Overview
ISO 18854:2015 - "Small craft - Reciprocating internal combustion engines exhaust emission measurement - Test-bed measurement of gaseous and particulate exhaust emissions" - specifies methods for measuring and evaluating gaseous and particulate exhaust emissions from reciprocating internal combustion (RIC) engines under steady‑state test‑bed conditions. It defines procedures to determine one weighted value per pollutant for RIC marine engines intended for installation in small craft up to 24 m hull length. The standard covers test setup, instrumentation, sampling, and data evaluation needed for reliable exhaust emission measurement.
Key technical topics and requirements
ISO 18854:2015 addresses practical and technical requirements, including:
- Test conditions: engine operating points (combinations of load and speed), inlet/exhaust/cooling and lubricating-oil provisions, and validity criteria for steady‑state testing.
- Test fuels and engine‑family/parent‑engine selection for representative testing.
- Measurement equipment: dynamometer specifications, exhaust flow measurement methods (direct, tracer, air/fuel/carbon‑balance approaches), and total dilute exhaust flow handling.
- Gaseous component determination: analyser types and performance, gas drying, sampling systems, interference checks (CO, CO2, NOx, O2, NH3, N2O), and calibration procedures.
- Particulate measurement: sampling filter requirements, weighing environments, partial‑flow and full‑flow dilution systems (CVS), and particulate system calibration.
- Calibration and quality assurance: calibration gases, analyser warm‑up, leak tests, NO converter efficiency checks, FID optimization, and defined calibration intervals.
- Accuracy and data handling: required measurement accuracy and procedures to compute weighted pollutant values.
Practical applications and users
ISO 18854:2015 is used for:
- Marine engine manufacturers performing type‑approval testing and development for small craft engines.
- Test laboratories and emissions measurement facilities conducting RIC engine certification and compliance verification.
- Regulatory bodies and classification societies assessing conformity with environmental requirements for small craft.
- Design and R&D teams optimizing combustion, after‑treatment, and fuel strategies to reduce gaseous and particulate emissions.
- Environmental consultants preparing emission inventories or compliance reports for small craft fleets.
Practical benefits include consistent, repeatable test results, comparability across laboratories, and traceable procedures for both gaseous and particulate exhaust emissions.
Related standards
- Complements other ISO and marine emissions standards and national regulations governing engine emissions, test‑bed methods, and environmental compliance for small craft. (Refer to local regulatory documents and other ISO standards for related test cycles and in‑use measurement methods.)
Keywords: ISO 18854:2015, small craft emissions, reciprocating internal combustion engines, exhaust emission measurement, test‑bed measurement, gaseous emissions, particulate emissions, RIC marine engines, CVS dilution system.