Ricardo supports Department for Transport in developing a non-exhaust emissions measurement system

Ricardo, in collaboration with the Arup AECOM consortium is supporting the Department for Transport (DfT), in developing a system for measuring non-exhaust emissions (NEE) of particles, under real-world driving conditions.

Non-exhaust emissions of particles from road vehicles primarily arise from a combination of brake wear, tyre wear, road surface wear, and the resuspension of dust particles. Emission data from the UK NAEI estimate that NEE are now the primary source of coarse and fine particulate matter (PM₁₀ and PM_2.5) from road transport in the UK.

A key aim of this project is to improve knowledge on NEE and address the gaps so it can be used to inform policy and legislation aimed at reducing tyre and brake wear particulate emissions. As the shift towards electric and hybrid vehicles increases it is important to address these gaps now.

Ricardo will contribute expertise in air quality, particle measurements and automotive emissions, to design and test a system to determine the overall feasibility of an on-board tyre and brake wear measurement.

Paul Willis, Technical Director for Air Quality Measurements at Ricardo said: "We are delighted to be working with our colleagues in Ricardo’s automotive team, as well as Arup AECOM, to come up with a system that provides vital insight into this growing pollutant area. Establishing an accurate and efficient system that can successfully detect NEE of particles under real-world driving conditions will help to better inform our current knowledge of how different brake, tyre and road materials perform under real-world driving conditions and how this contributes overall to transport related pollutant emissions."

Ricardo’s Particle Measurement Centre (PMC) and Automotive teams have previously co-operated extensively on the Particle Measurement Programme (PMP). The PMC continues to support PMP-related applications by providing an ISO17025 - accredited calibration service for solid particle counting instrumentation (both particle counters and sample conditioning systems) used for regulatory compliance measurements of vehicle emissions by the automotive sector around the world.

For more information on this project or Ricardo's work in this area, get in touch.