Catalytic Converter Design Incorporating Dynamic Can Deformation

A stochastic simulation based on the Monte-Carlo method was developed to re-target gap bulk density (GBD) in ceramic catalytic converters. The combined effect of manufacturing tolerances, shell spring back and thermal expansion was analyzed by this model. Shell spring back during the canning process was calculated using Finite Element Analysis (FEA). Thermal shell expansion was obtained using can deformation data from the Key-Life Test (KLT). An example of optimized GBD that provides a robust and manufacturable design is also presented.