Federal Laboratory Consortium for Technology Transfer

The Future Is Hybrid
Engineer Ted Bohn runs tests on Argonne's through-the-road (TTR) hybrid electric vehicle. As Argonne researchers consider the future of transportation, they are increasingly turning to computer simulations that can break down complex systems into millions of constituent parts.

Argonne Reduces Emissions and Increases Fuel Efficiency
With its ability to convert 95-100% of nitrogen oxides (NOx) in diesel exhaust to atmospheric nitrogen, the Diesel DeNOx Catalyst is exceptionally well-positioned and equipped to significantly reduce NOx emissions from U.S. heavy-duty diesel fleets near-term and other diesel-fueled emission sources in the future. The system is simple because the user (e.g., driver) does not need to add materials to keep the system running or maintain complicated engineering controls. The catalyst is expected to have a long lifetime and require minimal space on the truck chassis. The materials used to produce the system are also relatively inexpensive and nontoxic.

The Diesel DeNOx Catalyst was invented and developed at Argonne National Laboratory. Although initial efforts to commercialize the technology were unsuccessful, published results of DeNOx research soon caught the attention of Integrated Fuels Technology (IFT), a company devoted to the development and sale of new technologies to maximize the fuel efficiency and minimize the environmental impact of operating heavy-duty fleet vehicles, such as class 8 trucks. The DeNOx Catalyst complements IFT's existing product line of systems for enhancing performance, reducing emissions, and increasing fuel efficiency. Also, IFT has the expertise and industry connections to complete the system's development and bring it to market.

Argonne transferred the DeNOx technology to IFT through a Work-for-Others project funded solely by IFT. Argonne provided technical support and catalyst testing, and assisted IFT with the various vendors working on specific components. The team worked to introduce the finished product during 2009, and it became available to vehicle manufacturers for the 2010 model year. Future developments will adapt the technology to other emission sources, including passenger diesel vehicles, stationary diesel engines, coal-fired power plants, and methane-fueled power plants.