Vehicle and Equipment Fuel Economy Service

Innovative, Diverse Evaluation Capabilities

Southern Research has developed an innovative fuel economy and emissions evaluation capability that enables us to provide testing of technologies in their actual, real-world applications. This unique capability allows for the assessment of a technology’s performance beyond controlled laboratory simulations, within a normal operating environment, providing application-specific knowledge to potential users regarding the benefits and impacts of a specific technology. Moreover, evaluations can be completed on individual vehicles and equipment or across full fleet applications. Evaluations are applicable to a variety of technologies, procedures, operational changes, and management practices.

Our staff of experienced project managers, test engineers, and field technicians can provide long-term monitoring and remote data collection for periods of a year or more. Additionally, our highly qualified test engineers design testing and monitoring programs that are specific to each technology based on existing standards and protocols.

In addition to providing testing of standard, on-highway vehicles (i.e., passenger cars and industrial trucks), Southern Research also specializes in the evaluation of engines and equipment for which laboratory and other controlled testing is often difficult, including:

• Large construction and mining diesel engines and vehicles (e.g., coal haul trucks and off-road equipment)
• Locomotives
• Marine engines

Rigorous Testing Protocol and Advanced Equipment

Southern Research’s experienced team performs evaluations using an internally developed and widely accepted testing protocol that utilizes 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:

• 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%
• 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
• Horiba OBS-2200 Portable Emissions Measurement System (PEMS) for carbon balance