Patent ID: 8783090

Claim:
A method to determine total carbon content, non-inclusive of carbon dioxide, of internal combustion engine exhaust, the method comprising: obtaining an engine exhaust sample from an internal combustion engine of a motor vehicle, the engine exhaust sample including carbon dioxide and one or more additional carbon-containing substances; diluting the exhaust sample with a diluent, wherein the diluent cools the exhaust sample and reduces a concentration of the carbon dioxide of the exhaust sample; removing at least 95% by weight of the carbon dioxide from at least a portion of the exhaust sample to provide an exhaust test specimen; heating the exhaust test specimen in a heating device to a temperature and in a presence of oxygen to oxidize at least 95% by weight the carbon of the one or more additional carbon-containing substances of the exhaust test specimen and generating carbon dioxide thereby; cooling the exhaust test specimen in a cooling device, determining an overall quantity of carbon dioxide of the exhaust test specimen; and determining an overall quantity of carbon of the exhaust test specimen using the overall quantity of carbon dioxide of the exhaust test specimen.