae, respectively.

Comparison of the toxicity of diesel exhaust produced by bio- and fossil diesel combustion in human lung cells in vitro

Alternative fuels are increasingly combusted in diesel- and gasoline engines and the contribution of such exhausts to the overall air pollution is on the rise. Recent findings on the possible adverse effects of biodiesel exhaust are contradictive, at least partly resulting from the various fuel qualities, engine types and different operation conditions that were tested. However, most of the studies are biased by undesired interactions between the exhaust samples and biological culture media. We here report how complete, freshly produced exhausts from fossil diesel (B0), from a blend of 20% rapeseed-methyl ester (RME) and 80% fossil diesel (B20) and from pure rapeseed methyl ester (B100) affect a complex 3D cellular model of the human airway epithelium in vitro by exposing the cells at the air–liquid interface. The induction of pro-apoptotic and necrotic cell death, cellular morphology, oxidative stress, and pro-inflammatory responses were assessed. Compared to B0 exhaust, B20 exhaust decreased oxidative stress and pro-inflammatory responses, whereas B100 exhaust, depending on exposure duration, decreased oxidative stress but increased pro-inflammatory responses. The effects are only very weak and given the compared to fossil diesel higher ecological sustainability of biodiesel, it appears that – at least RME – can be considered a valuable alternative to pure fossil diesel.

Hybrid wind-diesel power plant valuation and optimization using real option theory and dynamic programming

El sistema de energía eólica-diesel híbrido tiene un gran potencial en la prestación de suministro de energía a comunidades remotas. En comparación con los sistemas tradicionales de diesel, las plantas de energía híbridas ofrecen grandes ventajas tales como el suministro de capacidad de energía extra para "microgrids", reducción de los contaminantes y emisiones de gases de efecto invernadero, y la cobertura del riesgo de aumento inesperado del precio del combustible. El principal objetivo de la presente tesis es proporcionar nuevos conocimientos para la evaluación y optimización de los sistemas de energía híbrido eólico-diesel considerando las incertidumbres. Dado que la energía eólica es una variable estocástica, ésta no puede ser controlada ni predecirse con exactitud. La naturaleza incierta del viento como fuente de energía produce serios problemas tanto para la operación como para la evaluación del valor del sistema de energía eólica-diesel híbrido. Por un lado, la regulación de la potencia inyectada desde las turbinas de viento es una difícil tarea cuando opera el sistema híbrido. Por otro lado, el bene.cio económico de un sistema eólico-diesel híbrido se logra directamente a través de la energía entregada a la red de alimentación de la energía eólica. Consecuentemente, la incertidumbre de los recursos eólicos incrementa la dificultad de estimar los beneficios globales en la etapa de planificación. La principal preocupación del modelo tradicional determinista es no tener en cuenta la incertidumbre futura a la hora de tomar la decisión de operación. Con lo cual, no se prevé las acciones operativas flexibles en respuesta a los escenarios futuros. El análisis del rendimiento y simulación por ordenador en el Proyecto Eólico San Cristóbal demuestra que la incertidumbre sobre la energía eólica, las estrategias de control, almacenamiento de energía, y la curva de potencia de aerogeneradores tienen un impacto significativo sobre el rendimiento del sistema. En la presente tesis, se analiza la relación entre la teoría de valoración de opciones y el proceso de toma de decisiones. La opción real se desarrolla con un modelo y se presenta a través de ejemplos prácticos para evaluar el valor de los sistemas de energía eólica-diesel híbridos. Los resultados muestran que las opciones operacionales pueden aportar un valor adicional para el sistema de energía híbrida, cuando esta flexibilidad operativa se utiliza correctamente. Este marco se puede aplicar en la optimización de la operación a corto plazo teniendo en cuenta la naturaleza dependiente de la trayectoria de la política óptima de despacho, dadas las plausibles futuras realizaciones de la producción de energía eólica. En comparación con los métodos de valoración y optimización existentes, el resultado del caso de estudio numérico muestra que la política de operación resultante del modelo de optimización propuesto presenta una notable actuación en la reducción del con- sumo total de combustible del sistema eólico-diesel. Con el .n de tomar decisiones óptimas, los operadores de plantas de energía y los gestores de éstas no deben centrarse sólo en el resultado directo de cada acción operativa, tampoco deberían tomar decisiones deterministas. La forma correcta es gestionar dinámicamente el sistema de energía teniendo en cuenta el valor futuro condicionado en cada opción frente a la incertidumbre. ABSTRACT Hybrid wind-diesel power systems have a great potential in providing energy supply to remote communities. Compared with the traditional diesel systems, hybrid power plants are providing many advantages such as providing extra energy capacity to the micro-grid, reducing pollution and greenhouse-gas emissions, and hedging the risk of unexpected fuel price increases. This dissertation aims at providing novel insights for assessing and optimizing hybrid wind-diesel power systems considering the related uncertainties. Since wind power can neither be controlled nor accurately predicted, the energy harvested from a wind turbine may be considered a stochastic variable. This uncertain nature of wind energy source results in serious problems for both the operation and value assessment of the hybrid wind-diesel power system. On the one hand, regulating the uncertain power injected from wind turbines is a difficult task when operating the hybrid system. On the other hand, the economic profit of a hybrid wind-diesel system is achieved directly through the energy delivered to the power grid from the wind energy. Therefore, the uncertainty of wind resources has increased the difficulty in estimating the total benefits in the planning stage. The main concern of the traditional deterministic model is that it does not consider the future uncertainty when making the dispatch decision. Thus, it does not provide flexible operational actions in response to the uncertain future scenarios. Performance analysis and computer simulation on the San Cristobal Wind Project demonstrate that the wind power uncertainty, control strategies, energy storage, and the wind turbine power curve have a significant impact on the performance of the system. In this dissertation, the relationship between option pricing theory and decision making process is discussed. A real option model is developed and presented through practical examples for assessing the value of hybrid wind-diesel power systems. Results show that operational options can provide additional value to the hybrid power system when this operational flexibility is correctly utilized. This framework can be applied in optimizing short term dispatch decisions considering the path-dependent nature of the optimal dispatch policy, given the plausible future realizations of the wind power production. Comparing with the existing valuation and optimization methods, result from numerical example shows that the dispatch policy resulting from the proposed optimization model exhibits a remarkable performance in minimizing the total fuel consumption of the wind-diesel system. In order to make optimal decisions, power plant operators and managers should not just focus on the direct outcome of each operational action; neither should they make deterministic decisions. The correct way is to dynamically manage the power system by taking into consideration the conditional future value in each option in response to the uncertainty.

Análise da combustão e emissões em motores a bio-diesel.

A rápida evolução do mercado automotivo, em função de maiores restrições sobre as emissões, impulsionou a utilização de várias alternativas para melhorias dos motores diesel, entre elas as mudanças nos seus componentes com o auxílio de ferramentas de modelagem e a utilização de combustíveis alternativos. As características dos combustíveis afetarão a queima e, assim, alteram os resíduos do processo de combustão. Novos combustíveis podem também ser utilizados como uma alternativa para veículos de gerações anteriores com o intuito de reduzir as emissões. Este estudo mostra os efeitos da utilização do Biodiesel B20 e do Biodiesel Amyris em motores de combustão interna. Para isso, foram realizados testes de motores em salas dinamométricas, e seus resultados confrontados e discutidos. Além disso, são abordados os efeitos do combustível no processo da combustão. Esta Dissertação está concentrada, principalmente, na emissão de NOx e de material particulado, que são poluentes mais restritivos perante a Legislação brasileira de emissões CONAMA P7.

Optimização de um sistema híbrido off-grid PV, Gerador Diesel e Baterias

Tese de mestrado integrado, Engenharia da Energia e do Ambiente, Universidade de Lisboa, Faculdade de Ciências, 2016

Benefici del long route EGR sulla riduzione dei consumi: studio di fattibilità su motore diesel automobilistico

L'EGR (Exhaust Gas Recirculation) è una tecnica comunemente sfruttata per la riduzione delle emissioni. In questo studio sono stati investigati i benefici, in termini di fuel economy, prodotti dall'aggiunta di un circuito EGR long route su un motore diesel per applicazioni automobilistiche dotato di sistema short route. L'indagine è stata svolta su di un modello motore su software GT-Power, adeguatamente calibrato e validato sui dati da piano quotato. Simulazioni sono state svolte al fine di valutare gli effetti del solo LP-EGR sul motore, per poi considerare un funzionamento combinato dai due sistemi di ricircolo (dual loop). Le maggiori portate che per il sistema long route interessano la turbina determinano un incremento nelle contropressioni. Ciò ha portato a considerare la possibilità di modificare il sistema turbo. Il layout originario comprendeva una turbina a geometria fissa (FGT), a cui ne sono stati affiancati due ulteriori con turbina a geometria variabile (VGT). I risultati sono stati analizzati vincolando la produzione di inquinanti ai valori registrati nei punti di calibrazione relativi al layout originale del motore. Effettivo risparmio di combustibile non è stato riscontrato nell'allestimento con turbina FGT a causa delle elevate contropressioni, mentre con turbine VGT è stata registrata una effettiva fuel economy grazie al sistema LP-EGR senza alcun deterioramento nelle emissioni di NOx e PM. I benefici riscontrati con il LP-EGR sono da attribure ad un incremento del rendimento indicato dovuto alla riduzione delle perdite per scambio termico a seguito di una minore temperatura caratterizzante i gas ricircolati.

Augmentation of research and analysis capabilities for timely support of automotive fuel economy activities. Final report.

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Washington, D.C.

International automotive fuel economy research conference. First. Proceedings.

Mode of access: Internet.

Automotive fuel economy contractors' coordination meeting - summary report.

Mode of access: Internet.

Truck noise IV-H: post-fleet test results on heavy duty diesel trucks having reduced noise emissions. Final report.

Transportation Department, Secretary of Transportation, Washington, D.C.

Automotive fuel economy research contractors' coordination meeting. Third.

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Technology Assessment Division, Washington, D.C.

Final environmental impact statement. Proposed rulemaking concerning passenger automotive average fuel economy. NHTSA technical report.

Mode of access: Internet.

Energy use and other comparisons between diesel and gasoline pickup trucks. Interim report.

Transportation Systems Center, Cambridge, Mass.