Estimation Problems of Pollutant Emissions in Internal Combustion Engines

This research deals with the question of how particulate matter (PM) from vehicle exhaust can be measured using low-cost and low-weight sensor and with high resolution. For this purpose, a novel system based on inexpensive commercial optical scattering-based sensor, ejectors, compressor, and filters is presented. Atmospheric particulate matter poses a significant health hazard globally, which manifests itself in respiratory and cardiovascular disease and causes shortened life expectancy. As one source of pollution, diesel cars are equipped with a very efficient particulate matter filter to reduce the particulate matter emission from vehicle exhaust. However, any broken or removal of the particle filter can increase the vehicle's PM emission by orders of magnitude. In order to recognize these high polluters, periodical emission measurement is suggested by regulations and manufacturers. The current regular tests have been assessed on the basis of data from high-cost, bulky and complex measurement devices. To this aim, the establishment of a new measurement sensor for periodic emission control and detection of the DPF performance after the vehicle exhaust is necessary. To fulfill the requirements, this paper proposes the design of a new, simple, compact layout after the vehicle tailpipe based on the optical scattering-based sensor. Optical particle counters (OPCs) are widely used for real-time, mobile detection of the aerosol particles from a low concentration environment (e.g., clean room) to highly concentrated urban areas. The proposed layout uses an optical particle counter as a compact instrument for real-time monitoring of the particle concentration after exhaust of the internal combustion engine. Various parameters of the exhaust emission before the optical sensor, such as temperature, humidity, and flow rate are considered to verify the working condition of the optical sensor.