Effect of heat and mass transfer coefficients on the performance of automotive catalytic converters

Abstract

This paper numerically investigates the role of heat and mass transfer coefficients on the performance of automotive catalytic converters, which are employed to reduce engine exhaust emissions. The pollutant conversion performance of a converter is influenced by a number of physical and chemical processes that take place in gaseous and solid phases as the exhaust gases flow through the catalyst. A quantitative predictive understanding of these complex catalyst processes involving flow dynamics, heterogeneous surface reactions and heat and mass transport mechanisms is important in improving the converter design. The role of convective transport phenomena becomes important at high temperature when the mass transfer becomes rate-limiting to an increasing extent. The objective of the present study is to elucidate the influence of convective heat and mass transfer coefficients (mechanisms). The mathematical model considers the conservation of mass, momentum and energy in both gaseous and solid phases. In addition to the heterogeneous surface reactions, the model also takes into account the adsorption/desorption of oxygen in the catalyst during non-stoichiometric composition of air/fuel mixtures. The governing equations are solved by an implicit scheme using a successive line under a relaxation method. The converter performance under the transient conditions as simulated by the US Federal Test Procedure (US-FTP) is analysed.