This disclosure is directed to catalyst compositions, catalytic articles for purifying exhaust gas emissions and methods of making and using the same. In particular, the disclosure relates to a catalytic article including a catalytic material on a substrate, wherein the catalytic material has a first layer and a second layer. The first layer provides effective lean NO.sub.x trap functionality and the second layer provides effective three-way conversion of carbon monoxide, hydrocarbons, and nitrogen oxides (NO.sub.x).

This disclosure is directed to catalyst compositions, catalytic articles for purifying exhaust gas emissions and methods of making and using the same. In particular, the disclosure relates to a catalytic article including a catalytic material on a substrate, wherein the catalytic material has a first layer and a second layer. The first layer provides effective lean NO.sub.x trap functionality and the second layer provides effective three-way conversion of carbon monoxide, hydrocarbons, and nitrogen oxides (NO.sub.x).

A control apparatus controls an exhaust purification system including an exhaust purification catalyst provided in an exhaust passage for an internal combustion engine in a vehicle, and an electric heating device for heating the exhaust purification catalyst in response to the supply of electricity. The control apparatus includes a prediction unit that detects at least one preliminary action of a startup action for the vehicle performed before the startup operation and predicts that the startup operation will be performed, and a heating control unit that causes the electric heating device to heat the exhaust purification catalyst if the prediction unit predicts that the startup operation will be performed.

An exhaust gas sensor includes an element cover, a heater, a heater control section, and a cover state diagnosing section. The element cover accommodates a sensor element including a detection section and includes one or more gas flow holes. The heater heats the sensor element. The heater control section controls how the heater heats the sensor element. The cover state diagnosing section diagnoses a state of the element cover using heater information obtained when the heater is operated by the heater control section. The cover state diagnosing section includes a diagnosability determining section, which determines whether the state of the element cover is diagnosable based on an accuracy of the heater information obtained from an operating state of the heater and a surrounding environmental state of the element cover.

A method for controlling an internal combustion engine system including a catalyst includes receiving a desired output for an internal combustion engine, and receiving sensor information including information indicative of a temperature of the catalyst. The method includes calculating a plurality of sets of engine performance values based on respective sets of candidate control points, the engine performance values including a temperature change rate at which the temperature of the catalyst changes over time, and determining whether the temperature change rate satisfies a minimum warmup rate for the catalyst. The method also includes controlling the internal combustion engine based on a selected set of candidate control points and the minimum warmup rate.

A method for controlling an internal combustion engine system including a catalyst includes receiving a desired output for an internal combustion engine, and receiving sensor information including information indicative of a temperature of the catalyst. The method includes calculating a plurality of sets of engine performance values based on respective sets of candidate control points, the engine performance values including a temperature change rate at which the temperature of the catalyst changes over time, and determining whether the temperature change rate satisfies a minimum warmup rate for the catalyst. The method also includes controlling the internal combustion engine based on a selected set of candidate control points and the minimum warmup rate.

Based on an exhaust gas temperature on an upstream side acquired by an upstream temperature acquisition device, in performing control of supplying an unburned fuel to an oxidation catalyst device in a case where the exhaust gas temperature on the upstream side is lower than a low temperature, a control device performs control of adjusting at least one of an injection timing of a cylinder injection valve and opening-closing timing of an exhaust valve at least one of before and after the supplying control; raising a temperature of the exhaust gas that substantially free of unburned fuel discharged from the exhaust valve to be higher than the low temperature; and warming the oxidation catalyst device until a predetermined warming period has passed.

A method for controlling exhaust gas emission of a motor vehicle may include determining when the motor vehicle drives into a low-emission zone, wherein the low-emission zone dictates a maximum emission level for the motor vehicle; reducing actual accelerator actuation signals of the motor vehicle to effective accelerator actuation signals within the low-emission zone; and trimming an actual intake temperature of the motor vehicle, being measured with an intake temperature sensor of the motor vehicle, to an effective intake temperature when the actual intake temperature falls outside a predetermined temperature range within the low-emission zone; wherein at least one of the effective accelerator signals and the effective intake temperature are used as inputs for controlling an exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) subsystem of the motor vehicle.

A method for controlling exhaust gas emission of a motor vehicle may include determining when the motor vehicle drives into a low-emission zone, wherein the low-emission zone dictates a maximum emission level for the motor vehicle; reducing actual accelerator actuation signals of the motor vehicle to effective accelerator actuation signals within the low-emission zone; and trimming an actual intake temperature of the motor vehicle, being measured with an intake temperature sensor of the motor vehicle, to an effective intake temperature when the actual intake temperature falls outside a predetermined temperature range within the low-emission zone; wherein at least one of the effective accelerator signals and the effective intake temperature are used as inputs for controlling an exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) subsystem of the motor vehicle.

A driver circuit drives a heater associated with a sensor in an exhaust system of a vehicle at a duty cycle. A feedback circuit generates a feedback signal indicating a temperature of the sensor. A ramp circuit outputs a first ramping set point indicating a first rate at which the temperature of the sensor is to be changed over a first time period after an engine of the vehicle is turned on, and a second ramping set point indicating a second rate at which the temperature of the sensor is to be changed after the first time period until the temperature of the sensor reaches a predetermined temperature. An error circuit generates first and second error signals based on the feedback signal and the first and second ramping set points. A controller controls the duty cycle of the driver circuit to drive the heater based on one or more gains.