Effect of a fuel activation device (FAD) on particulate matter and black carbon emissions from a diesel locomotive engine

Duckshin Park; Taejeong Lee; Yongil Lee; Wonseog Jeong; Soon-Bark Kwon; Dongsool Kim; Kiyoung Lee

doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2016.09.235

Effect of a fuel activation device (FAD) on particulate matter and black carbon emissions from a diesel locomotive engine

Sci Total Environ. 2017 Jan 1:575:97-102. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2016.09.235. Epub 2016 Oct 10.

Authors

Duckshin Park¹, Taejeong Lee², Yongil Lee³, Wonseog Jeong³, Soon-Bark Kwon¹, Dongsool Kim², Kiyoung Lee⁴

Affiliations

¹ Transportation Environmental Research Team, Korea Railroad Research Institute, Republic of Korea.
² Department of Environmental Engineering, Kyung Hee University, Republic of Korea.
³ Transportation Environmental Research Team, Korea Railroad Research Institute, Republic of Korea; Department of Mechanical Engineering, Sungkyunkwan University, Republic of Korea.
⁴ Department of Environmental Health and Institute of Health and Environment, Graduate School of Public Health, Seoul National University, Republic of Korea. Electronic address: cleanair@snu.ac.kr.

PMID: 27732909
DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2016.09.235

Abstract

Emission reduction is one of the most efficient control measures in fuel-powered locomotives. The purpose of this study was to determine the reduction in particulate matter (PM) and black carbon (BC) emissions following the installation of a fuel activation device (FAD). The FAD was developed to enhance fuel combustion by atomizing fuel and to increase the surface area per unit volume of injected fuel. Emission reduction by the FAD was evaluated by installing a FAD in an operating diesel locomotive in Mongolia. The test was conducted on a train operating on a round-trip 238-km route between Ulaanbaatar and Choir stations in Mongolia. The fuel consumption rate was slightly reduced following the FAD installation. The FAD installation decreased PM and BC emissions in the diesel locomotive, especially coarse PM. The PM₁₀ reductions achieved after FAD installation were 58.0, 69.7, and 34.2% for the constant velocity, stopping, and acceleration stages of the train's operation, respectively. The BC reduction rates were 29.5, 52.8, and 27.4% for the constant velocity, stopping, and acceleration stages, respectively.

Keywords: Black carbon (BC); Diesel locomotive; Fuel activation device (FAD); Particulate matter (PM).