Gm Global Technolgoy Operations, Inc.

Delphi Technologies, Inc.

Other

Michael Ralph Foster

Stephen Joe Myers

David Emil Nelson

Alan Gerard Turek

Robert Anthony Lawrence

Paul E Jankowski

Gerald Leroy Vaneman

Scott Christopher Blanchet

Russell Paul Richmond

David E Roberts

Robert X Li

Jack E Smith

David K Chen

Wayne Richard Moore

Jeffrey B Hardesty

John Boehnke

Kenneth Price

Egas Jose De Sousa

Dana Michael Serrels

Jarrod C Sherwood

Jesse Allan Heather

Matthew G Foster

Egas Jose Desousa

Fong Z Li

Kenneth A Smith

Gordon J Rutland

William H Braatz

Eric J Lesher

Frederick J Hartley

Robert D Wendling

William L Alley

Charles J Root

Disclosed herein is a method of making a catalytic converter; forming a shell having a welding deformation detail; inserting and housing a catalyst substrate inside the shell, wherein a mat support material is disposed between the shell and the catalyst substrate; welding an end cone having a flange to the shell by applying a deformation force to the flange causing deformation of welding deformation detail.

Apparatus and method for manufacturing a catalytic converter

An embodiment of a method for producing a gas treatment device includes disposing a mat support material about a substrate to form a subassembly; passing at least a portion of the subassembly into a main body portion of a housing that has a first portion having a decreasing internal diameter from a first end to the main body portion, the main body portion extending from the first portion.

Gas treatment device and system, and method for making the same

A non-thermal plasma reactor is provided. The non-thermal plasma reactor includes a plasma-generating substrate, a housing and a mat. The plasma-generating substrate has one or more flow paths for an exhaust gas. The housing has an inlet and an outlet. The mat retains the plasma-generating substrate in the housing such that the one or more flow paths are in fluid communication with the inlet and the outlet. A voltage is supplied to the plasma-generating substrate to generate a plasma field. An electrically insulating layer is disposed between the plasma-generating substrate and the housing for preventing an arc of electricity from the plasma-generating substrate and/or the voltage to the housing.

Apparatus and method for mat protection of non-thermal plasma reactor

Disclosed herein is a method for reducing internal combustion engine contaminate and additive particulate matter from a particulate filter the method including accessing the filter and entraining particulate matter in a fluid stream. Further disclosed herein is an internal combustion engine particulate filter system including a canister, a filter media mounted in said canister and an access opening in said canister. Yet still further disclosed herein is a method for determining condition of a particulate filter in situ including establishing a vacuum value for a clean particulate filter in situ, establishing a vacuum value for a used particulate filter in situ; and comparing the established value for the clean filter versus the used filter.

Diesel particulate filter ash removal

An exhaust system for an internal combustion engine having a plurality of cylinders, comprising: a exhaust manifold for providing fluid communication of exhaust of the plurality of cylinders to a catalytic converter, the exhaust manifold comprising a first exhaust pipe and a second exhaust pipe, the first exhaust pipe being in fluid communication with the second exhaust pipe and the second exhaust pipe being in fluid communication with the catalytic converter, the first exhaust pipe providing a first fluid path for exhaust of a first plurality of cylinders of the engine and the second exhaust pipe providing a second fluid path for exhaust of a second plurality of cylinders of the engine, the second fluid path being shorter than the first fluid path; a controller for determining whether to deactivate the first plurality of cylinders in accordance with a predetermined engine starting condition, wherein deactivation of the first plurality of cylinders causes the second plurality of cylinders to operate at a condition corresponding to an engine output demand, wherein an exhaust of a first temperature is expelled by the second plurality of cylinders into the catalytic converter, the first temperature being greater than an exhaust temperature that would be generated by the first and the second plurality of cylinders operating at the condition corresponding to the engine output demand.

Apparatus and method for reduced cold start emissions

A catalytic converter comprises a catalyst substrate concentrically disposed in a shell and having a mat support material located concentrically in between the catalyst substrate and shell. The catalyst substrate includes structural features located on its outer surface that engage the mat support material. The shear forces exerted between the catalyst substrate and mat support material, in addition to the normally present frictional forces, reduce the axial movement of the catalyst substrate during assembly and operation of the catalytic converter.

Catalytic converter

The invention provides a controller and cylinder deactivation system to regenerate an exhaust aftertreatment device for a multicylinder engine that operates primarily at an air/fuel ratio that is lean of stoichiometry. The invention uses the cylinder deactivation system to control temperature and air/fuel ratio of an exhaust gas feedstream going into an aftertreatment device. The invention also increases the amount of fuel delivered to each non-deactivated cylinder by an amount sufficient to maintain operating power of the engine. The regeneration action includes desorbing NOx from a NOx adsorber catalyst, desulfating the NOx adsorber catalyst, and purging a diesel particulate trap.

Engine cylinder deactivation to improve the performance of exhaust emission control systems

A non-thermal plasma reactor is provided. The reactor includes a plasma-generating substrate, a housing, a voltage supplied to the plasma-generating substrate, and a retention material. The plasma-generating substrate has one or more flow paths for an exhaust gas. The plasma-generating substrate includes at least one weak area and at least one strong area. The housing has an inlet opening and an outlet opening. The voltage is supplied to the plasma-generating substrate for generating a plasma field. The retention material retains the plasma-generating substrate in the housing such that the one or more flow paths are in fluid communication with the inlet opening and the outlet opening. The retention material is configured to provide a higher retention force to the at least one strong area and a lower retention force to the at least one weak area.

Apparatus and method for retention of non-thermal plasma reactor

A strengthened thin-walled catalytic converter substrate includes thin perimeter walls and thin interior walls defining cells and a catalyst washcoat selectively disposed on the substrate. Washcoat thickness is increased in those cells having the most impact on final catalyst strength, typically the outer cells defined by the perimeter walls. A method for maximizing overall catalyst strength with minimal substrate thermal mass includes selectively applying washcoat based on desired substrate strength and converter assembly method.

Stronger catalyst using selective washcoat location

A non-thermal plasma reactor and method provides individually retained reactor plates. The method comprises stacking an alternating sequence of positive and negative reactor plates to form a reactor stack, placing temporary spacers between the positive and negative reactor plates. In one embodiment, individually retained reactor plates are secured by folds of a ceramic insulating layer extending between plate pairs, with reactor plates secured by the stack retention material and the folds of the ceramic insulting layer. In a second embodiment, individually retained reactor plates are secured with a permanent pleated insulting mica separator disposed on each side of the reactor. In a third embodiment, a retention material extends slightly into the exhaust gas passage at each side of the stack supplying permanent support for the stacked plates.

Non-thermal plasma reactor having individually retained positive and negative reactor plates

The present invention employs cylinder deactivation hardware and control systems to increase the heat rejected to the engine cooling system to improve heating of an internal combustion engine and a passenger compartment of a vehicle. The heat rejected to the cooling system is a result of an increase in combustion temperatures in the non-deactivated cylinders, due to increased work. The invention also includes a system to reduce the cooling system heat capacity. The invention provides heat quickly after a cold start and while operating at low engine operating points. This method and system are particularly suited to compression-ignition engines and direct-injection spark ignition engines that primarily operate lean of stoichiometry.

Engine cylinder deactivation to improve vehicle interior heating and defrosting

Disclosed herein is an apparatus and method for manufacturing an exhaust emission control device, and the exhaust emission control device formed thereby. The method of manufacturing an exhaust emission control device, comprises: disposing a viscous-elastic material around at least a portion of a substrate to form a wrapped element. The wrapped element is compressed at a first compression rate and at a second compression rate that is slower than the first compression rate, and the wrapped element is introduced into a housing.

Apparatus and method for forming an exhaust emission control device, and the device formed thereby

A catalytic converter is constructed by measuring a substrate to be placed within the outer shell or can, wrapping the substrate in a selected mat and loading the package (mat and substrate) into the can. The can is larger than it will be at completion of manufacture to render such loading easier. Subsequent to loading, the measurement of the substrate is used to direct the degree to which the can is reduced in outside dimension such that a selected annulus is created between the substrate and can, said annulus being occupied by said mat.

Method of making converter housing size based upon substrate size

A catalytic converter of the type having an inlet plenum between a converter inlet and an axial inlet face of a substrate and an outlet plenum between a converter outlet and an axial outlet face of the substrate, wherein a first axial length of the inlet plenum is in a range of 20-40% of the first axial length of the inlet plenum summed with a second axial length of the outlet plenum to minimize flow resistance in said catalytic converter.

Catalytic converter end plate inlet/outlet plenum length ratio

A method of manufacturing an exhaust control valve includes casting first and second subhousings as separate pieces and machining smooth the inner faces of both. Each subhousing has a stem portion and a flow portion. Each flow portion defines a cylindrical bore from which a seat arc extends radially inward and approximately 180&deg; along. The seat arc of the first subhousing lies below, and the seat arc of the second subhousing lies above, a horizontal plane that bisects the subhousings. Each seat arc has a semicircular inner sidewall that serves as a valve seat. Their inner faces facing each other, the two subhousings are mated so that their two stem portions form a stem housing and their two flow portions form a flow housing. During the mating step, the cylindrical bores are aligned to form a flow passage through the flow housing, with the two valve seats spaced equidistantly from a vertical plane defined by the inner faces along which the subhousings mate. In further steps, the method involves boring at least one bore into the stem housing. A rotatable shaft is sealingly enclosed within the bore(s) and it protrudes into the flow passage. Another step entails affixing the valve plate to the shaft so that it will pivot between the opened and closed positions as the shaft is being rotated accordingly.

Growing community of inventors

Columbiaville, MI, United States of America

Michael Ralph Foster