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The use of methanol as a “clean fuel” appears to be a viable approach to reduce air pollution. However, concern has been expressed about potentially high formaldehyde emissions from stoichiometrically operated light-duty vehicles. This paper presents results from an emission test program conducted for the California Air Resources Board (CARB) and the South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD) to identify and evaluate advanced catalyst technology to reduce formaldehyde emissions without compromising regulated emission control. An earlier paper presented the results of evaluating eighteen different catalyst systems on a hybrid methanol-fueled test vehicle. (1)* This paper discusses the optimization of three of these catalyst systems on four current technology methanol-fueled vehicles. Emission measurements were conducted for formaldehyde, nonmethane organic gases (NMOG), methanol, carbon monoxide, and oxides of nitrogen emissions.

This paper describes the characterization of regulated and unregulated exhaust emissions from two methanol-fueled automobiles. For comparison, two gasoline-fueled automobiles of the same make and model were also evaluated. These automobiles were evaluated over the Light-Duty Federal Test Procedure and the Highway Fuel Economy Driving Schedule. Additional evaluations with the methanol-fueled automobiles were conducted using promoted base metal catalysts, and one of these automobiles was tested in a non-catalyst configuration. Exhaust constiuents sampled for, in addition to the regulated emissions, include: aldehydes, particulate, individual hydrocarbons, methanol, ethanol, ammonia, cyanide, amines, nitrosamines, and methyl nitrite.

This paper describes the characterization of regulated and unregulated exhaust emissions, particularly aldehydes, from ten 1978 and 1979 high mileage catalyst-equipped gasoline fueled automobiles which have been driven for approximately 50,000 miles. The ten automobiles were evaluated as-received and after a tune-up to manufacturer’s specifications, over the Light-Duty Federal Test Procedure (FTP) and the Highway Fuel Economy Driving Schedule (HFET). Exhaust constituents measured, in addition to the regulated emissions, include: aldehydes, particulates, sulfides, amines, and several additional compounds.

The influence of fuel composition on exhaust emissions from four 1982 model light-duty diesel vehicles was studied on the FTP cycle and at two steady-state conditions, but only the FTP results are presented and discussed in this paper. Nine test fuels were blended specifically for the program, with intentional variation in aromatic content, 90% boiling point, and 10% boiling point. Limited data were also acquired with injection timing at advanced and retarded settings, in addition to the main body of data taken with the engines adjusted to recommended timing. A comparatively small effort was also made to evaluate a tenth fuel consisting of a blend of two of the original nine fuels. Of the fuel characteristics varied intentionally, aromatic content generally had the greatest effect on most emissions of major interest (hydrocarbons, oxides of nitrogen, particulate, soluble organic fraction, polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons, and mutagenicity of extract by Ames bioassay).