Characterization of Pollutant Emissions from Typical Material Handling Equipment Using a Portable Emission Measurement System

Abstract

Non-road equipment has been an important source of pollutants that negatively affect air quality in China. An accurate emission inventory for non-road equipment is therefore required to improve air quality. The objective of this paper was to characterize emissions from typical diesel-fueled material handling equipment (loaders and cranes) using a portable emission measurement system. Instantaneous, modal, and composite emissions were quantified in this study. Three duty modes (idling, moving, and working) were used. Composite emission factors were estimated using modal emissions and time-fractions for typical duty cycles. Results showed that emissions from loaders and cranes were higher and more variable for the moving and working modes than the idling mode. The estimated fuel-based CO, HC, NO, and PM2.5 composite emission factors were 21.7, 2.7, 38.2, and 3.6 g/(kg-fuel), respectively, for loaders, and 8.7, 2.4, 28.3, and 0.3 g/(kg-fuel), respectively, for cranes. NO emissions were highest and should be the main focus for emission controls. CO, HC, NO, and PM2.5 emissions measured were different from emission factors in the US Environmental Protection Agency NONROAD model and the Chinese National Guideline for Emission Inventory Development for Non-Road Equipment. This indicates that improving emission inventory accuracy for non-road equipment requires more real-world emission measurements.