Fine particle emission characteristics of a light-duty diesel vehicle according to vehicle acceleration and road grade

The characteristics of fine particle emission from a light-duty diesel vehicle operated on a chassis dynamometer were investigated according to vehicle acceleration and road grade. Particle number (PN) concentration and particle mass (PM) concentration were measured using a Solid Particle Counting System (SPCS), an Engine Exhaust Particle Sizer (EEPS), and a Dekati Low Pressure Impactor (DLPI). In this study, actual mass distribution of particles emitted from the tested diesel vehicle was determined by sampling the particles on 25-mm Teflon-coated filters installed at 13 impactor stages of the DLPI and then compared with the particle mass distribution converted from the particle number distribution measured by the EEPS. In order to evaluate the characteristics of fine particle emission under various conditions of vehicle acceleration and road grade, testing was conducted with or without installing a Diesel Particulate Filter (DPF). In general, PN and PM concentrations increased with both increasing vehicle acceleration and increasing road grade.