US5259190A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Heated cellular structures
Assignee: Corning Inc
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Filing: 1992-03-09
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Granted: 1993-11-09
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Expires: 2012-03-09
Abstract
Abstract An electrically conductive cellular or honeycomb structure wherein the structure is heated to light off exhaust gases and/or to burn off deposited carbon particulates and thus periodically regenerate the structure. Electrodes attached to the surface of the structure or body pass electrical currents through the body, the currents causing temperature increase by resistance heating. The electrodes are radially or angularly spaced around the outer surface of the structure, near its input end face to thereby achieve a uniform temperature distribution at the input end face for quick light-off and/or for more complete combustion of the carbon particulates. This temperature distribution can also be made more uniform by the distribution of plugs of varying thickness and/or resistivity in selected areas of the input end face of the structure. The structure can be of the porous wall type wherein alternate passageways are plugged at the front and rear faces. The structure may be also formed of an aluminum iron alloy.
Inventors
- 👤 Rodney D. Bagley
- 👤 G. Daniel Lipp
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-28 23:13
CPC Classifications
B; B01; B01D; B01D46/00; B01D46/66; B01D46/80; B01D46/84; B01D46/0027; B01D46/0032; B01D46/24; B01D46/2403; B01D46/2418; B01D46/2425; B01D46/244; B01D46/2451; B01D46/2459; B01D46/2474; B01D46/2482; B01D53/00; B01D53/34; B01D53/92; B01D53/94; B01D53/944; B01J; B01J35/00; B01J35/30; B01J35/33; F; F01; F01N; F01N3/00; F01N3/02; F01N3/021; F01N3/023; F01N3/027; F01N3/08; F01N3/10; F01N3/18; F01N3/20; F01N3/2006; F01N3/2013; F01N3/2026; F01N3/24; F01N3/28; F01N3/2803; F01N3/2839; F01N3/2853; H; H05; H05B; H05B3/00; H05B3/10; H05B3/12; H05B3/14; H05B3/141; B01J35/50; B01J35/56; F01N2330/00; F01N2330/14; Y; Y02; Y02T; Y02T10/00; Y02T10/10; Y02T10/12; Y10; Y10S; Y10S55/00; Y10S55/30
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 21
Claim 1
Independent Claim
98 words
A device for removal of pollutants from exhaust gases comprising: a honeycomb structure formed of electrically conductive material; said structure having an inlet end face, an outlet end face, thin walls defining cells extending longitudinally therethrough, and an outer surface; at least three electrodes spaced around the inlet end of said outer surface; plugs disposed in cells on the inlet end face, in the regions close to the electrodes to reduce electric current density in said regions; and means for sequentially energizing said electrodes by directing electric current to selected electrodes to uniformly heat the inlet end face.
Claim 2
Independent Claim
98 words
A device for removal of pollutants from exhaust gases comprising: a honeycomb structure formed of electrically conductive material; said structure having an inlet end face, an outlet end face, thin walls defining cells extending longitudinally therethrough, and an outer surface; at least three electrodes spaced around the inlet end of said outer surface; plugs disposed in cells on the inlet end face, in the regions close to the electrodes to reduce electric current density in said regions; and means for sequentially energizing said electrodes by directing electric current to selected electrodes to uniformly heat the inlet end face.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
55 words
The device of claim 1, comprising six electrodes, each electrode being designated as either A, B, C, D, E or F, wherein all substantially diametrically opposed electrodes are energized by passing electric current to selected electrodes in a sequence comprising the following pairs of electrodes A-C, A-D, A-E, B-D, B-E, B-F, C-E, C-F, and D-F.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
64 words
An electrically heated device for catalytic conversion of exhaust gases comprising a catalytically active honeycomb structure having inlet and outlet end faces, a matrix of thin walls defining a plurality of cells extending longitudinally and mutually parallel therethrough between said inlet and outlet end faces, and at least three electrodes spaced around the outer surface and near the inlet end face of said structure.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
64 words
An electrically heated device for catalytic conversion of exhaust gases comprising a catalytically active honeycomb structure having inlet and outlet end faces, a matrix of thin walls defining a plurality of cells extending longitudinally and mutually parallel therethrough between said inlet and outlet end faces, and at least three electrodes spaced around the outer surface and near the inlet end face of said structure.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
16 words
The device of claim 3, wherein said walls are not greater than about 1.5 mm thick.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
211 words
A regenerating filter construction for periodically regenerating a filter by burning off collected particulates which accumulate therein, the filter being an electrically conductive honeycomb structure having a matrix of thin porous walls defining a plurality of cells extending longitudinally and mutually parallel therethrough between inlet and outlet end faces of the filter, the walls having substantially uniform interconnected open porosity of a volume and size sufficient to enable the fumes to flow completely through the walls and to restrain substantially all of the particulates from passing completely through the walls, an inlet group of the cells open at the inlet end face and closed adjacent to the outlet end face, an outlet group of the cells closed adjacent to the inlet end face and open at the outlet end face, each cell of the inlet group sharing cell walls with cells of the outlet group, each cell of the outlet group sharing cell walls with cells of the inlet group, at least three electrodes angularly spaced around the outer surface of the filter, adjacent to the filter inlet face, and secured to said outer surface, whereby electrical currents can be passed through the filter from selected pairs of said electrodes to thereby heat the filter and burn off the collected particulates.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
211 words
A regenerating filter construction for periodically regenerating a filter by burning off collected particulates which accumulate therein, the filter being an electrically conductive honeycomb structure having a matrix of thin porous walls defining a plurality of cells extending longitudinally and mutually parallel therethrough between inlet and outlet end faces of the filter, the walls having substantially uniform interconnected open porosity of a volume and size sufficient to enable the fumes to flow completely through the walls and to restrain substantially all of the particulates from passing completely through the walls, an inlet group of the cells open at the inlet end face and closed adjacent to the outlet end face, an outlet group of the cells closed adjacent to the inlet end face and open at the outlet end face, each cell of the inlet group sharing cell walls with cells of the outlet group, each cell of the outlet group sharing cell walls with cells of the inlet group, at least three electrodes angularly spaced around the outer surface of the filter, adjacent to the filter inlet face, and secured to said outer surface, whereby electrical currents can be passed through the filter from selected pairs of said electrodes to thereby heat the filter and burn off the collected particulates.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
17 words
The filter construction of claim 5, wherein said walls are not greater than about 1.5 mm thick.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
42 words
The filter construction of claim 5, comprising a diesel engine exhaust gas conduit, wherein the filter is disposed within the gas conduit across the exhaust gas path, such that the inlet face of the filter faces upstream of the exhaust gas path.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
24 words
The filter construction of claim 9, wherein the cells o the filter are of a density in the range of 1-93 cells/cm 2 .
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
21 words
The filter construction of claim 5, wherein the cells of said outlet group are closed at their inlet ends by plugs.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
30 words
The filter construction of claim 9, wherein the plugs in the region close to the electrodes are made of material having lower electrical resistance than the remainder of the plugs.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
33 words
The filter construction of claim 9, wherein the plugs in the region close to the electrodes are of greater thickness in the longitudinal direction of the cells than the remainder of the plugs.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
44 words
The device of claim 1, wherein all cells on the inlet end face are plugged, and wherein the plugs in the regions close to the electrodes are of greater thickness than the plugs in other regions of the inlet end face of the structure.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
29 words
The device of claim 1, wherein the plugs in the regions are made of material having higher electrical resistance than plugs in other regions of the inlet end face.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
33 words
The device of claim 13, wherein in addition to having higher electrical resistance, the plugs close to the electrodes are also thicker than the plugs in other regions of the inlet end face.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
17 words
The device of claim 6 further comprising the following sequence: A-B, B-C, C-D, D-E, E-F, and F-A.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
28 words
The device of claim 9, wherein said honeycomb structure is a catalytic converter having formed thereon catalyst to convert hydrocarbons and nitrogen oxides to hydrogen and carbon dioxide.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim
17 words
The device of claim 16, wherein the sequence is repeated until light-off of the catalyst is achieved.
Claim 21
Dependent Claim
23 words
The device of claim 17, wherein said light-off is achieved in a period of time in the range of 1 to 30 second.
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USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1996-11-08 | 1997-05-10 | 1997-11-09 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 2000-11-08 | 2001-05-10 | 2001-11-09 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 2004-11-08 | 2005-05-10 | 2005-11-09 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |