Control of an SCR catalytic converter system for a mobile heavy-duty application

Selective catalytic reduction (SCR) is well known for exhaust gas aftertreatment in power plant applications. In the near future, it will be introduced in Europe in mobile heavy-duty diesel applications. Stringent specifications and the dynamic operation mode of such applications demand advanced control strategies. Such a control strategy is presented here. It incorporates a model-based feedforward controller (FFC) which handles the known dynamics of the plant. It further contains a feedback controller (FBC) to compensate for disturbances and slowly varying parameters. The realization of the feedback control loop is possible only due to the use of a nitrogen oxide (NO_x) sensor which is cross-sensitive against ammonia (NH₃), and the implementation of a procedure separating the detection of NO_x and NH₃.