This control device for an internal combustion engine equipped with an exhaust purification catalyst, which is disposed in an exhaust passage of the internal combustion engine and capable of storing oxygen, includes: a downstream air-fuel ratio detection means that is disposed downstream of the exhaust purification catalyst in the exhaust flow direction; and an inflow air-fuel ratio control means that controls the air-fuel ratio of exhaust gas flowing into the exhaust purification catalyst. If the outflow air-fuel ratio detected by the downstream air-fuel ratio detection means is equal to or less than a rich-determination air-fuel ratio, which is richer than the stoichiometric air-fuel ratio, the inflow air-fuel ratio control means sets the target air-fuel ratio of exhaust gas flowing into the exhaust purification catalyst continuously or intermittently leaner than the stoichiometric air-fuel ratio until the oxygen storage amount of the exhaust purification catalyst reaches a prescribed storage amount. If the oxygen storage amount of the exhaust purification catalyst is equal to or greater than the prescribed storage amount, the inflow air-fuel ratio control means sets the target air-fuel ratio continuously or intermittently richer than the stoichiometric air-fuel ratio until the oxygen storage amount decreases toward zero without reaching the maximum oxygen storage amount.

A method for operating an exhaust gas purification system of an internal combustion engine, which can be operated in a lean operating mode and in a rich operating mode, is disclosed. The exhaust gas purification system has, arranged one after the other in the direction of flow of the exhaust gas, an ammonia-forming catalyst, a first exhaust gas sensor, an ammonia-SCR catalyst, a nitrogen oxide storage catalyst and a second exhaust gas sensor. Exhaust gas sensors emit a first signal correlating with the nitrogen oxide content of the exhaust gas and a second signal correlating with the lambda value of the exhaust gas. In diagnostic operation, the ammonia storage capacity of the ammonia-SCR catalyst and the oxygen and optionally the nitrogen oxide storage capacity of the nitrogen oxide storage catalyst can be determined by analyzing the signals of the first and second exhaust gas sensors.

A system and method for utilizing fuel as an on-board reductant for selective catalytic reduction of NOx is provided and includes a controller for controlling an engine to produce a lean first exhaust stream and a rich second exhaust stream that are received in respective first and second passageways of a dual path aftertreatment system. The rich second exhaust stream reacts with NOx stored in a NOx storage and reduction catalyst of the second passageway to regenerate this catalyst and generate ammonia. The first exhaust stream and the second exhaust stream having the generated ammonia are combined in a downstream common passageway to form a combined lean exhaust gas stream where the ammonia carried therein is stored or used by an SCR catalyst of the common passageway for NOx reduction. The engine is subsequently controlled to produce a rich first exhaust stream and a lean second exhaust stream.

A PCM (60) performs a catalyst early warming control (AWS control) for accelerating warm-up of a catalytic device. When the catalytic device (35) is not in an activated state and a vehicle is traveling, the PCM (60) is configured to perform: a fuel injection control to inject fuel such that a homogeneous fuel-air mixture can be formed in a combustion chamber (11) of an engine (10) so as to generate a homogeneous combustion; an intake air amount control to increase intake air amount; and an ignition control to retard ignition timing from a reference ignition timing. In addition, the PCM (60) is configured to vary ignition timing retard amount corresponding to a difference between the ignition timing retarded by the ignition timing control and the reference ignition timing, in accordance with engine speed and/or engine load.

A method (200) for operating an exhaust-gas catalytic converter (130) with central coordination of heating measures that are intended to heat the exhaust-gas catalytic converter (130) to a temperature level at which the reactions to be catalyzed take place with an adequate reaction rate (so-called catalytic converter window). Through the central coordination of the heating measures on the basis of defined heating strategies, in which in each case one or more of the available heating measures are combined with one another in an expedient manner, the required outlay in terms of control can be considerably reduced, and mutual interference of the heating measures can be avoided.

A degradation diagnosis device includes a downstream air-fuel ratio sensor and a control device. The control device is configured to perform a rich process and a lean process alternately and repeatedly in a degradation diagnosis process for diagnosing degradation of the exhaust gas control catalyst. The control device is configured to, in the degradation diagnosis process, determine that the exhaust gas control catalyst has been degraded when the lean process is executed and the frequency with which an output air-fuel ratio of the downstream air-fuel ratio sensor is equal to the lean air-fuel ratio is equal to or more than a predetermined frequency.

The exhaust purification device of an internal combustion engine comprises a catalyst 20 arranged in an exhaust passage and able to store oxygen; and an air-fuel ratio control device configured to control an air-fuel ratio of inflowing exhaust gas flowing into the catalyst. The air-fuel ratio control device is configured to perform a distribution forming control controlling the air-fuel ratio of the inflowing exhaust gas so that in the catalyst, a first region with an oxygen storage amount of equal to or greater than a predetermined value and a second region with an oxygen storage amount of less than the predetermined value are alternately formed along an axial direction of the catalyst. The total number of the first region and the second region formed by the distribution forming control is equal to or greater than three.

An exhaust gas aftertreatment system for an internal combustion engine charged by an exhaust gas turbocharger and spark-ignited by means of spark plugs has a particulate filter and a first three-way catalytic converter downstream from the particulate filter in a position close to the engine in an exhaust gas system connected to an outlet of the internal combustion engine and another three-way catalytic converter arranged in the underbody position of the motor vehicle, downstream from the first three-way catalytic converter. An exhaust gas burner is active from the start of the engine, introducing hot exhaust gas into the exhaust gas system downstream from the particulate filter, in order to heat at least one of the three-way catalytic converts to a light-off temperature, as quickly as possible after the cold start, thereby allowing an efficient exhaust gas aftertreatment. The exhaust gas burner can be switched off when at least one of the two three-way catalytic converters has reached its light-off temperature.

An after treatment method is disclosed. The after treatment method may include: operating an engine at a lean air/fuel ratio; calculating an amount of NH.sub.3 stored in an SCR catalyst; calculating an amount of NOx which will flow into the SCR catalyst; determining whether conversion to a rich air/fuel ratio is desired; calculating, when the conversion to the rich air/fuel ratio is desired, a rich duration for which the rich air/fuel ratio is maintained and a target air/fuel ratio; and operating the engine at the target air/fuel ratio for the rich duration.

A particle filter assembly for a motor vehicle includes a particle filter, an exhaust-gas-conducting line which opens into the particle filter, and a secondary air supply. The secondary air supply is formed separately from the exhaust-gas-conducting line and fresh air is suppliable to the particle filter via the secondary air supply.