poster project

Ashley Holland, Andrew Parker, Jacob Jennings

Emissions from Mobile Sources EHST 3600: Air Pollution

Environmental Health Sciences Program

Department of Health Education and Promotion

East Carolina University

Greenville, North Carolina

What Are Mobile Sources?

Mobile sources of air pollution can be divided into two

categories: on-road and non-road vehicles.

• On-road vehicles include motorcycles, passenger

and commercial cars or trucks.

• Non-road vehicles and engines include aircrafts,

heavy equipment, small engines and tools,

locomotives, etc. (EPA, 2016)

Mobile Source Emissions

Mobile sources are known to emit many harmful

pollutants into the atmosphere.

• Ground-level Ozone

• Fine Particulate Matter

• Sulfur Dioxide

• Carbon Dioxide

• Hazardous Air Pollutants

• Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) (EPA, 2016)

Significance of Mobile Sources

Mobile source emissions account for:

• 45% of all volatile organic compound emissions

• 50% of all nitrous oxide emissions

• 60% of all carbon monoxide emissions

• 50% of all hazardous air pollutants in urban areas (Carruth & Goldstein, 2014)

Health Effects of Exposure to Mobile

Source Emissions

Exposure to mobile source emissions can cause

health effects such as:

• Asthma

• Respiratory Diseases

• Cardiovascular Effects

• Cancer

• Developmental Effects

• Mortality (EPA, 2016)

Environmental Effects

In addition to health effect, air pollution can have a major

impact on the environment. A build up of air pollution can

cause:

• Acid Rain: precipitation containing harmful amounts of nitric

and sulfuric acids

• Haze: when sunlight encounters pollution particles in the

air, it obscures the clarity, color, texture, and form of what

can be seen

• Ozone Depletion: the ozone layer in the stratosphere is

gradually being depleted by chemicals that have polluted

the air (Department of Environmental Protection, 2013)

Mobile Emission Control Strategies

A systemic approach seeks to improve three major factors:

• Refining fuel quality: direct reduction of harmful

emissions (removing lead from fuel, reducing sulfur

content).

• Advances in vehicle technology: improvement of

combustion conditions and implementation of post-

treatment devices (air filters, catalytic converters).

• Changes in the conditions of use: maintains the

baseline for emissions, includes management of traffic

and improvement of infrastructure to prevent vehicles

from idling as often. (Viana, 2016)

Case Study: Emission Violation • In November 2016, violations of California’s Truck and

Bus Regulation by a company using a fleet of 61 heavy-

duty diesel trucks without the proper particulate filters and

compliance history led to a court settlement with the EPA.

• Settlement valued at >$400,000

• $180,600 on environmental projects to reduce air

pollution at LA schools (including fine and ultra-fine

particulates, black carbon)

• $75,000 on air quality improvements in the San Joaquin

Valley

• $154, 400 civil penalty (Lauren, 2016)

Resources Borken-Kleefield, Jens. "Guidance Note about On-road Vehicle Emissions Remote Sensing." (n.d.): n. pag. July

2013. http://www.theicct.org/sites/default/files/publications/RSD_Guidance_BorKlee.pdf

Carruth, R. S., & Goldstein, B. D. (2014). Mobile Source Controls. In R. S. Carruth, & B. D.

Goldstein, Environmental Health Law (pp. 66-68). San Fransico: PB Printing.

Department of Environmental Protection. (2013, April 1). Health and Environmental Effects of Air

Pollution. Retrieved from Energy and Environmental Affairs:

http://www.mass.gov/eea/docs/dep/air/aq/health-and-env-effects-air-pollutions.pdf

EPA. (1994, August). Air Toxics From Motor Vehicles. Retrieved from Burlington Eco Info:

http://www.uvm.edu/~empact/air/EPA_factsheet.html

EPA. (2016, August 9). How Mobile Source Pollution Affects Your Health. Retrieved from US

Environmental Protection Agency: https://www.epa.gov/mobile-source-pollution/how-mobile-

source-pollution-affects-your-health#mobile%20sources

EPA. (2016, October 24). Regulations for Smog, Soot, and Other Air Pollution from Passenger Cars

& Trucks. Retrieved from Regulations for Emissions from Vehicles and Engines:

https://www.epa.gov/regulations-emissions-vehicles-and-engines/regulations-smog-soot-and-other-

air-pollution-passenger

Tyler, Lauren. "EPA Settles Diesel Truck Fleet Emissions Violation in California." NGT News. Zackin

Publications Inc., 07 Nov. 2016. http://ngtnews.com/epa-settles-emissions-violation-by-halliburton-

diesel-truck-fleet

Viana, Javier. "Systemic Approach to Vehicular Emission Control in Latin America and the

Caribbean." Regional Association of Oil and Natural Gas Companies in Latin America and the

Caribbean (n.d.): n. pag. www.arpel.org. http://www.un.org/esa/gite/cleanfuels/arpel.pdf

Mobile Emission Monitoring Strategies

Monitoring single vehicle or fleet emissions help develop

models to predict nation wide emissions.

Single vehicle monitoring:

• Remote optic sensing.

• Vehicle chase experiments.

• Test vehicles outfitted with a Portable Equipment

Measurement System (PEMS).

Fleet emissions monitoring:

• Tunnel measurements

• Ambient roadside concentrations

• Concentration differences in ambient air masses. (Borken-Kleefield, 2013)

EPA Standards & Other

Regulations/Guidelines

Passenger cars and trucks are regulated by

the EPA under “light-duty” vehicle programs.

EPA regulates passenger vehicles to

include:

• Standards for exhaust and evaporative

emissions

• Control of hazardous air pollutants and

air toxics

• High occupancy vehicle exemptions

• Inspection and maintenance (Viana, 2016)