Search Results

Gaseous and particulate emissions from heavy-duty vehicles are affected by fuel types, vehicle/engine parameters, driving characteristics, and environmental conditions. Transient chassis tests were conducted on twenty-six heavy-duty vehicles fueled with methanol, compressed natural gas (CNG), #1 diesel, and #2 diesel, using West Virginia University (WVU) Transportable Heavy-Duty Vehicle Emissions Testing Laboratory. The vehicles were operated on the central business district (CBD) testing cycle, and regulated emissions of carbon monoxide (CO), total hydrocarbon (HC), nitrogen oxides (NOx), and particulate matter (PM) were measured. Comparisons of regulated emissions results revealed that the vehicles powered on methanol and CNG produced much lower particulate emissions than the conventionally fueled vehicles.

Measurement procedures for the legal limitation of emissions from heavy duty engines should adequately reflect the actual use of such engines in practice. Equally important is the possibility to monitor the emision performance of certified engines on the market. This paper gives a short overview of the experiences with the Dutch in-use compliance program for HD vehicles. The results indicate that such a monitoring of the existing fleet is of great importance for the national authorities. This means that any measurement procedure envisaged for legislation purposes should take account of the requirement of relatively easy monitoring of the emission behaviour in service just as much as the requirement of adequate simulation of practical vehicle operation.