Vehicle, Driver and Atmospheric Factors in Light-Duty Vehicle Particle Number Emissions (original) (raw)

Made possible by the collection of on-board tailpipe emissions data, this research identifies road and driver factors that are associated with a relatively understudied tailpipe pollutant from light-duty vehicles: ultrafine particle number emissions. High emission events (HEE) of ultrafine particle number (PN) emissions occurred most frequently at locations with steep upgrades or locations that required moderate to rapid accelerations (>3 mph/s). The analysis revealed that less than 2% of the time driving was responsible for almost a third of all ultrafine particles emitted along the designated 17-mile test route for a sample of 22 drivers. Variables identified in a generalized linear model as significant to PN emissions include measures of engine speed (RPM), driver behavior (speed and acceleration rates), and road geometry (grade). These factors account for approximately 61% of the variability measured. Few modal emissions models estimate PN emissions; however, this research ha...