EC Opens New Vehicle Emissions Testing Lab
March 13, 2009 // Published as a news service by IHS
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The European Commission (EC) opened its seventh vehicle emissions laboratory (VELA) in Ispra, northern Italy, for testing fuel consumption and emissions of trucks and buses.
VELA 7, the new installation at the EC's joint research center (JRC), realistically simulates wind drag, tire/road friction and full drive cycles for real-life articulated trucks of up to 40 tons or 12-meter-long buses.
The launch comes at a crucial time, since implementation guidelines for new emission standards, notably the Euro VI regarding heavy duty vehicles, must be defined by April 1, 2010.
VELA 7 is one of the most advanced set-ups of its kind in the world and will provide independent, accurate and unbiased test results.
With measurements going clearly far beyond those achievable on simple engine test stands, VELA 7 can test a whole range of alternative fuels and exhaust gas after-treatment systems in existing and future truck configurations.
The new high-tech test facility contains an impressive roller bench in a climatic chamber to test exhaust gases from heavy duty vehicles with top-notch measuring equipment.
It will enable JRC researchers to tackle the challenges in implementing current, and developing future, emission standards for trucks and buses by using test cycles that are very close to real-life conditions
It can produce a broad picture - quantitatively and qualitatively - of the emissions of the whole range of heavy duty vehicles in the EU, which is a necessary step to then reducing those emissions effectively. Modern spectroscopy and other technologies allow detailed analysis of the most relevant gaseous components as well as the particulate matter in the exhaust.
The JRC has already played a key role in underpinning European legislation on air pollution from road transport. Just recently, it has supported the detailed implementation of the carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions limits for cars approved by the European Council and the European Parliament in December 2008.
"The European Commission is fighting climate change with words and actions, thanks to 'in-house' experts, on the political side as well as on the scientific side," said Janez Potočnik, EC commissioner for science and research.
"The Commission's research centre provides us with the scientifically robust and independent data which underpin the standards in EU environmental regulations to fight air pollution and reduce the negative impact from road transport."
"Today, Europe's freight transport by trucks reaches 1888 billion tonne-kilometers every year; increasing trucks efficiency will significantly reduce fuel consumption. The Commission's new facility will make a great contribution to the Commission's priorities in these areas."
Green road transport is an important element of the EC's European Recovery Plan, which announced three public-private partnerships for research. One of these, the "green car" initiative in fact covers all kinds of vehicles, and indeed the wider context of the development infrastructure and technology for cleaner and more efficient land transport.
For more information, see the EC's web page, Better control of CO2 emissions from road transport to curb climate change.
Source: European Commission (EC).