Characteristics of pollutant emission from motor vehicles for the purposes of the Central Emission Database in Poland

BEBKIEWICZ, Katarzyna; CHŁOPEK, Zdzisław; LASOCKI, Jakub; SZCZEPAŃSKI, Krystian; ZIMAKOWSKA-LASKOWSKA, Magdalena · 2019 · Crossref

DOI: 10.19206/ce-2019-229

archive: archived pipeline: cataloged verified

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Summary

This study establishes pollutant emission characteristics for motor vehicles to support the creation of Poland’s Central Emission Database, a national initiative by the Institute of Environmental Protection–National Research Institute. The database aims to model the spatial distribution of air pollution immission (concentrations of dispersed pollutants) across Poland. Accurate emission modeling requires understanding how emission intensity varies with vehicle motion. Consequently, this research determines the specific distance emissions of key pollutants as a function of average vehicle speed for cumulative vehicle categories. The methodology utilizes the COPERT 5 software to calculate national annual emission inventories for 2017. The study focuses on five cumulative vehicle categories: passenger cars, light commercial vehicles, heavy-duty trucks, buses, and motorcycles/mopeds. The analysis covers pollutants harmful to health and the environment, specifically carbon monoxide (CO), non-methane volatile organic compounds (NMVOC), nitrogen oxides (NOx), and particulate matter (TSP, PM10, and PM2.5). Emissions are modeled as a superposition of engine emissions (heated and cold-start), fuel evaporation, and non-exhaust particulate matter from tribological processes. The researchers derived analytical emission characteristics by approximating the relationship between average vehicle speed and specific distance emissions using polynomial functions of the third to sixth degree. The results reveal distinct emission patterns based on vehicle type and engine technology. For passenger cars and light commercial vehicles, emissions are highly sensitive to speed, showing significantly higher pollutant levels at low average speeds due to dynamic driving conditions and spark-ignition engine characteristics. Emissions also increase at very high speeds due to high engine loads. Light commercial vehicles exhibit similar trends to passenger cars but with higher absolute emissions for NOx and particulate matter. In contrast, heavy-duty trucks and buses, which lack spark-ignition engines, demonstrate a decreasing trend in emissions as vehicle speed increases. Motorcycles and mopeds display unique characteristics distinct from other categories. The study provides detailed graphical representations of these speed-dependent emission factors for all analyzed pollutants and vehicle classes. These findings are significant for improving the accuracy of air pollution dispersion models in Poland. By providing precise, speed-dependent emission characteristics, the research enables more reliable estimation of annual average pollutant concentrations across the country. This data supports environmental threat assessment and regulatory planning, addressing the limitation that direct immission measurements are only feasible in selected locations. The work contributes essential input data for the Central Emission Database, facilitating comprehensive spatial modeling of anthropogenic emissions from road transport.

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