New solutions to reduce road-transport emissions

In recent years, the wear of the braking components, clutches, and tires have been identified as the major sources of non-exhaust emissions from road transport

According to the current publications of the PMP-group (Particle Measurement Program), today’s foundation brake systems emit more than 10 mg per km of fine dust in the size of PM10. The first approach toward regulation of Brake Emissions by PMP under the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) is ongoing and reduces this amount significantly. To face this issue, several strategies have been implemented however, the most outstanding are the coated rotors, the development of new friction materials, and advanced brake control. Ultimately, all measures and vehicle systems that contribute to a reduction of Brake Emission shall be considered, which means a huge peak of development on this topic with a respective high demand for test bench capacity. Currently, the main test used as a reference for measuring emissions is the WLTP-brake cycle.

Deep comprehension of tribological mechanisms enables the design of friction materials with low emission characteristics. In addition to low emissions, the design of new friction materials must ensure good performance with stable coefficients of friction and low wear.

The hard-metal-coated brake disc is one of the most promising ways to reduce the mass and number of brake fine dust particles. The mainstream technologies used for the coating are the high-speed laser cladding, High-velocity oxygen fuel spraying (HVOF) and Cold Gas Spray (CGS).

Furthermore, the development and characterization of new materials takes time and involves a lot of effort since there are many points to consider and even small changes can lead to significant behavior modifications. In this sense, rimsa is prepared to face new challenges and has developed new products (FE50 and TCF series) that help reduce emissions and corrosion. FE50 is a product designed to reduce wear, and therefore emissions, and TCF products are powders to be applied as a rotor coating that protects gray cast iron from corrosion and also reduces emissions.