The development of novel technologies for diesel emission reduction and fuel economy improvement is receiving greater emphasis due to increased vehicle emission regulation and diesel equipment operating costs. Southern Research offers extensive expertise and advanced facilities dedicated to the development and evaluation of diesel emission reduction technologies and renewable fuels.

Innovative, Diverse Evaluation Capabilities

Southern Research’s highly qualified test engineers have developed innovative emissions and fuel economy evaluation capabilities that enable us to provide testing of technologies and transportation systems in use, within in the context of their actual real-world applications. We offer comprehensive testing capabilities that provide application-specific knowledge to potential users regarding the benefits and effects of a specific technology. Our test engineers design testing and monitoring programs that are specific to each technology based on existing standards and protocols. Additionally, our testing programs provide independent, valid, and reliable data regarding the performance impacts of novel, unproven clean diesel technologies within their planned operating environments.

Southern Research offers the following broad range of capabilities in the area of clean diesel technologies and fuels:

• Large diesel engines and vehicles (e.g., coal haul trucks, off-road equipment, and locomotives)
• Diesel emission control technologies, such as diesel particulate filters, Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR), and diesel oxidation catalysts
• Alternative fuels and fuel additives, such as biodiesel, ethanol, synthetic diesel, and a variety of fuel additives
• New engine and vehicle designs and components

Rigorous Testing Protocol and Advanced Equipment

Southern Research performs evaluations using internally developed and widely accepted testing protocols that utilize standardized suites of testing equipment as the foundation. This protocol and test equipment has been developed and utilized in several significant projects and has proven to be rigorous, accurate, and flexible enough for a variety of applications and desired levels of information. We utilize the following primary equipment for in-use technology evaluation:

• Horiba OBS-2200 Portable Emission Measurement System (PEMS); compact, portable, emissions test system for CO, CO₂, NO_x, and THC emissions measurement including exhaust emissions flow rate, GPS, and ambient conditions
• Portable Activity Monitoring System (PAMS) consisting of small data loggers and data acquisition systems with sensors and connectors available for RPM, ECM, GPS, exhaust temperature, and other parameters
• Power output measurement for engine-generator sets or diesel electric drive trains
• Coriolis flow meters for on-vehicle, real-time fuel measurement featuring accurate measurement of supply and return fuel flows and temperatures for a net fuel economy improvement measurement down to ~2%