Performance of School Bus Retrofit Systems: Tailpipe Emissions and In-cabin Air Quality
Presented by Yifang Zhu, Assistant Professor, Department of Environmental Health Sciences, School of Public Health
Thursday, April 12, 2012
12:00 PM - 1:00 PM
La Kretz Hall, Suite 300, Large conference room
About the Talk
This study evaluated the performance of retrofit systems for diesel-powered school buses, a diesel oxidation catalyst (DOC) muffler and a spiracle crankcase filtration system (CFS), regarding ultrafine particles (UFPs) and other air pollutants from tailpipe emissions and inside bus cabins. Tailpipe emissions and in-cabin air pollutant levels were measured before and after retrofitting when the buses were idling and during actual pick-up/drop off routes. Retrofit systems significantly reduced tailpipe emissions with a reduction of 20% - 94% of total particles with both DOC and CFS installed. However, no unequivocal decrease was observed for in-cabin air pollutants after retrofitting. The AC/fan unit and the surrounding air pollutant concentrations played more important roles for determining the in-cabin air quality of school buses than did retrofit technologies. Although current retrofit systems reduce children’s exposure while waiting to board at a bus station, retrofitting by itself does not protect children satisfactorily from in-cabin particle exposures. Turning on the bus engine increased in-cabin UFP levels significantly only when the wind blew from the bus’ tailpipe towards its hood with its windows open. This indicated that wind direction and window position are significant factors determining how much self-released tailpipe emissions may penetrate into the bus cabin. The use of an air purifier was found to remove in-cabin particles by up to 50% which might be an alternative short-to-medium term strategy to protect children’s health.
About the Speaker
Dr. Zhu joined the Environmental Health Sciences Department in UCLA School of Public Health as an Assistant Professor in 2010. Before taking this post, Dr. Zhu has worked as an Assistant Professor in Environmental Engineering Department at Texas A&M University-Kingsville since 2006. She received her Ph.D. in Environmental Health Sciences from UCLA in 2003. Dr. Zhu’s research interest is primarily in the field of environmental exposure assessment and aerosol science and technology. Specifically, she is interested in determining the data necessary to fill the knowledge gap in quantitative exposure/risk assessments on vehicular emitted ultrafine particles that have shown higher toxicity than larger particles on a unit mass basis. Her current research focuses on identifying key factors that affect human exposure to ultrafine particles on and near roadways by measuring and modeling their emissions, transport, and transformation in the atmosphere as well as into the in-cabin and indoor environments. These research efforts are supported by two prestigious national awards, the National Science Foundation (NSF)’s Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Award and the Walter Rosenblith New Investigator Award from the Health Effects Institute.
