Euro V norms

the European Commission (ec), on July 15, 2005, announced the draft Euro v proposal, which primarily focuses on particulate matter (pm) and nitrogen oxides (no_x) emissions from diesel cars. As expected, the proposed limits for diesel cars are very stringent. The ec is now inviting stakeholders to comment on the draft.

"Our ideas are ambitious, but realistic. The new emission limits will open the way to cleaner cars. This is the only road to future success. It is now up to the stakeholders to have their say," said Gnter Verheugen, ec vice-president, in a press statement.

The ec had already set out in its review of the Auto-Oil ii Programme and in its communication on the Clean Air for Europe (cafe) programme that it regards pm and ozone as the key challenges for air quality policy with regard to road transport. Accordingly, the proposals aims for an 80 per cent reduction in pm emissions to five milligramme (mg)/kilometer (km), against the 25 mg/km limit mandated under the Euro iv emissions standards. Euro v also aims at 20 per cent reduction in no_x emissions rom diesel cars. A pm emission limit is also introduced for petrol cars using lean-burn direct injection technology (pm is not an issue with conventional petrol cars with stoichiometric combustion). All petrol cars will also have to meet 25 per cent reduced emission limits for no_x and hydrocarbons (hc). The durability requirement of emission control systems has been doubled to 1,60,000 km.

A major feat of the Euro v draft is the plugging of the historical loophole regarding Sports Utility Vehicles (suvs). Currently, they were subjected to lenient norms. But the draft says: "Passenger vehicles with a mass of over 2,500 kg, such as suvs, can no longer use the less ambitious emission standards for light commercial vehicles." Also, as opposed to the current mass-based pm emission rules, Euro v suggests that manufacturers should collect pm number data and make these available at type approval. These, however, won't be regulated.

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