EXPERIMENTAL EVALUATION OF THE IMPACT OF THE NEW EMISSIONS LIMITS ON THE VEHICLE FLOOR TEMPERATURE

The Kyoto Protocol established the reduction of pollutant emissions limits for all sectors of industrial economy in 8%, compared to 1990's levels, to be adopted in the period between 2008 and 2012. Since then, the European Union defined a progressive scale for the emission reduction applied to automotive vehicles, monitoring the levels of Nitrogen Oxide (NOx), Hydrocarbons (HC), Carbon Monoxide (CO) and particulate matter (PM). The European Union named the emission levels as EURO, while Brazil has named it's own Tier (PROCONVE). Since 2009, the Brazilian automotive industries are obligated to produce cars attending to the Tier 2 phase for gasoline and flexible engines and Euro 3 for diesel engines, while the countries using benzene and diesel must attend the Euro 3 phase. These new emission limits are reached altering the calibration of the Eletronic Central Unit (ECU), altering the volume and the composition of the catalytic converters and also adding new components to the engine, such as EGR (exhaust gas recirculation) system, phasing sensor, etc. This work aims to measure the impact of these modifications in the exhaust system temperatures and in the peripherical devices. The temperature raise on the exhaust system due to the engine's modifications may impact the functionality of some components and also the passenger's thermal comfort, since the exhaust system carries the heat generated in the engine under the vehicle pavement.