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EP0879946A2 Expired / Lapsed EP ⏱️ 0.0 years remaining

An internal combustion engine

Assignee: Toyota Motor Corp
•
Filing: 1998-05-19
•
Granted: —
•
Expires: 2018-05-19
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Abstract

Abstract An internal combustion engine comprising an exhaust gas recirculation system, wherein the amount of EGR gas in the combustion chamber is made larger than the amount of EGR gas where the amount of soot produced peaks when the engine load is comparatively low so as to suppress the temperatures of the fuel and gas around the fuel at the time of combustion in the combustion chamber to a temperature lower than the temperature at which soot is produced. This prevents the production of soot and NOx in the combustion chamber.

Inventors

  • 👤 Shizuo Sasaki
  • 👤 Takekazu Ito

Bibliographic Details

Application Number —
Jurisdiction EP
Data Source google_patents
Last Synchronized 2026-11-03 12:06
CPC Classifications
F; F02; F02D; F02D41/00; F02D41/0025; F02D41/0047; F02D41/005; F02D41/0057; F02B; F02B47/00; F02B47/04; F02B47/08; Y; Y02; Y02T; Y02T10/00; Y02T10/10; Y02T10/12; Y02T10/40

Claims Analysis

Total Claims: 21
Claim 1
Independent Claim 118 words
An internal combustion engine in which an amount of production of soot gradually increases and then peaks when an amount of inert gas in a combustion chamber increases, wherein the amount of the inert gas is made larger than an amount of inert gas where the amount of production of soot peaks to make the temperatures of the fuel and gas around the fuel at the time of combustion in the combustion chamber lower than a temperature at which soot is produced, and an after treatment device for purifying unburned hydrocarbons, which are exhausted from the combustion chamber in the form of a precursor of soot or a form before that, is arranged in an engine exhaust passage.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim 49 words
An internal combustion engine as set forth in claim 1, wherein the temperatures of the fuel and the gas around the fuel at the time of combustion in the combustion chamber are temperatures at which the amount of NOx in the exhaust gas becomes around 10 ppm or less.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim 54 words
An internal combustion engine as set forth in claim 1, wherein the temperatures of the fuel and the gas around the fuel at the time of combustion in the combustion chamber are made temperatures lower than the temperatures at which soot is produced only when the engine load is lower than a predetermined load.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim 34 words
An internal combustion engine as set forth in claim 1, wherein said after treatment device is comprised of a catalyst having an oxidation function for oxidizing the unburned hydrocarbons exhausted from the combustion chamber.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim 33 words
An internal combustion engine as set forth in claim 4, wherein the catalyst is comprised of at least one of the group of an oxidation catalyst, a three-way catalyst, and an NOx absorbent.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim 70 words
An internal combustion engine as set forth in claim 1, wherein the heat of combustion of the fuel is mainly absorbed by the inert gas in the combustion chamber and the amount of inert gas is preset so that the temperatures of the fuel and the gas around the fuel at the time of combustion in the combustion chamber become temperatures lower than the temperature at which soot is produced.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim 30 words
An internal combustion engine as set forth in claim 1, wherein the majority of the inert gas is fed into the combustion chamber at the time of the intake stroke.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim 52 words
An internal combustion engine as set forth in claim 7, wherein an exhaust gas recirculation apparatus is provided for recirculating the exhaust gas exhausted from the combustion chamber into an engine intake passage and the majority of the inert gas is comprised of recirculated exhaust gas recirculated in the engine intake passage.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim 22 words
An internal combustion engine as set forth in claim 8, wherein the exhaust gas recirculation rate is at least about 55 percent.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim 45 words
An internal combustion engine as set forth in claim 1, wherein the air fuel ratio in the combustion chamber is made the stoichiometric air fuel ratio, a lean air fuel ratio slightly leaner than the stoichiometric air fuel ratio, or a rich air fuel ratio.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim 73 words
An internal combustion engine as set forth in claim 1, wherein a combustion temperature controlling means is provided for maintaining the temperatures of the fuel and the gas around the fuel at the time of combustion in the combustion chamber at a temperature lower than the temperature at which soot is produced regardless of the amount of fuel fed into the combustion chamber when the engine load is lower than a predetermined load.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim 66 words
An internal combustion engine as set forth in claim 11, wherein the combustion temperature controlling means is comprised of an exhaust gas recirculation apparatus which recirculates exhaust gas exhausted from an engine exhaust passage into an engine intake passage and the amount of recirculated exhaust gas recirculated in the engine intake passage is increased the more the amount of fuel fed into the combustion chamber increases.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim 60 words
An internal combustion engine as set forth in claim 11, wherein the combustion temperature controlling means is comprised of a cooling apparatus for a recirculated exhaust gas recirculated into an engine intake passage from an engine exhaust passage and the cooling capacity of the cooling apparatus is increased the more the amount of fuel fed into the combustion chamber increases.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim 43 words
An internal combustion engine as set forth in claim 11, wherein the combustion temperature controlling means controls a compression ratio of the engine and the compression ratio of the engine is made lower the more the fuel fed into the combustion chamber increases.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim 51 words
An internal combustion engine as set forth in claim 11, wherein the combustion temperature controlling means is comprised of an intake control valve arranged in an engine intake passage and the opening degree of the intake control valve is made lower the more the fuel fed into the combustion chamber increases.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim 51 words
An internal combustion engine as set forth in claim 11, wherein the combustion temperature controlling means is comprised of an actuator for driving an intake valve and the timing of opening of the intake valve is made later by the actuator the more the fuel fed into the combustion chamber increases.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim 75 words
An internal combustion engine as set forth in claim 11, wherein the combustion temperature controlling means controls the timing of injection of fuel to be injected into the combustion chamber and the timing of injection of the fuel is made the end stage of the compression stroke when the amount of fuel fed into the combustion chamber is small and is made later the more the amount of fuel fed into the combustion engine increases.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim 133 words
An internal combustion engine as set forth in claim 1, wherein a NOx absorbent which absorbs the NOx contained in an exhaust gas when an air fuel ratio of an inflowing exhaust gas is lean and releases the absorbed NOx when the air fuel ratio of the inflowing exhaust gas is the stoichiometric air fuel ratio or rich is arranged in an engine exhaust passage and the temperatures of the fuel and the gas around the fuel at the time of combustion in the combustion chamber are made temperatures lower than the temperature at which soot is produced in an engine low load operating state and an air fuel ratio in the combustion chamber is made the stoichiometric air fuel ratio or rich when NOx is to be released from the NOx absorbent.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim 26 words
An internal combustion engine as set forth in claim 18, wherein an oxidation catalyst is arranged in the engine exhaust passage upstream of the NOx absorbent.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim 42 words
An internal combustion engine as set forth in claim 1, wherein the internal combustion engine is comprised of a diesel engine and fuel is injected toward the inside of the combustion chamber at least at the end stage of the compression stroke.
Claim 21
Dependent Claim 39 words
An internal combustion engine as set forth in claim 20, wherein fuel is injected toward the inside of the combustion chamber in the initial stage of the intake stroke in addition to the end stage of the compression stroke.

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