Effect of purge air humidity on automotive evaporative control performance

Conference · Fri Jan 01 04:00:00 EST 1988

OSTI ID:7011203

Gabele, P A; Perry, N ^[1]

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1. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Research Traingle Park, NC (US)

Evaporative emissions from automobiles account for approximately 16 percent of the nationwide anthropogenic nonmethane organic compound emissions. These emissions participate in atmospheric photochemical processes that produce ozone and other oxidant compounds. Because federal ozone standards are currently being violated in over 70 areas within the United States, control of organic compound emissions including evaporative emissions from automobiles has been given a high priority by the EPA. Test results in EPA's emission factor surveillance program indicate that average evaporative emissions rates from in-use vehicles are roughly six-times higher than the 2 grams/test standard level. Much of this exceedance can be attributed to the high reid vapor pressure (RVP) of the fuels being used in the surveyed vehicles which averaged 11.5 psi RVP as compared to 9.0 psi RVP for the EPA certification fuel. However, even when tested on 9.0 psi RVP fuel, a large number of problem- free vehicles still exceeded the standard. Fuel volatility considerations aside, evaporative control systems fail to provide the level of control in real-life that is demonstrated in the certification (i.e., the federal test procedure) environment. Accordingly, conditions or factors thought to influence in-use performance on evaporative control devices are now under investigation.

• OSTI ID: 7011203
• Report Number(s): CONF-880679--
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY
290300 -- Energy Planning & Policy-- Environment
Health
& Safety
293000 -- Energy Planning & Policy-- Policy
Legislation
& Regulation
33 ADVANCED PROPULSION SYSTEMS
330700* -- Advanced Propulsion Systems-- Emission Control
54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
540120 -- Environment
Atmospheric-- Chemicals Monitoring & Transport-- (1990-)
ADDITIVES
AIR POLLUTION CONTROL
AIR QUALITY
ALKANES
AUTOMOBILES
CONTROL
DISPERSIONS
EMISSION
ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY
FUELS
GASOLINE
GOVERNMENT POLICIES
HYDROCARBONS
LIQUID FUELS
MIXTURES
NATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS
NORTH AMERICA
OCTANE
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
OZONE
PETROLEUM PRODUCTS
POLLUTION CONTROL
STANDARDS
US EPA
US ORGANIZATIONS
USA
VEHICLES