Reactivity of Diesel Soot from 6- and 8-Cylinder Heavy-Duty Engines

Increasing concern for air pollution together with the introduction of new types of fuels pose new challenges to the exhaust aftertreatment system for heavy-duty (HD) vehicles. For diesel-powered engines, emissions of particulate matter (PM) is one of the main drawbacks due to its effect on health. To mitigate the tailpipe emissions of PM, heavy-duty vehicles are since Euro V equipped with a diesel particulate filter (DPF). The accumulation of particles causes flow restriction resulting in fuel penalties and decreased vehicle performance. Understanding the properties of PM produced during engine operation is important for the development and optimized control of the DPF. This study has focused on assessing the reactivity of the PM by measuring the oxidation kinetics of the carbonaceous fraction. PM was sampled from two different heavy-duty engines during various test cycles. The heavy-duty engines were 6- and 8-cylinder direct injection diesel engines rated at 550 and 650 hp respectively. Reaction kinetics of the samples and characteristic oxidation temperatures were assessed by the non-isothermal thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) employing a multiple-ramp rates method in a 10% oxygen atmosphere. The oxidation of the diesel soot was compared with a model soot, Printex-U, and values were compared with the existing literature. The calculated activation energies range between 114.8 and 155.8 kJ/mol for diesel soot as well as the Printex-U samples indicating similar reactivity despite differences in engine configuration, fuel chemistry or, aging.