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INTRODUCTION


Deterioration of air quality is a major environmental problem in many large urban centers in both developed and developing countries. Although urban air quality in developed countries has been controlled to some extent during the past two decades, in most of the developing countries it is worsening and becoming a major threat to the health and welfare of people and the environment. In our modern society, quality of life is greatly measured by the amount of consumption of electricity or by the use of car. Electricity generation and operation of vehicles mostly use fossil fuel. As these fuels are burnt, huge quantity of lethal chemicals and poisonous particulate matter are released as a part of emission into the surrounding atmosphere due to incomplete combustion causing serious air pollution, affecting public health. The contribution of motor vehicles to air pollution was first recognized by Prof. Hazen Smit who discovered that the two invisible vehicular emissions namely hydrocarbons and oxides of nitrogen were responsible for the famous Los Angeles ‘photochemical smog’. These gases interact with one another and other components of the atmosphere to generate several harmful compounds viz. carcinogens. The auto exhaust also affects our valuable cultural heritage, historical places/ monuments/ architecture and the environment. The number of vehicles in India has increased from 1.86 million in 1971 to 32 million in 1996 and about 53 million in 2000. Meteorological and topographical conditions affect dispersion and transport of these pollutants in ambient air.


AUTOMOTIVE ENGINE TYPES


Spark-ignition and Diesel engines are the two most common engines. Other types of engines are Rotary (Wankel) Engines, Gas-Turbine (Brayton) Engines, Steam (Rankine) Engines, Stirling) Engines, Electric and Hybrid Vehicles.


Spark-ignition gasoline engines have...