Particulate matter (mainly carbon) that is not burned in the power stroke is wasted energy. Stricter regulations on particulate matter (PM) call for further emission controls to be introduced to compensate for the PM emission increases caused by EGR. The most common is a diesel particulate filter (DPF) in the exhaust system which cleans the exhaust but causes a constant minor reduction in fuel efficiency due to the back pressure created. The nitrogen dioxide component of emissions is the primary oxidizer of the soot caught in the DPF at normal operating temperatures. This process is known as passive regeneration. Increasing EGR rates cause passive regeneration to be less effective at managing the PM loading in the DPF. This necessitates periodic active regeneration of the DPF by burning diesel fuel in the oxidation catalyst in order to significantly increase exhaust gas temperatures through the DPF to the point where PM is quickly burned by the residual oxygen in the exhaust.