Publication Date
1-2001
Document Type
Technical Report
Organizational Units
College of Natural Science and Mathematics, Chemistry and Biochemistry
Keywords
Atmospheric chemistry, Emissions, Pollutants
Abstract
The University of Denver conducted a five-day remote sensing study in the Phoenix, AZ area in the fall of 1999. The remote sensor used in this study is capable of measuring the ratios of CO, HC, and NO to CO2 in motor vehicle exhaust. From these ratios, we calculate mass emissions per kg (or gallon) of fuel and the percent concentrations of CO, CO2, HC and NO in motor vehicle exhaust which would be observed by a tailpipe probe, corrected for water and any excess oxygen not involved in combustion. The system used in this study was also configured to determine the speed and acceleration of the vehicle, and was accompanied by a video system to record the license plate of the vehicle. Five days of fieldwork (November 15-19, 1999) were conducted on the uphill exit ramp from Hwy 202 / Sky Harbor Blvd. Westbound to Hwy 143 Southbound in Phoenix, AZ. A database was compiled containing 18,894 records for which the State of Arizona provided make and model year information. All of these records contained valid measurements for at least CO and CO2, and 18,520 contained measurements for HC and NO. The mean percent CO, HC, and NO were determined to be 0.31%, 0.014%, and 0.057%, respectively. The fleet emissions measured in this study exhibit a gamma distribution, with the dirtiest 10% of the fleet responsible for 78%, 79%, and 49% of the CO, HC, and NO emissions, respectively. This was the second year of a five-year continuing study to characterize motor vehicle emissions and deterioration in the Phoenix area. However, because of the non-ideal driving mode at the site in the first year (1998), a new location similar to the Denver, Chicago and L.A. Basin sites has been used for this year. The two sites were compared, and this revealed that they had somewhat different fleet characteristics. One of the more evident differences was that the 1999 site had slightly older vehicles. These differences led to higher average emissions at the 1999 site. A comparison with another on-road remote sensing instrument was also attempted. This comparison with SmogDog measurements showed that it correlated well with FEAT data when the measurements were binned by model year.
Copyright Statement / License for Reuse
Copyright Date
1-1-2001
Rights Holder
Sajal S. Pokharel, Gary A. Bishop, Donald H. Stedman
Provenance
Received from author
File Format
application/pdf
Language
English (eng)
Extent
37 pgs
File Size
317 KB
Publication Statement
Copyright is held by the authors. User is responsible for all copyright compliance.
This research was supported by the nonprofit Coordinating Research Council, Inc. (CRC). The final results of the research conducted by, or under the auspices of, CRC are available to the public.
Recommended Citation
Pokharel, S. S., Bishop, G. A., & Stedman, D. H. (2001). On-road remote sensing of automobile emissions in the Phoenix area: Year 2. Atlanta, GA: Coordinating Research Council.