Application of an Emission Estimation Methodology to Reflect Microscale Road Driving Conditions

PURPOSES : This study proposes a methodology to collect data necessary for microlevel emission estimation, such as second-by-second speeds and road grades, and to accordingly estimate emissions. METHODS : To ease data collection for microlevel emission estimation, a vehicle equipped with speed- and location-recording instruments as well as equipment for measuring road geometry was used. As a case study, this vehicle and the proposed methodology were used on a 10-km-long highway in Yongin City, Korea. Emissions from the vehicle during driving were estimated in various microscale driving conditions. RESULTS : Differences in the estimated emission under different microscale driving conditions cannot be ignored. Compared with the estimations obtained when second-by-second data were not considered, CO and NOx emissions were more than threefold higher when considering second-by-second speed; similarly, CO and NOx emission estimations were higher by approximately 10% and 3%, respectively, when considering second-by-second road grade. CONCLUSIONS : The proposed method can estimate vehicle emissions under real-world driving conditions in such applications as road design and traffic policy assessments.