There is a strong competition among automotive manufacturers to reduce the radiated noise levels. One important source is the engine exhaust where the main noise control strategy is by using efficient mufflers. Stricter vehicle noise regulations combined with various exhaust gas cleaning devices, removing space for traditional mufflers, are also creating new challenges. Thus, it is crucial to have efficient models and tools to design vehicle exhaust systems. In addition the need to reduce CO2 emissions puts requirements on the losses and pressure drop in exhaust systems. In this thesis a number of problems relevant for the design of modern exhaust systems for vehicles are addressed. First the modelling of perforated mufflers is investigated. Fifteen different configurations were modeled and compared to measurements using 1D models. The limitations of using 1D models due to 3D or non-plane wave effects are investigated. It is found that for all the cases investigated the 1D model is valid at least up to half the plane wave region. But with flow present, i.e., as in the real application the 3D effects are much less important and then normally a 1D model works well. Another interesting area that is investigated is the acoustic performance of after treatment devices. Diesel engines produce harmful exhaust emissions and high exhaust noise levels. One way of mitigating both exhaust emissions and noise is via the use of after treatment devices such as Catalytic Converters (CC), Selective Catalytic Reducers (SCR), Diesel Oxidation Catalysts (DOC), and Diesel Particulate Filters (DPF). The objective of this investigation is to characterize and simulate the acoustic performance of different types of filters so that maximum benefit can be achieved. A number of after treatment device configurations for trucks were selected and investigated. Finally, addressing the muffler design constraints, i.e., concerning space and pressure drop, a muffler optimization problem is formulated achieving the optimum muffler design through calculating the acoustic properties using an optimization technique. A shape optimization approach is presented for different muffler configurations, and the acoustic results are compared against optimum designs from the literature obtained using different optimization methods as well as design targets. / <p>QC 20121016</p>

NOx sensors have become salient components in the development of efficient exhaust after treatment system for heavy duty vehicles in the past few years. When the accumulated water inside the silencer splashes on to the NOx sensor, it can cause permanent cracks in the sensor. To protect the sensor from this mode of failure, a dew point strategy is developed at Scania. This is important to predict when it is safe to switch on the NOx sensor without causing any harm to it. But the strategy currently includes only the phase transfer phenomena and neglects the effect of the water blow out phenomena inside the silencer. To investigate the effect of water blow out, an experimental test method is designed and the experiments are conducted at different locations in the silencer. The results from the experiments shows that the effect of water blow out is certainly an important factor to develop a better dew point strategy model. For a selected location, the quantity of water remaining after blow out and the time taken for the blow out phase are collected as data from the experiments. A mathematical model for the water blow out phenomena is developed in MATLAB. The model estimates the maximum amount of water which could be present in all the subvolumes of the silencer considering the effect of water blow out. The model is verified with the experimental data for a Scania CAS1 silencer. Calibration guidelines for the developed blow out model are also documented in this report. / NOx sensorer har blivit viktiga komponenter i utvecklingen av ett effektivt avgassystem för tunga fordon under de senaste åren. När det ackumulerade vattnet i ljuddämparen stänker på NOx-sensorn kan det orsaka permanenta sprickor i sensorn. För att skydda sensorn från detta misslyckande utvecklas en daggpunktsstrategi på Scania. Detta är viktigt att förutsäga när det är säkert att slå på NOx-sensorn utan att skada den. Men strategin innehåller för närvarande endast fasöverföringsfenomenen och försummar effekten av att vatten blåser ut fenomen inuti ljuddämparen. För att undersöka effekten av utblåsning av vatten utformas en experimentell testmetod och experimenten utförs på olika platser i ljuddämparen. Resultaten från experimenten visar att effekten av vattenblåsning verkligen är en viktig faktor för att utveckla en bättre daggpunktsstrategimodell. För en vald plats samlas mängden vatten kvar efter utblåsning och den tid det tar för utblåsningsfasen som data från experimenten. En matematisk modell för fenomen för vattenblåsning utvecklas i MATLAB. Modellen uppskattar den maximala mängden vatten som kan finnas i ljuddämparens undervolymer med tanke på effekten av vatten som blåser ut. Modellen verifieras med experimentdata för en Scania CAS1 ljuddämpare. Kalibreringsriktlinjer för den utvecklade utblåsningsmodellen dokumenteras också i denna rapport.