Last spring, after a protracted effort from a handful of dedicated researchers, the UVM Transportation Air Quality Lab (TAQLab) was finally opened. The new laboratory is a critical piece of the puzzle for researchers at the University of Vermont who are studying vehicle emissions.

Two brand-new 2010 Toyota Camrys, provided by Handy Toyota in St. Albans, were delivered to the TAQLab on Thursday, October 1st. Both cars are adorned with a colorful "wrap" depicting blue skies, puffy clouds, green fields, and the helpful phrase: "Tailpipe Emissions Testing Vehicle". The cars look alike, but there is one major difference between them. Vehicle one has a standard combustion engine. Vehicle two is a gasoline/electric hybrid vehicle.

The Camrys will be used by a team of researchers to measure and compare the real-road emissions of hybrid vs. non-hybrid vehicles.

Once these cars are broken in--driven to odometer readings of 1,000 miles--each will be outfitted with an onboard tailpipe emissions measurement system, consisting of around 20 instruments. Among these are two fast-response instruments to quantify two types of tailpipe emissions in real-time: particle number distributions and gaseous mobile source air toxics (MSATs).

The research is funded by the US DOT's University Transportation Center program, and is part of the Transportation Research Center's research project, "Emissions and Performance of Alternative Vehicles in Northern Climates," led by School of Engineering Associate Professor Britt Holmén, Ph.D.

Karen Sentoff and Mitch Robinson are graduate students working on the project, as well as designing their own theses in conjunction with the research. Both students are candidates for a Masters in Environmental Engineering at UVM. Ms. Sentoff plans to focus her research on the vehicles' cold-start toxins. Mr. Robinson is interested in the emissions savings from hybrids in cities.

With the assistance of TRC's Partner, Resource Systems Group, Inc., Sentoff and Robinson carefully chose a loop to drive the cars that incorporates different types of roads in northern Vermont, including: rural arterial roads, interstate highway, in-town driving, and a significant hill. The route will be traveled repeatedly during each season, and researchers anticipate the winter data to be particularly interesting.

The new TAQLab is a joint venture of the UVM Transportation Research Center and the School of Engineering in CEMS. CEMS Assistant Dean, Dan Harvey, was instrumental in coordinating the details of the lab's creation.

Mr. Harvey explains that, "though we looked at multiple locations, we finally settled on a spot right in our backyard. The laboratory is located in the Perkins Building on central campus, and is large enough to accommodate the testing vehicles."