Influence of high fuel rail pressure and urea selective catalytic reduction on PM formation in an off-highway heavy-duty diesel engine

The influence of fuel rail pressure (FRP) and urea-selective catalytic reduction (SCR) on particulate matter (PM) formation is investigated in this paper along with notes regarding the NO_x and other emissions. Increasing FRP was shown to reduce the overall soot and total PM mass for four operating conditions. These conditions included two high speed conditions (2400 rpm at 540 and 270 Nm of torque) and two moderated speed conditions (1400 rpm at 488 and 325 Nm). The concentrations of CO₂ and NO_x increased with fuel rail pressure and this is attributed to improved fuel-air mixing. Interestingly, the level of unburned hydrocarbons remained constant (or increased slightly) with increased FRP. PM concentration was measured using an AVL smoke meter and scanning mobility particle sizer (SMPS); and total PM was collected using standard gravimetric techniques. These results showed that the smoke number and particulate concentrations decrease with increasing FRP. However the decrease becomes more gradual as very high rail pressures. Additionally, the total PM decreased with increasing FRP; however, the soluble organic fraction (SOF) reaches a maximum after which it declines with higher rail pressure. The total PM was collected for the two 1400 rpm conditions downstream of the engine, diesel oxidation catalyst, and a urea-SCR catalyst. The results show that significant PM reduction occurs in the SCR catalyst even during high rates of urea dosage. Analysis of the PM indicates that residual SOF is burned up in the SCR catalyst.