Something that I think about when I see the DPF regen light come on and my fuel consumption increases as the ECM adds raw diesel fuel to the exhaust to burn the filter clean:
Why do I need a DPF?
Yes, I know that it is to catch particulate carbon, but why do I have particulate carbon?
With the introduction of turbo chargers, particulate carbon or soot was common when accelerating until the turbo spooled up and supplied enough air to burn the fuel.
Computerized ECMs took care of that so why is there still particulate carbon?
Could it be fuel quality?
I suspect that present diesel fuel is comprised of such a wide cut that the heavier fractions do not combust completely.
Hence, black smoke or particulate carbon.
I keep thinking:
I have been charged for a fuel fraction that does not properly combust and thus does little or no useful work.
But that’s OK, we can capture the particulate.
Now how to get rid of it in times of climate change and attempts to limit CO2 emissions?
That’s easy, we can burn it.
Doesn’t that create more CO2?
How do we burn it?
Waste more fuel. That’s fuel that I paid for but does no useful work in driving the truck down the road.
But wait, doesn’t burning that wasted fuel cause more CO2 emissions?
Could this issue be better addressed by a better quality of fuel with less heavy fractions?
Oh, by the way, a wide cut includes more light ends to balance the heavy ends.
It used to be that a sealed gas can would develop some pressure as the light ends came out of solution, particularly if the gas can was shaken.
Lately, when I take the lid off of my large tank, there is a puff of gas released. That never used to happen with diesel fuel as far as I recall.
Who is the EPA really looking out for?
That also sounds like an invention waiting to happen. It seems like soot would be better kept on the ground or in some sort of catch bin. Maybe even chimney sweeps could make a comeback.
Does that ‘regen’ cycle vary in duration or interval?
I believe the few chimney sweeps that can be found, are booked up well in advance.
For what you are talking, I think maybe a spinner to throw off the soot would be good, with a catch basin.
Problem is many drivers would not empty them. Example: Cattle trucks have a catch basin, that if not emptied will spill on the highway. So why can one find so much crap spilled on the highway near meat processing plants?
I don’t know guys. If one collects fine particles of carbon (soot) that are hot in a bin, it seems to me it would be a fire hazard. There’s lots of surface area for oxidation, carbon oxidizes readily, and the pile will provide some insulating value. Kind of like an oily rag in a pile, right? I would not recommend it.
Here is a fairly good simplified explanation of a DPF (Diesel Particulate Filter)
https://www.uti.edu/blog/diesel/diesel-particulate-filters
Thanks! I was correct. The DPF “must be periodically burned off to regenerate the filter.”