Augmenting NOx reduction in diesel exhaust by combined plasma/ozone injection technique: a laboratory investigation

With the advent of non-thermal plasma technique for diesel exhaust treatment attention is being focused on reducing oxides of nitrogen (NOx) both from stationary as well as automobile sources. In this work, an attempt has been made to enhance NOx reduction only by utilising a plasma/ozone injection approach without resorting to additional treatments based on catalysts/adsorbents. It was observed that cascading ozone injection with discharge plasma enhances the reduction of NOx as high as 95% for the specific energy of 123J/l. In the long run, this plasma-only based approach may be beneficial or a possible alternative for catalyst/adsorbent based NOx treatments. The results have been discussed and a comparative analysis has been made with respect to individual plasma and ozone injection treatment.