Smart Idle Control - Diesel Particulate Filter (DPF) Overheat Protection

The current and upcoming Internal Combustion Engine (ICE) emission norms are very stringent. It is difficult to meet emission standards with just combustion optimization techniques. As a result, post-treatment is required for Engine-out emissions. Otherwise, these hazardous gases impact the ecosystem of living beings. Many technologies are implemented at the exhaust for reducing the emissions. Diesel Particulate Filter (DPF) is one such technique to achieve lower Particulate Matter (PM) and Particulate Number (PN) emission goals. In order to achieve such emission reduction, the DPF undergoes periodic cleaning called regeneration. During regeneration, the exhaust systems including DPF are maintained at elevated temperatures to achieve proper cleaning. When the vehicle is in regeneration, sudden braking or accelerator pedal release leads to engine Drop to Idle speeds (DTI), which sharply increases the temperature gradient inside the DPF which may result in physical damage like cracks, melting and fractures to the DPF substrate. In the occurrence of the above scenario, DPF replacement is the only option which will be an additional expense to the end user. This paper proposes a software solution to address the above issue by detecting the DTI conditions during regeneration and applying corrective actions.