Estimating pollutant emission from motor vehicles in the years 2000–2015

BEBKIEWICZ, Katarzyna; CHŁOPEK, Zdzisław; SZCZEPAŃSKI, Krystian; ZIMAKOWSKA-LASKOWSKA, Magdalena · 2017 · Crossref

DOI: 10.19206/ce-2017-411

archive: archived pipeline: cataloged verified

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Summary

This study presents the first estimation of national annual pollutant emissions from motor vehicles in Poland using the COPERT 4 software, a tool developed by the European Environment Agency for official EU reporting. The research covers the period from 2000 to 2015, aiming to quantify emissions across seven cumulated vehicle categories: passenger cars, light commercial vehicles, heavy-duty trucks, urban buses, coaches, motorcycles, and mopeds. The motivation stems from the need for accurate emission inventories to support environmental reporting and policy compliance within the EU framework. The methodology relied on the COPERT model, which calculates total emissions based on fuel consumption, energy use, and specific emission factors for various vehicle states, including warm-up, cold start, and fuel evaporation. Input data included vehicle registration numbers from Poland’s Central Register of Vehicles and Drivers (CEPiK), annual mileage, traffic condition shares (urban, rural, highway/expressway), average velocities, and fuel characteristics such as sulphur and lead content. To determine mileage for elementary vehicle categories, the authors developed a simulation model based on functional likeness and data from the INFRAS software. The study quantified emissions for a comprehensive list of pollutants, including carbon monoxide (CO), volatile organic compounds (VOCs), nitrogen oxides (NOx), particulate matter (PM10, PM2.5), and carbon dioxide (CO2). The results indicate a marked decline in national annual emissions from motor vehicles in Poland over the studied period. Specifically, emissions of carbon monoxide and volatile organic compounds showed a distinct decreasing trend. When analyzing relative emissions compared to the year 2000, a significant reduction was observed starting in 2006 for most pollutants across all vehicle types. However, nitrous oxide (N2O) was the only substance that did not follow this decreasing trend. The analysis differentiated emissions by vehicle category, showing that passenger cars and light commercial vehicles contributed significantly to the total emission load, though their individual contributions decreased over time. The significance of this work lies in providing the first comprehensive, COPERT-based emission inventory for Poland, establishing a baseline for future environmental assessments. The findings confirm the effectiveness of technological improvements and regulatory measures in reducing vehicular pollution, particularly for CO and VOCs. The study highlights the importance of continuous monitoring, especially for pollutants like N2O that did not show similar reductions. This data supports national and EU-level efforts to manage air quality and greenhouse gas emissions from road transport.

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