An exhaust gas purification device includes: a substrate of wall-flow structure having an inlet cell, an outlet cell and a porous partition wall; an upstream catalyst layer provided inside the partition wall and disposed in an upstream portion, including an exhaust gas inflow end section, of the substrate; and a downstream catalyst layer provided inside the partition wall and disposed in a downstream portion, including an exhaust gas outflow end section, of the substrate. The downstream catalyst layer contains a carrier, and Rh supported on the carrier. The upstream catalyst layer contains a carrier, and Pd and/or Pt supported on the carrier.

The invention relates to an exhaust gas aftertreatment system for a spark ignition internal combustion engine based on the Otto principle. The internal combustion engine is connected on the outlet side to an exhaust gas system, wherein an electrically heatable three-way catalytic converter, a four-way catalytic converter downstream from the electrically heatable three-way catalytic converter, and a further three-way catalytic converter downstream from the four-way catalytic converter are situated in the exhaust gas system in the flow direction of an exhaust gas through the exhaust gas system. Before the internal combustion engine is started, the electrically heatable three-way catalytic converter and preferably also the four-way catalytic converter are heated to allow efficient exhaust gas aftertreatment of the untreated emissions of the internal combustion engine upon starting the internal combustion engine. The exhaust gas aftertreatment system is also configured to allow efficient conversion of the pollutants also during a regeneration of the four-way catalytic converter, and thus, to ensure particularly low emissions in all operating states of the motor vehicle.

Methods of treating exhaust in a vehicle, and exhaust systems for a vehicle, are disclosed. Example methods may include providing a catalytic converter in an exhaust tailpipe and an oxygen sensor downstream of the catalytic converter. The catalytic converter may be configured to reduce a concentration of a nitrogen oxide (NO.sub.x) present in an exhaust flow through the catalytic converter. The method further includes predicting an increase in an oxygen concentration within the catalytic converter based upon at least one or more real-time vehicle operating parameters, wherein the increase is predicted before a corresponding increase in oxygen concentration is measured by the downstream oxygen sensor. The method may also include adjusting an air-fuel ratio of an engine of the vehicle based upon the predicted increase in oxygen concentration, thereby at least partially preventing the corresponding increase in the oxygen concentration.

A system of forcibly regenerating a gasoline particulate filter may include an exhaust pipe connected to the engine; a catalyst apparatus mounted on the exhaust pipe; first and second intake lines; first and second electric superchargers disposed on the first and second intake lines; a bypass line connecting a first point of the first supercharger and a second point of the second supercharger to each other; a first intake valve disposed at a downstream of the first point of the first intake line; a second intake valve disposed at an upstream of the second point of the second intake line; a bypass valve disposed on the bypass line; and a regeneration air line connecting the first intake line or the bypass line between the first electric supercharger, the first intake valve, and the bypass valve to the exhaust pipe between the catalyst apparatus and the gasoline particulate filter.

A vehicle includes an engine, a fueling system, an exhaust assembly, and a controller. The fueling system controls fuel to the engine. The exhaust assembly releases combustion gas from the engine and includes at least one sensor and a catalytic converter. The controller is configured to control the engine, the fueling system and the exhaust assembly. The controller evaluates engine state and an output from the at least one sensor and commands a fueling strategy to control an oxygen storage capacity of the catalytic converter based on the engine state and output from the at least one sensor.

Methods and systems are provided for a multicomponent aftertreatment device arranged in a vehicle exhaust gas passage. In one example, a system may include an oxygen storage catalyst and an underbody trap catalyst comprising metal modified zeolite, the oxygen storage catalyst arranged upstream of the underbody trap catalyst in an exhaust passage of the vehicle.

NO.sub.x abatement compositions have a formula M.sub.xCu.sub.1-xFe.sub.2O.sub.4, wherein M is a substitution metal cation that can be any of cobalt, nickel, and zinc; and x is greater than zero and less than one. Such compositions can serve as direct decomposition catalysts and/or passive adsorption/storage components. Methods for synthesizing the compositions include alkaline precipitation of solutions containing nitrate salts of copper, iron, and at least one of cobalt, nickel, and zinc.

A catalyst deterioration diagnosis method is a method for a system. The system includes a stepped transmission or a continuously variable transmission connected to an internal combustion engine, a catalyst into which an exhaust gas from the internal combustion engine is introduced, and a gas sensor having sensitivity to ammonia that outputs a detection value corresponding to a component of an exhaust gas that has passed through the catalyst. The catalyst deterioration diagnosis method includes the following steps. Monitoring of temporary increase of a detection value of the gas sensor is started, and thereby a temporarily increased amount of the detection value of the gas sensor is acquired. The monitoring is started when upshifting of the stepped transmission or pseudo-upshifting of the continuously variable transmission is performed. Whether or not the temporarily increased amount is larger than a threshold amount is determined.

A proactive heating system for a vehicle, which is used to increase the temperature of an exhaust catalyst prior to ignition of an engine to reduce emissions. The proactive heating system is part of an exhaust system for a vehicle, and includes an electrically heated catalyst and an air pump, which are activated prior to engine ignition, to increase the temperature of a three-way catalyst such that the three-way catalyst is at the desired target threshold temperature, or light-off temperature, prior to engine ignition, eliminating the delay in emissions treatment after cold-start of the engine. The proactive heating system addresses the high level of untreated emissions emitted from an internal combustion engine before the catalytic emissions system reaches the light-off temperature. The proactive heating system provides heating of a catalyst to light-off temperature without combusting hydrocarbon fuel, which leads to engine out emissions.

A gas sensor includes a sensor element, and the sensor element includes a bottomed tubular solid electrolyte, a detection electrode provided on an outer surface of the solid electrolyte, a reference electrode provided on an inner surface of the solid electrolyte. The detection electrode of the sensor element includes a detection electrode section provided at a position on a tip side of an axial direction, an attachment electrode section provided at a position on a base end side of the axial direction, and a lead electrode section provided at a position where the detection electrode section is connected to the attachment electrode section. An insulating layer is provided between a tube of the solid electrolyte and each of the attachment electrode section and the lead electrode section.