Miratech V-CAT receives approvals for locomotive and marine EMD engines

24 November 2010

The Miratech V-CAT® diesel oxidation catalyst (DOC) kit received two regulatory approvals:

The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) certified the V-CAT DOC kit as meeting the requirements of the 40 CFR 1042 Marine Rebuild rule for Electro Motive Diesel (EMD) 710-series engines. The rule is part of the EPA’s Marine Remanufacture Program covering commercial marine diesel engines with power at or above 600 kW, manufactured in 1973 or later.
California Air Resources Board (ARB) verified the V-CAT for EMD 16-710G3 series engines in locomotive applications.

The V-CAT integrates DOC modules directly into the exhaust manifold of EMD engines within the existing footprint, preserving open access to service areas of the engine. Since gases are hotter upstream from the turbocharger, integrating the V-CAT into the exhaust manifold addresses the issue of low exhaust gas temperatures, especially important with two-stroke engines. The V-CAT removable, square catalyst elements utilize catalyst coated, metallic VORTEX™ substrates. The catalyst elements have been designed to provide low pressure drop to meet the EMD engine backpressure requirements, while the packaging has been optimized to provide the required mechanical durability of the system.

Marine engine operators can now use the V-CAT system when rebuilding their EMD 710-series engines to meet the EPA requirement of a 25% PM emission reduction. Last year, the V-CAT was also listed by EPA as an Emerging Technology for marine 2-stroke, Tier 0, Tier 1, and Tier 2 turbocharged and roots-blown EMD 567, 645, and 710 engine models. The listing made the V-CAT eligible for inclusion in requests for funding under the EPA Clean Diesel programs.

Miratech V-CAT installation on EMD marine engine

In the locomotive engine application, the ARB found that a V-CAT-equipped EMD SD60 achieved switch duty cycle emission levels of 0.26 g/bhp-hr HC, 0.21 g/bhp-hr CO and 0.23 g/bhp-hr PM, and line-haul cycle emissions of 0.15 g/bhp-hr HC, 0.11 g/bhp-hr CO and 0.15 g/bhp-hr PM.

After a 14-month V-CAT field test, Southwest Research Institute measured emission reductions of 75% for HC, 82% for CO and 49% for PM, based on the line-haul cycle. No mechanical issues were found with the system.

Source: Miratech