Abstract: An exhaust gas control apparatus for an internal combustion engine, controls an exhaust operation of the internal combustion engine (200) provided with an exhaust gas purification catalyst (216) in an exhaust passage (215). The exhaust gas control apparatus for the internal combustion engine is provided with; a warming-up device configured to warm up the exhaust gas purification catalyst; and an oxygen supplying device (220, 221) configured to supply oxygen to the exhaust gas purification catalyst after the end of the warm-up. This makes it possible to preferably desorb sulfur adsorbed to the exhaust gas purification catalyst during warm-up. It is therefore possible to suppress a reduction in purification ability of the exhaust gas purification catalyst due to sulfur coating.

Abstract: In a deterioration diagnosis apparatus for a selective catalytic reduction (SCR) catalyst in which when an air fuel ratio of a mixture to be combusted in an internal combustion engine is a lean air fuel ratio, inducement processing is executed which is to induce a water gas shift reaction in a pre-stage catalyst, by changing the air fuel ratio of the mixture from the lean air fuel ratio to a predetermined rich air fuel ratio, and diagnosis processing is executed which is to diagnose deterioration of the SCR catalyst based on an output difference between two air fuel ratio sensors at the time of the execution of the inducement processing, when the SCR catalyst is in a state of being subjected to sulfur poisoning resulting from the execution of the S purge processing of the pre-stage catalyst, diagnosis processing is not executed.

Abstract: A control device of an internal combustion engine which is provided with an exhaust purification catalyst is provided with a downstream side air-fuel ratio sensor, a feed control means for controlling the fuel feed amount so that the air-fuel ratio of the exhaust gas becomes a target air-fuel ratio, and an excess/deficiency estimating means which estimates an oxygen excess/deficiency in the exhaust gas. The target air-fuel ratio is switched to a lean air-fuel ratio when the output air-fuel ratio of the downstream side air-fuel ratio sensor becomes a rich air-fuel ratio and is switched to the rich air-fuel ratio when the stored amount of oxygen of the exhaust purification catalyst after this becomes a switching reference amount or more.

Abstract: In an deterioration diagnosis device for the exhaust gas purification apparatus in which in a period of time in which inducement processing is carried out which is to induce a water-gas-shift-reaction in a catalyst disposed at the upstream side of the SCR catalyst, by changing an air fuel ratio of exhaust gas discharged from an internal combustion engine from a lean air fuel ratio into a predetermined rich air fuel ratio, an air fuel ratio of exhaust gas flowing into the SCR catalyst and an air fuel ratio of exhaust gas flowing out from the SCR catalyst are measured by the air fuel ratio sensors, respectively, so that deterioration of the SCR catalyst is diagnosed based on a difference between the measured values of these sensors, wherein an end time of the execution of the inducement processing is adjusted in such a manner that an amount of hydrogen oxidized in the SCR catalyst during the period of the execution of the inducement processing becomes constant.

Abstract: The internal combustion engine comprises an exhaust purification catalyst 20, a downstream side sensor 41, an air-fuel ratio control unit, and an oxygen storage amount calculating unit for calculating the oxygen excess/deficiency of the inflowing exhaust gas in an air-fuel ratio maintenance time period and cumulatively adding the calculated oxygen excess/deficiency to calculate a maximum oxygen storage amount of the exhaust purification catalyst. The oxygen storage amount calculating unit uses a point of time that an absolute value of an output slope of the downstream side sensor finally becomes less than a threshold value in the air-fuel ratio maintenance time period as an end point of cumulative addition of the oxygen excess/deficiency. The threshold value is made larger when a maximum value of the absolute value of the output slope in the air-fuel ratio maintenance time period is relatively large compared to when the maximum value is relatively small.

Abstract: A control device for an internal combustion engine in which an exhaust purification device is provided the control device controls the air-fuel ratio of exhaust gas flowing into an exhaust purification device when the temperature of a three-way catalyst belongs to a temperature range in which it is not less than an activation onset temperature and is less than an activation complete temperature. The control device controls the air-fuel ratio of exhaust gas flowing into the exhaust purification device to a first air-fuel ratio which is lower than or equal to a theoretical air-fuel ratio when the temperature of the three-way catalyst belongs to a low-side temperature region, and controls the air-fuel ratio of exhaust gas flowing into the exhaust purification device to a second air-fuel ratio which is higher than the theoretical air-fuel ratio when the temperature of the three-way catalyst belongs to a high-side temperature region.

Abstract: It is an object of this invention to restrain blow-by gas from reaching a catalyst during fuel cutoff, and protect the catalyst while coping with an increase in oil dilution amount resulting from the use of alcohol fuel, in an internal combustion engine that uses the alcohol fuel. An engine is equipped with a PCV mechanism that introduces blow-by gas in a crankcase into an intake system. Besides, when fuel cutoff is executed with the PCV mechanism in operation, an opening degree of a throttle valve during fuel cutoff is set on the basis of an oil dilution amount in lubricating oil. Thus, the throttle opening degree during fuel cutoff is adjusted in accordance with a generation amount of blow-by gas, so that an intake negative pressure can be appropriately reduced. Accordingly, during fuel cutoff, the amount of blow-by gas that is sucked out from the crankcase due to the intake negative pressure and introduced into the intake system can be held small.

Abstract: A catalytic converter capable of uniformizing an exhaust gas flow velocity to realize uniform temperature distribution and improved purification performance, and a method for designing the catalytic converter. A catalytic converter includes a catalyst base composed of an inner base material part having inner cell holes and an outer base material part having outer cell holes, and an exhaust pipe composed of an upstream-side pipe, a catalyst housing pipe and a downstream-side pipe. In the catalytic converter, a flow path cross-sectional area of the upstream-side pipe defined as S1, a cross-sectional area of the inner base material part defined as S2, a cross-sectional area of the catalyst base defined as S3, a hydraulic diameter of the inner cell holes defined as d1 and a hydraulic diameter of the outer cell holes defined as d2, satisfy the relationship, S1?S2?S3(?0.2242 (d12/d22)2+0.1141 (d12/d22)+0.617).

Abstract: Provided is an exhaust gas control catalyst in which a catalyst layer containing at least one of Pd and Pt is formed on a substrate (1), the exhaust gas control catalyst including a first OSC material having a pyrochlore structure and an OSC material whose oxygen storage rate is faster than that of the first OSC material having a pyrochlore structure in a catalyst layer front stage (21) which is in a range from an exhaust gas upstream end of the catalyst layer to a length position which is 50% or lower of a total length of the catalyst layer.

Abstract: A control device of an internal combustion engine which is provided with an exhaust purification catalyst is provided with a downstream side air-fuel ratio sensor, a feed control means for controlling the fuel feed amount so that the air-fuel ratio of the exhaust gas becomes a target air-fuel ratio, and an excess/deficiency estimating means which estimates an oxygen excess/deficiency in the exhaust gas. The target air-fuel ratio is switched to a lean air-fuel ratio when the output air-fuel ratio of the downstream side air-fuel ratio sensor becomes a rich air-fuel ratio and is switched to the rich air-fuel ratio when the stored amount of oxygen of the exhaust purification catalyst after this becomes a switching reference amount or more.

Abstract: In an deterioration diagnosis device for the exhaust gas purification apparatus in which in a period of time in which inducement processing is carried out which is to induce a water-gas-shift-reaction in a catalyst disposed at the upstream side of the SCR catalyst, by changing an air fuel ratio of exhaust gas discharged from an internal combustion engine from a lean air fuel ratio into a predetermined rich air fuel ratio, an air fuel ratio of exhaust gas flowing into the SCR catalyst and an air fuel ratio of exhaust gas flowing out from the SCR catalyst are measured by the air fuel ratio sensors, respectively, so that deterioration of the SCR catalyst is diagnosed based on a difference between the measured values of these sensors, wherein an end time of the execution of the inducement processing is adjusted in such a manner that an amount of hydrogen oxidized in the SCR catalyst during the period of the execution of the inducement processing becomes constant.

Abstract: Deterioration of a selective catalytic reduction (SCR) catalyst can be diagnosed with sufficient accuracy, by making use of a sensor for measuring an air fuel ratio of exhaust gas flowing into an exhaust gas purification apparatus, which is equipped with the SCR catalyst, and a sensor for measuring an air fuel ratio of exhaust gas flowing out from the exhaust gas purification apparatus.

Abstract: A control device for an internal combustion engine in which an exhaust purification device is provided the control device controls the air-fuel ratio of exhaust gas flowing into an exhaust purification device when the temperature of a three-way catalyst belongs to a temperature range in which it is not less than an activation onset temperature and is less than an activation complete temperature. The control device controls the air-fuel ratio of exhaust gas flowing into the exhaust purification device to a first air-fuel ratio which is lower than or equal to a theoretical air-fuel ratio when the temperature of the three-way catalyst belongs to a low-side temperature region, and controls the air-fuel ratio of exhaust gas flowing into the exhaust purification device to a second air-fuel ratio which is higher than the theoretical air-fuel ratio when the temperature of the three-way catalyst belongs to a high-side temperature region.

Abstract: A catalytic converter (10) includes i) an outer tube (1) that includes a cylindrical portion (1a), an upstream-side cone portion (1b), and a downstream-side cone portion (1c), and ii) a substrate (2) having a cell structure that is arranged in the cylindrical portion (1a) of the outer tube (1). The substrate (2) has a center region (2a) where a cell density is relatively high and a peripheral region (2b) where the cell density is relatively low, in a cross-section that is orthogonal to a length direction of the substrate (2). A projection portion when a connecting portion (5) of the exhaust duct (4) and the downstream-side cone portion (1c) is projected onto the substrate (2) is within the center region (2a).

Abstract: An air-fuel ratio control apparatus for an internal combustion engine of the present invention determines whether or not a lean request has occurred, based on a comparison between a value correlating with an output value of the downstream air-fuel ratio sensor disposed downstream of the catalyst (downstream air-fuel ratio sensor output correlating value) and a predetermined lean request determining value, and determines whether or not a rich request has occurred, based on a comparison between the downstream air-fuel ratio sensor output correlating value and a predetermined rich request determining value. Further, the air-fuel ratio control apparatus calculates a total amount of oxygen (released oxygen amount) released from the catalyst in the rich request occurring period, and calculates an integrated value (present stored oxygen amount) of oxygen stored in the catalyst after a start of the lean request occurring period which follows the rich request occurring period.

Abstract: An engine includes variable valve mechanisms and a variable compression ratio mechanism. An ECU executes temperature balance control when a fuel-cut operation is executed. In the temperature balance control, valve opening characteristics of an exhaust valve are controlled based on a magnitude relation between an actual catalyst temperature and a target catalyst temperature and a magnitude relation between a water temperature and a required cylinder wall temperature. When executing a fuel-cut operation, it is thereby possible to control both the actual catalyst temperature and the water temperature in a well-balanced manner so that the actual catalyst temperature falls within a temperature range suitable for operation of the catalysts, and the water temperature becomes close to the required cylinder wall temperature.

Abstract: An air-fuel ratio control apparatus for an internal combustion engine according to an embodiment of the invention (the present control apparatus) sets a target air-fuel ratio to a target rich air-fuel ratio when it is determined on the basis of the output value Voxs of a downstream air-fuel ratio sensor 67 that the oxygen adsorption amount of a catalyst 43 tends to be excessive, and sets the target air-fuel ratio to a target lean air-fuel ratio when it is determined on the basis of the output value Voxs that the oxygen adsorption amount of the catalyst 43 tends to be insufficient. Further, the present control apparatus determines whether or not an operation state in which a large amount of nitrogen oxide flows into the catalyst 43 is reached on the basis of “whether a predetermined condition is fulfilled”, and makes the target rich air-fuel ratio obtained when the predetermined condition is fulfilled less than the target rich air-fuel ratio obtained when the predetermined condition is not fulfilled.

Abstract: An embodiment (control apparatus) of an air-fuel ratio control apparatus according to the present invention determines, based on an output value Voxs of a downstream air-fuel ratio sensor 56 disposed at a position downstream of a three-way catalyst 43, which air-fuel request is occurring, a rich request or a lean request. The control apparatus sets an air-fuel ratio of each cylinder (cylinder-by-cylinder air-fuel ratio) to a rich air-fuel ratio when the rich request is occurring, and sets the cylinder-by-cylinder air-fuel ratio to a lean air-fuel ratio when the lean request is occurring.

Abstract: An air-fuel ratio control apparatus of the present invention comprises an inverse direction spike introducing section and an inverse direction spike interval setting section. The inverse direction spike introducing section introduces, while an air-fuel ratio correction required by an output of a downstream air-fuel ratio sensor is being carried out, an inverse direction spike which is an air-fuel ratio spike to temporarily change an air-fuel ratio of an exhaust gas toward a direction opposite to a direction of the air-fuel ratio correction with respect to a target control air-fuel ratio. The inverse direction spike interval setting section sets, based on an operating state of an internal combustion engine system, an inverse direction spike interval which is an interval between two of the inverse direction spikes next to each other in time.

Abstract: An engine includes variable valve mechanisms and a variable compression ratio mechanism. An ECU executes temperature balance control when a fuel-cut operation is executed. In the temperature balance control, valve opening characteristics of an exhaust valve are controlled based on a magnitude relation between an actual catalyst temperature and a target catalyst temperature and a magnitude relation between a water temperature and a required cylinder wall temperature. When executing a fuel-cut operation, it is thereby possible to control both the actual catalyst temperature and the water temperature in a well-balanced manner so that the actual catalyst temperature falls within a temperature range suitable for operation of the catalysts, and the water temperature becomes close to the required cylinder wall temperature.