GB2261176A - Exhaust gas ignition - Google Patents
Exhaust gas ignition Download PDFInfo
- Publication number
- GB2261176A GB2261176A GB9123869A GB9123869A GB2261176A GB 2261176 A GB2261176 A GB 2261176A GB 9123869 A GB9123869 A GB 9123869A GB 9123869 A GB9123869 A GB 9123869A GB 2261176 A GB2261176 A GB 2261176A
- Authority
- GB
- United Kingdom
- Prior art keywords
- matrix
- flame
- afterburner
- catalytic converter
- igniter
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Withdrawn
Links
Classifications
-
- F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
- F01—MACHINES OR ENGINES IN GENERAL; ENGINE PLANTS IN GENERAL; STEAM ENGINES
- F01N—GAS-FLOW SILENCERS OR EXHAUST APPARATUS FOR MACHINES OR ENGINES IN GENERAL; GAS-FLOW SILENCERS OR EXHAUST APPARATUS FOR INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINES
- F01N3/00—Exhaust or silencing apparatus having means for purifying, rendering innocuous, or otherwise treating exhaust
- F01N3/08—Exhaust or silencing apparatus having means for purifying, rendering innocuous, or otherwise treating exhaust for rendering innocuous
- F01N3/10—Exhaust or silencing apparatus having means for purifying, rendering innocuous, or otherwise treating exhaust for rendering innocuous by thermal or catalytic conversion of noxious components of exhaust
- F01N3/24—Exhaust or silencing apparatus having means for purifying, rendering innocuous, or otherwise treating exhaust for rendering innocuous by thermal or catalytic conversion of noxious components of exhaust characterised by constructional aspects of converting apparatus
- F01N3/28—Construction of catalytic reactors
- F01N3/2882—Catalytic reactors combined or associated with other devices, e.g. exhaust silencers or other exhaust purification devices
-
- F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
- F01—MACHINES OR ENGINES IN GENERAL; ENGINE PLANTS IN GENERAL; STEAM ENGINES
- F01N—GAS-FLOW SILENCERS OR EXHAUST APPARATUS FOR MACHINES OR ENGINES IN GENERAL; GAS-FLOW SILENCERS OR EXHAUST APPARATUS FOR INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINES
- F01N13/00—Exhaust or silencing apparatus characterised by constructional features ; Exhaust or silencing apparatus, or parts thereof, having pertinent characteristics not provided for in, or of interest apart from, groups F01N1/00 - F01N5/00, F01N9/00, F01N11/00
- F01N13/009—Exhaust or silencing apparatus characterised by constructional features ; Exhaust or silencing apparatus, or parts thereof, having pertinent characteristics not provided for in, or of interest apart from, groups F01N1/00 - F01N5/00, F01N9/00, F01N11/00 having two or more separate purifying devices arranged in series
- F01N13/0097—Exhaust or silencing apparatus characterised by constructional features ; Exhaust or silencing apparatus, or parts thereof, having pertinent characteristics not provided for in, or of interest apart from, groups F01N1/00 - F01N5/00, F01N9/00, F01N11/00 having two or more separate purifying devices arranged in series the purifying devices are arranged in a single housing
-
- F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
- F01—MACHINES OR ENGINES IN GENERAL; ENGINE PLANTS IN GENERAL; STEAM ENGINES
- F01N—GAS-FLOW SILENCERS OR EXHAUST APPARATUS FOR MACHINES OR ENGINES IN GENERAL; GAS-FLOW SILENCERS OR EXHAUST APPARATUS FOR INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINES
- F01N3/00—Exhaust or silencing apparatus having means for purifying, rendering innocuous, or otherwise treating exhaust
- F01N3/08—Exhaust or silencing apparatus having means for purifying, rendering innocuous, or otherwise treating exhaust for rendering innocuous
- F01N3/10—Exhaust or silencing apparatus having means for purifying, rendering innocuous, or otherwise treating exhaust for rendering innocuous by thermal or catalytic conversion of noxious components of exhaust
- F01N3/18—Exhaust or silencing apparatus having means for purifying, rendering innocuous, or otherwise treating exhaust for rendering innocuous by thermal or catalytic conversion of noxious components of exhaust characterised by methods of operation; Control
- F01N3/20—Exhaust or silencing apparatus having means for purifying, rendering innocuous, or otherwise treating exhaust for rendering innocuous by thermal or catalytic conversion of noxious components of exhaust characterised by methods of operation; Control specially adapted for catalytic conversion ; Methods of operation or control of catalytic converters
- F01N3/2006—Periodically heating or cooling catalytic reactors, e.g. at cold starting or overheating
- F01N3/204—Periodically heating or cooling catalytic reactors, e.g. at cold starting or overheating using an exhaust gas igniter, e.g. a spark or glow plug, without introducing fuel into exhaust duct
-
- F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
- F01—MACHINES OR ENGINES IN GENERAL; ENGINE PLANTS IN GENERAL; STEAM ENGINES
- F01N—GAS-FLOW SILENCERS OR EXHAUST APPARATUS FOR MACHINES OR ENGINES IN GENERAL; GAS-FLOW SILENCERS OR EXHAUST APPARATUS FOR INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINES
- F01N3/00—Exhaust or silencing apparatus having means for purifying, rendering innocuous, or otherwise treating exhaust
- F01N3/08—Exhaust or silencing apparatus having means for purifying, rendering innocuous, or otherwise treating exhaust for rendering innocuous
- F01N3/10—Exhaust or silencing apparatus having means for purifying, rendering innocuous, or otherwise treating exhaust for rendering innocuous by thermal or catalytic conversion of noxious components of exhaust
- F01N3/18—Exhaust or silencing apparatus having means for purifying, rendering innocuous, or otherwise treating exhaust for rendering innocuous by thermal or catalytic conversion of noxious components of exhaust characterised by methods of operation; Control
- F01N3/22—Control of additional air supply only, e.g. using by-passes or variable air pump drives
-
- F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
- F01—MACHINES OR ENGINES IN GENERAL; ENGINE PLANTS IN GENERAL; STEAM ENGINES
- F01N—GAS-FLOW SILENCERS OR EXHAUST APPARATUS FOR MACHINES OR ENGINES IN GENERAL; GAS-FLOW SILENCERS OR EXHAUST APPARATUS FOR INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINES
- F01N2240/00—Combination or association of two or more different exhaust treating devices, or of at least one such device with an auxiliary device, not covered by indexing codes F01N2230/00 or F01N2250/00, one of the devices being
- F01N2240/04—Combination or association of two or more different exhaust treating devices, or of at least one such device with an auxiliary device, not covered by indexing codes F01N2230/00 or F01N2250/00, one of the devices being an electric, e.g. electrostatic, device other than a heater
-
- F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
- F01—MACHINES OR ENGINES IN GENERAL; ENGINE PLANTS IN GENERAL; STEAM ENGINES
- F01N—GAS-FLOW SILENCERS OR EXHAUST APPARATUS FOR MACHINES OR ENGINES IN GENERAL; GAS-FLOW SILENCERS OR EXHAUST APPARATUS FOR INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINES
- F01N2250/00—Combinations of different methods of purification
- F01N2250/04—Combinations of different methods of purification afterburning and catalytic conversion
-
- F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
- F01—MACHINES OR ENGINES IN GENERAL; ENGINE PLANTS IN GENERAL; STEAM ENGINES
- F01N—GAS-FLOW SILENCERS OR EXHAUST APPARATUS FOR MACHINES OR ENGINES IN GENERAL; GAS-FLOW SILENCERS OR EXHAUST APPARATUS FOR INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINES
- F01N3/00—Exhaust or silencing apparatus having means for purifying, rendering innocuous, or otherwise treating exhaust
- F01N3/08—Exhaust or silencing apparatus having means for purifying, rendering innocuous, or otherwise treating exhaust for rendering innocuous
- F01N3/10—Exhaust or silencing apparatus having means for purifying, rendering innocuous, or otherwise treating exhaust for rendering innocuous by thermal or catalytic conversion of noxious components of exhaust
- F01N3/24—Exhaust or silencing apparatus having means for purifying, rendering innocuous, or otherwise treating exhaust for rendering innocuous by thermal or catalytic conversion of noxious components of exhaust characterised by constructional aspects of converting apparatus
- F01N3/30—Arrangements for supply of additional air
- F01N3/32—Arrangements for supply of additional air using air pump
-
- F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
- F01—MACHINES OR ENGINES IN GENERAL; ENGINE PLANTS IN GENERAL; STEAM ENGINES
- F01N—GAS-FLOW SILENCERS OR EXHAUST APPARATUS FOR MACHINES OR ENGINES IN GENERAL; GAS-FLOW SILENCERS OR EXHAUST APPARATUS FOR INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINES
- F01N3/00—Exhaust or silencing apparatus having means for purifying, rendering innocuous, or otherwise treating exhaust
- F01N3/08—Exhaust or silencing apparatus having means for purifying, rendering innocuous, or otherwise treating exhaust for rendering innocuous
- F01N3/10—Exhaust or silencing apparatus having means for purifying, rendering innocuous, or otherwise treating exhaust for rendering innocuous by thermal or catalytic conversion of noxious components of exhaust
- F01N3/24—Exhaust or silencing apparatus having means for purifying, rendering innocuous, or otherwise treating exhaust for rendering innocuous by thermal or catalytic conversion of noxious components of exhaust characterised by constructional aspects of converting apparatus
- F01N3/38—Arrangements for igniting
-
- Y—GENERAL TAGGING OF NEW TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS; GENERAL TAGGING OF CROSS-SECTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES SPANNING OVER SEVERAL SECTIONS OF THE IPC; TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS
- Y02—TECHNOLOGIES OR APPLICATIONS FOR MITIGATION OR ADAPTATION AGAINST CLIMATE CHANGE
- Y02T—CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION TECHNOLOGIES RELATED TO TRANSPORTATION
- Y02T10/00—Road transport of goods or passengers
- Y02T10/10—Internal combustion engine [ICE] based vehicles
- Y02T10/12—Improving ICE efficiencies
Abstract
A catalytic converter comprises two catalytic matrix bricks 12, 14 mounted in a common housing and spaced from one another by an afterburner chamber 16 An igniter 22 is arranged in the afterburner chamber 16 near the first brick 12 and a flame guard 18 is arranged upstream of and in close proximity to the igniter 22. The flame guard 22 comprises at least one elongate narrow strip spanning the combustion chamber which acts to spread the base of the flame across the width of the chamber 16 so as to enable the flame to spread in a shorter distance across the exhaust gases before reaching the second brick 14. <IMAGE>
Description
Title
Exhaust Gas Ignition
Field of the invention
The present invention relates to an afterburner for reigniting a mixture of exhaust gases and air to achieve rapid light off of a catalytic converter.
Background of the invention
It is has been proposed by the present applicants to mix air with the exhaust gases while the engine is operated with a very rich mixture in order to produce a mixture which can be ignited to burn as a flame in the exhaust system. The flame is used to heat the matrix of a catalytic converter in order to reduce the light off time, that is to say the time taken for the matrix to reach the temperature at which it operates efficiently.
The present invention is concerned with the design of the afterburner and seeks to provide an arrangement which ensures uniform burning across the entire cross section of the afterburner prior to the flame reaching the matrix of the catalytic converter.
It should be mentioned that the afterburner of the invention may either be arranged upstream of the catalytic converter or in the case of a catalytic converter having two spaced matrix bricks, in the chamber between the two matrix bricks.
In the latter case, the invention seeks to allow a reduced spacing between the matrix bricks while still ensuring that all regions of the exhaust gas and additional air mixture are ignited before reaching the front face of the second matrix brick.
Summarv of the invention
According to the present invention, there is provided an afterburner for use in an exhaust system of a motor vehicle to ignite a mixture of exhaust gases and additional air upstream of a catalytic converter matrix, the afterburner comprising an inlet for the ignitable mixture, an igniter for igniting the mixture, an outlet for passing the ignited mixture to the catalytic converter matrix and a combustion chamber arranged between the igniter and the outlet to allow the flame initiated at the igniter to spread across the entire area of the front face of the catalytic converter matrix before the gases reach the converter matrix, characterised in that a flame guard is arranged upstream of and in close proximity to the igniter, the flame guard comprising at least one elongate narrow strip spanning the combustion chamber.
Preferably, the strip is in the form of a V-shaped channel the vertex of the V pointing upstream.
Advantageously, the flame guard is formed of a plurality of strips which intersect one another.
The flame guard acts as a shield against the flow of gases through the afterburner creating in its wake regions of low velocity but high turbulence which are easily ignitable and which are not blown out by the main flow. The flame initiated at the igniter easily spreads across the regions behind the flame guard and passes from one strip to another at any intersection between flame guard strips. Thus, when the main gas stream burns as a flame, the base of the flame is not localised to the igniter but it stretches instead over the entire length of the strips of the flame guard. Because the flame in the main gas stream has a wide and distributed base, its tip does not need to spread laterally very far to cover the entire cross section of the afterburner.
In accordance with a second aspect of the invention, there is provided a catalytic converter comprising two catalytic matrix bricks mounted in a common housing and spaced from one another by an afterburner chamber, wherein an igniter is arranged in the afterburner chamber near the first brick and a flame guard is arranged upstream of and in close proximity to the igniter, the flame guard comprising at least one elongate narrow strip spanning the combustion chamber.
Brief descriPtion of the invention
The invention will flow be described further, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:
Figure 1 is a isometric view of part of the interior of
a catalytic converter, and
Figure 2 is a section through a catalytic converter
incorporating an afterburner of the invention.
Description of the preferred embodiment
The housing of a catalytic converter in Figure 2 has an intake section 10 and an exit section 20. Between these two sections, the housing contains two matrix bricks 12 and 14 separated from one another by an afterburner combustion chamber 16 in which there is arranged an igniter 22.
Upstream of, and in close proximity to, the igniter 22 is a flame guard 18 which is better shown in Figure 1 to comprise four V-shaped strips radiating from the centre of the catalytic converter and with the vertices of the V-sections pointing upstream. The outer ends of the strips are secured to the housing of the catalytic converter and if desired the igniter 22 may consist of a single insulated electrode arcing across to the flame guard 18.
In use, when the engine is cold, it is operated with a very rich fuel to air mixture and air is added to the exhaust gases to form a mixture which is re-ignitable to burn as a flame. The heat given off by this afterburning or secondary combustion in the chamber 16 is used to heat up the second 14 of the two matrix bricks of the converter to reduce its light off time.
In the absence of a flame guard 18, when a spark is created at the igniter 22 it ignites the mixture and a flame is started at the igniter 22. It is essential however that the flame spread over the entire area of the front face of the brick 14 otherwise unignited gases will enter the brick, and once inside the brick, the design of the passages in the brick prevents the flame from spreading within the matrix brick 14.
To give the flame the opportunity to spread over the cross section of the converter one must either make the afterburner chamber 16 very long or initiate several flames at the same time, distributed over the area of the chamber 16, for example by using several igniters.
The provision of a flame guard 18 in accordance with the invention has the same effect as positioning separate igniters along the length of each V-shaped strip. As the exhaust gas and additional air mixture is diverted around the strips it forms a wake in which the mean gas velocity is very low but in which vortices are set up by the gases pouring over the edges of the strips. These conditions are ideal for stable ignition and when the single igniter 22 is fired it will light a flame, the base of which will instantly spread to cover the area of the flame guard. If the strips are arranged in the form of a star or a regular matrix then the flame will spread at each intersection from one strip to the next, ensuring that the flame spreads over the surface of the brick 12.If too many guard strips are provided, they risk obstructing the gas flow and in practice a compromise must be reached between the length of the afterburner chamber 16 and the obstruction presented to the exhaust gas flow by the flame guard.
Because the combustion flame cannot spread laterally through the exhaust gases after they have entered the matrix brick, it is important to ensure that the flame covers the entire front face of the brick. This does not however mean that the combustion of the exhaust gas and additional air mixture must be complete at the time the gases reach the front face of the brick as combustion can continue after ignition within the passages of the catalytic matrix brick.
Shortening the afterburner chamber to achieve such combustion within the matrix is desirable not only from the point of view of compactness but offers two further advantages. If combustion is complete before the gases reach the matrix, the temperature of the gases may be in excess of the temperature that the catalyst can safely withstand. By allowing the combustion to continue within the passages of the matrix brick, not only is the initial temperature of the gases lowered to safe values but the further heat emitted during the continued combustion is spread over some distance within the matrix brick and is used to light-off the converter more uniformly.
The invention can also be applied to system having more than two catalytic matrix bricks in series with one another and such a construction is advantageous in that the chamber between the second and third bricks can promote lateral spreading of the flame, if for any reason the flame does not succeed in covering the entire front face of the second matrix brick.
Claims (8)
1. An afterburner for use in an exhaust system of a motor vehicle to ignite a mixture of exhaust gases and additional air upstream of a catalytic converter matrix, the afterburner comprising an inlet for the ignitable mixture, an igniter for igniting the mixture, an outlet for passing the ignited mixture to the catalytic converter matrix and a combustion chamber arranged between the igniter and the outlet to allow the flame initiated at the igniter to spread across the entire area of the front face of the catalytic converter matrix before the gases reach the converter matrix, characterised in that a flame guard is arranged upstream of and in close proximity to the igniter, the flame guard comprising at least one elongate narrow strip spanning the combustion chamber.
2. An afterburner as claimed in claim 1, wherein the strip is in the form of a V-shaped channel, the vertex of the V pointing upstream.
3. An afterburner as claimed in claim 1 or 2, wherein the flame guard is formed of a plurality of strips which intersect one another.
4. A catalytic converter comprising two catalytic matrix bricks mounted in a common housing and spaced from one another by an afterburner chamber, wherein an igniter is arranged in the afterburner chamber near the first brick and a flame guard is arranged upstream of and in close proximity to the igniter, the flame guard comprising at least one elongate narrow strip spanning the combustion chamber.
5. A catalytic converter as claimed in claim 4, wherein the strip is in the form of a V-shaped channel, the vertex of the "V" pointing upstream.
6. A catalytic converter as claimed in claim 4 or 5, wherein the flame guard is formed of a plurality of strips which intersect one another.
7. A catalytic converter as claimed in any of claims 4 to 6, wherein the length of the afterburner chamber is such that the ignited regions of the exhaust gases extend over the entire front face of the second catalytic matrix brick but combustion of the gases is only completed within the internal passages of the second matrix brick.
8. A catalytic converter constructed, arranged and adapted to operate substantially as herein described with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.
Priority Applications (7)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
---|---|---|---|
GB9123869A GB2261176A (en) | 1991-11-09 | 1991-11-09 | Exhaust gas ignition |
ES92921148T ES2079894T3 (en) | 1991-10-11 | 1992-10-12 | EXHAUST SYSTEM. |
EP92921148A EP0607242B1 (en) | 1991-10-11 | 1992-10-12 | Exhaust system |
JP5506761A JPH06511530A (en) | 1991-10-11 | 1992-10-12 | catalytic converter |
CA002120759A CA2120759A1 (en) | 1991-10-11 | 1992-10-12 | Catalytic converter |
PCT/GB1992/001855 WO1993007365A1 (en) | 1991-10-11 | 1992-10-12 | Catalytic converter |
DE69206154T DE69206154T2 (en) | 1991-10-11 | 1992-10-12 | EXHAUST SYSTEM. |
Applications Claiming Priority (1)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
---|---|---|---|
GB9123869A GB2261176A (en) | 1991-11-09 | 1991-11-09 | Exhaust gas ignition |
Publications (2)
Publication Number | Publication Date |
---|---|
GB9123869D0 GB9123869D0 (en) | 1992-01-02 |
GB2261176A true GB2261176A (en) | 1993-05-12 |
Family
ID=10704387
Family Applications (1)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
---|---|---|---|
GB9123869A Withdrawn GB2261176A (en) | 1991-10-11 | 1991-11-09 | Exhaust gas ignition |
Country Status (1)
Country | Link |
---|---|
GB (1) | GB2261176A (en) |
Cited By (1)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
GB2276098A (en) * | 1993-03-17 | 1994-09-21 | Pierburg Gmbh | Catalytic converter heating arrangement for internal combustion engines with a burner system |
-
1991
- 1991-11-09 GB GB9123869A patent/GB2261176A/en not_active Withdrawn
Cited By (3)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
GB2276098A (en) * | 1993-03-17 | 1994-09-21 | Pierburg Gmbh | Catalytic converter heating arrangement for internal combustion engines with a burner system |
US5457957A (en) * | 1993-03-17 | 1995-10-17 | Pierburg Gmbh | Method and apparatus for heating a catalytic converter upon cold engine starting |
GB2276098B (en) * | 1993-03-17 | 1996-11-13 | Pierburg Gmbh | Exhaust system with catalytic converter and pre-heating arrangement therefor |
Also Published As
Publication number | Publication date |
---|---|
GB9123869D0 (en) | 1992-01-02 |
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Legal Events
Date | Code | Title | Description |
---|---|---|---|
WAP | Application withdrawn, taken to be withdrawn or refused ** after publication under section 16(1) |