Ultrafine particle emissions from dry clutches: number concentration, size distribution and chemical composition

Non-exhaust sources, such as brakes, tyres, roads, and clutches, emit a large portion of airborne particles in road transportation, from ultrafine to coarse sizes. While airborne wear particle emissions from brakes and road-tyre contacts have been studied extensively, emissions from clutches have been overlooked. A preliminary study using a novel test rig has indicated that dry clutches also emit airborne wear particles. This paper presents a multi-method for the assessment of ultrafine particles from dry clutches regarding the number concentration, size distribution and chemical composition. The results show that ultrafine particles are emitted both during run-in and at the steady state, featuring a bi-modal size distribution. Elementary analysis shows that the particles consist of several elements, predominately iron, silicon, and sulfur. It can be concluded from this study that ultrafine particles are always generated when the clutch is operated.