Filter element

摘要

There is disclosed a filter element which can increase a capacity for ash to be deposited while suppressing decrease of an effective GSA and suppressing increase of a pressure loss and which additionally can lower a regeneration temperature by enhancing a regeneration limit and enhancing ignitability at regeneration. In a filter element which filters an exhaust gas from an internal combustion engine, including an inflow surface and an outflow surface; and a large number of inflow passages 16 and a large number of outflow passages 18A and 18B, the inflow passages 16 and the outflow passages 18A and 18B being partitioned by partition walls 20 made of a porous material, a total cross-sectional area of all the inflow passages 16 is larger than a total cross-sectional area of all the outflow passages 18A and 18B, and the number of the inflow passages 16 is larger than the number of the outflow passages 18A and 18B, a cross section of the filter element is formed by the large number of outflow passages 18A and 18B each having a regular hexagonal shape and the large number of inflow passages 16 each having a modified hexagonal shape, the large number of regular hexagonal outflow passages are formed by first hexagonal passages 18A, and second hexagonal passages 18B each having a cross-sectional area smaller than that of each of the first hexagonal passages 18A, an outer peripheral side of each of the first hexagonal passages 18A and the second hexagonal passages 18B is surrounded with six modified hexagonal inflow passages 16 via the partition walls 20, and the first hexagonal passages 18A and the second hexagonal passages 18B are regularly arranged.