News round-up 25/4/16
With news on: Dutch diesel and petrol ban; EU air quality funding; Murphy diesel filters; Ashtead particulate monitor, and; Dearman truck rental partnership
With news on: Dutch diesel and petrol ban; EU air quality funding; Murphy diesel filters; Ashtead particulate monitor, and; Dearman truck rental partnership.
Commission launches air quality contest for EU cities
A contest to improve air quality in cities through ‘innovative’ solutions has been launched by the European Commission.
The winner of the contest will receive £2.33 million
The Horizon Prize on materials for clean air will award €3 million (£2.33 million) to the most affordable, sustainable and design-driven response to the concentration of particulate matter (PM) in urban areas.
According to the Commission, around 90% of the population of European cities for which PM data exists is exposed to levels of pollution exceeding the World Health Organisation guidelines.
As a result, life expectancy in the EU is estimated to be around 8.6 months lower due to exposure to particulate matter resulting from human activities.
Ideas to improve air quality will be judged by a high-level jury, which will look for projects that first and foremost demonstrate applicability and reduce particulate matter.
The contest will run until 2018, with Horizon Prices accepting applications from January 2017.
Dutch diesel and petrol car ban gains momentum
The Netherlands has come a step closer to banning sales of new petrol and diesel cars from 2025 — after the motion was carried by politicians in the parliament’s lower chamber.
The motion, which was proposed by the government’s coalition partners in the Labour Party (PvdA), will need to pass through the Dutch senate before it becomes legally binding.
Initially, the proposal aimed to ban petrol and diesel cars entirely, but has since been scaled back to allow existing cars to stay in use.
Concerns over the motion have previously been raised by the VVD — the other half of Netherlands’ coalition government. According to state broadcaster NOS, the Party’s leader Halbe Zijlstra has argued it could conflict with the country’s existing energy agreement needed to meet its 2020 decarbonisation targets.
But supporters of the plan believe the ban would ensure the electrification of Duth roads over the next decade. Electric car sales in the Netherlands currently stand at around 10%.
Murphy unveils diesel filter system
A filter system that can be fitted to site plant and machinery to reduce particle emissions by ‘up to 99%’ has been unveiled by Murphy & Sons Limited.
Murphy’s DPF can be fitted on a variety of plant machinery
The Diesel Particulate Filter System (DPF) is among the initiatives instigated by the company to ensure cleaner, energy efficient working across its sites.
Developed by Baumot, it is designed to remove soot from the exhaust gas of a diesel engine and is compliant with Euro IIIB standards to control dust and emissions during construction and demolition work.
Over time, the soot builds up within the filters and is reduced to ash residue through the heat of the exhaust in a process known as regeneration.
Stephen Marr, environmental manager at Murphy, said: “Using the DPF system has made a significant contribution to reducing our air emissions. This helped us achieve full compliance with strict air quality standards and minimising the impact on our employees and local communities.”
Ashtead gains ‘web-enabled’ particulate monitor
Ashtead Technology has added a new aerosol monitor to its arsenal of environmental monitoring equipment with online access.
The PM system has been added to Ashtead’s fleet of monitoring equipment
The TSI Environmental DUSTTRAK Aerosol Monitor is a mains or battery-powered instrument that allows for continuous monitoring of particulates via ‘cloud’ based connectivity.
The device is housed in a weather-proof enclosure and uses the cloud to provide remote access for viewing data and configuration. Custom text message and email alerts an also be configured for user-specified alarm levels.
Ashtead’s Josh Thomas said: “This new instrument will be ideal for a wide variety of applications in which ambient particulates are a concern; even in remote locations. It will provide environmental health officers, planning authorities, environmental consultants and construction companies with the ability to accurately monitor particulate levels before, during and after construction projects, and during traffic surveys for example.”
Dearman and Hubbard team up with Dawsonrentals
Cold technology specialist Dearman and Hubbard Products are partnering with an asset rental and leasing business to demonstrate its zero-emission transport refrigeration system.
Dearman is developing zero-emission transport refrigeration technology
The state-of-the-art equipment uses the Dearman Engine, powered by liquid nitrogen, to achieve transport refrigeration without any NOx or particulate matter emissions.
Dawnsonrentals Truck & Trailer Ltd is supporting early commercial demonstrations by making its line of refrigerated vehicles available to operators to use the Dearman technology.
The first trial, which has been launched this spring, will be followed up by a second demonstration phase later in 2016.
Discussing the announcement, John Fletcher, managing director of Dawsonrentals Truck & Trailer said: “There is an ever-stronger focus on the environment and the need to cut emissions and boost drive efficiencies throughout the logistics sector. We are working hard to provide customers with access to the latest technologies to help their business, while also benefiting the wider community.”
Michael Ayres, deputy chief executive of Dearman, added: “In the years to come, pressure will continue to mount on operators to address issues of air pollution, CO2 emissions and noise. At Dearman we have developed technologies which can help to address those issues without costing the earth.”