Emission performance of a heavy vehicle for the transport of concrete with reference to the currently applicable Real Driving Emissions procedures
Emissions from heavy vehicles play an important role in assessing the environmental impact of road transport, especially in the context of tightening emission standards in the European Union. Heavy vehicles, including concrete mixers, despite representing less than 5% of all vehicles, account for approximately 25% of CO₂ emissions from road transport in the EU. The aim of this study was to analyze the emissions generated by a concrete transport vehicle in the context of Real Driving Emissions (RDE) procedures, which allow emissions to be assessed under real operating conditions, complementing laboratory tests. Due to the diversity of routes - from paved roads to unpaved and hard-to-reach construction sites - the operating conditions of concrete mixers deviate from the homologation assumptions, which may affect compliance with EU Regulation No 582/2011. Therefore, an analysis was carried out of the operation of the diesel engine of a 323 kW vehicle (Euro VI standard) during actual concrete transport on a 36-km route covering national, provincial and local unpaved roads. Measurements were made by using the Axion R/S+PM mobile measurement system (PEMS), recording CO, CO₂, NOₓ, HC and PM emissions and engine operating parameters (torque, engine speed, fuel consumption). The analysis considered the time distribution of the load and speed functions, the speed-acceleration relationship and the time-density characteristics of the emissions. The results were compared with the guidelines of the RDE procedure to assess their representativeness with respect to actual operating conditions. The analysis identified the key factors influencing exhaust emissions and assessed the degree of discrepancy between laboratory results and actual emissions, indicating a potential underestimation of the true environmental impact of this category of vehicle
Topic: Exhaust emissions and aftertreatment
Author: mgr. inż. Maciej Bednarek,
Co-authors: dr hab. inż. Andrzej Ziółkowski, prof. PP
