A Blog of the ZHAW Zurich University of Applied Sciences
If you’re a frequent reader of our blog, you already know that we’re deeply invested in air quality — particularly when it comes to the impact of transportation. Whether it’s engine emissions, field measurements, lab studies, or targeted campaigns, we’ve done it all. If you’re new here, you’ve arrived at an exciting time! We’re taking […]
If you have ever owned a car, you are probably familiar with the mandatory (bi-) annual emissions test, which were introduced to ensure that wear and tear on the engines do not have a negative impact on the exhaust gas quality. And even if you have never owned a car, chances are that this connection […]
Overview Airborne pollutants can have negative physiological impacts on passengers and crew members in the short- and long-term, hence aircraft cabin air quality is very important to human wellbeing. Due to their detrimental effects on human health, volatile and semi-volatile organic compounds, also known as VOCs and SVOCs, must be eliminated from the cabin air. […]
As most of our active followers know, our research group is responsible for the operation, maintenance and optimization of the Swiss Mobile Aircraft Emission Measurement System (SMARTEMIS). Typically, the system is installed in test cell 1 at SR Technics, located at Zurich Airport. In 2022 however, the SR Technics management decided to reactivate their second […]
The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) requires that engines of maximum rated thrust greater than 26.7kN be certified for their emission performance[1]. For certification, ICAO defined four power modes in an aircraft’s landing-take-off (LTO) cycle as emission test points. These modes include idle/taxi at 7% of the maximum rated thrust (Foo), approach at 30% Foo, […]
Written by: Thomas Rötger On 7 October 2022, at the end of 2 weeks of negotiations during the 41st ICAO Assembly, the 193 ICAO Member States took the historic decision to adopt a collective long-term global aspirational goal (LTAG) of net-zero carbon emissions of international aviation by 2050. This resolution was based upon a report on the […]
Written by: Thomas Rötger Every three years in February, the UN International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) holds the plenary meeting of its Committee for Aviation Environmental Protection (CAEP). Normally, this meeting gathers about 200 aviation experts representing the States and international organisations at the ICAO Headquarters for two weeks in snowy Montréal. Not surprisingly, the […]
Exactly one year after the first measurements at the Gas Turbine Research Centre (GTRC) in Wales, the second measurement campaign was due there. And just like last year, the situation with the COVID pandemic started to deteriorate dramatically just before our departure. After numerous meetings, discussions and clarifications, including the development of strict COVID protection […]
Of course, COVID-19 also affected us, leading to working from home, interruption of routine aircraft turbine emission measurements at SR Technics, or to additional workload linked to remote teaching activities. On a positive note, COVID-19 offered the unique situation of drastic reductions in road as well as air traffic. At Zurich airport, there were days […]
On January 13-17, 2020, Julien and I attended the meeting of the SAE E-31 Committee, which took place in the historic Glamorgan Building of Cardiff University (little did I know that it would be the only face-to-face meeting the committee would have this year…). As usual, the first day of the meeting was devoted to […]
