Datlangin Capsule Proposal

Design and Development of a Low-Cost Tailpipe Exhaust Particulate

Filter Using Bamboo Charcoal

Background of the Study

Road transport is a major anthropogenic source of particulate matter (PM) emissions.

PM is an airborne pollutant consisting of minute particles and liquid droplets that pose

adverse risks on public health, genotoxicity and mutations (Rai, 2015). The acceleration of

urban development came with an increase in fuel combustion, which causes vehicles to

release PM less than 2.5 microns in diameter called PM2.5 (Xing, Xu, Shi & Lian, 2016).

These particles can penetrate deeply into the lungs when inhaled, promoting lung cancer and

other cardiopulmonary diseases (Nguyen, Naguib, Papathomas & Shaker, 2011).

Nearly two decades since the approval of the 1999 Philippine Clean Air Act, the

country has shown little progression in improving air quality. A 2018 study from the World

Health Organization (WHO) shows that the Philippines already ranks third highest

worldwide in the number of air pollution deaths, at 45 people per 100,000 (Tomacruz, 2018).

Recent attempts at solving pollution include the nationwide shift to Euro 4 fuel standards,

which requires the use of “cleaner”, low-sulfur fuels that lead to reduced emissions of PM

(Ang, 2016). However, this has been offset by heavy volumes of traffic that continually

contribute to pollutant emissions (Uy, 2015; Zhang & Batterman, 2013). This, in turn, is

especially dangerous for commuters who are exposed to high amounts of PM on a daily

basis.

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Objectives of the Study

This project aims to design and develop an exhaust filter that can reduce a vehicle’s

PM emissions and minimize the impact of the medical and environmental dangers associated

with ambient air pollution.

The filter, which is to be attached to a road vehicle’s tailpipe, will utilize bamboo

charcoal, which has been shown to enable the adsorption of PM and other harmful substances

(Peng, Le, Giu, Furata, 2017). When installed on the tailpipes of diesel-powered vehicles and

tested at the Eurolab Emission Testing Center in Quezon City, it must cut the said vehicles’

PM emissions by 50%. The filter’s overall construction cost must also be relatively

inexpensive when compared to commercially available tailpipe filters.

Significance of the Study

If not addressed in the next decade, urban air pollution will be the biggest

environmental cause of premature death with an estimated 3.6 million annual deaths by 2050

(Harvey, 2012). However, the filter can assist in reducing this figure should it achieve the

50% PM reduction goal and be put into large-scale use. According to estimates from WHO,

cutting PM10 emissions down to 20 micrograms per meter (μg/m 3)—the average exposure

level in Metro Manila from 2013 was 45 μg/m 3—can decrease pollution-related mortality

rates by 15% (Ang, 2018; Pandey et al., 2013). Similarly, should the filter allow for the

adsorption of PM2.5, less of these minute particles can penetrate Filipinos’ respiratory

systems. The cost-effectiveness of the filter will also prove extremely beneficial in shifting

Filipinos’ focus from utilizing increasingly expensive fuels to instead making use of cheap,

alternative resources for a cleaner and safer environment.

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Research Design

The experimental units in this study will be the constructed tailpipe filters. Three of

these will be constructed, and to ensure results are unbiased, the following

characteristics/variables in their design will be kept constant: material, packaging,

dimensions, amount of bamboo charcoal used, and internal structure.

Three diesel-powered automobiles (courtesy of the researchers themselves) will

undergo emission testing at the Eurolab Emission Testing Center in Quezon City. Each of the

three filters will then be randomly assigned to a diesel-powered automobile and installed,

after which the vehicles will be tested again. The filters will be detached, and two more

cycles of this process will be done. Hence, each car will undergo six emission test trials, half

of which will utilize the filter, and the other half will not.

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Process Flowchart (Level 0)

Level 1 Flowcharts

A. Design of Exhaust Filter

B. Construction of Exhaust Filter

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The computer-aided design (CAD) programs concerned in this study are Blender, for

3D modeling, and Repetier for slicing. Slicing refers to the conversion of models into layers

and the obtainment of contours, which can then be individually printed using a 3D Printer

(Hu, 2017). Various components of the filter are to be printed separately such as the external

casing, the PM cartridge, and the container of bamboo charcoal.

C. Testing Phase

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References

Ambag, R. (2018, June 18). How bad is air pollution in the Philippines? Retrieved September
2, 2018, from https://www.flipscience.ph/health/how-bad-air-pollution-philippines/

Ang, J. K. (2016, January 20). Euro 4 standard for new vehicles and fuel begins this year.
Retrieved September 2, 2018, from http://motioncars.inquirer.net/42563/euro-4-standard
-for-new-vehicles-and-fuel-begins-this-year

Harvey, F. (2012, March 15). Air pollution 'will become bigger global killer than dirty water'.
Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2012/mar/15/air-pollution-bi
ggest-killer-water

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Hu, J. (2017). Study On STL-based Slicing Process For 3D Printing. Paper presented at Solid
Freeform Fabrication Symposium: An Additive Manufacturing Conference, Denver,

Nguyen, Q., Naguib, R., Papathomas, M., & Shaker, M. (2011). Effects of air pollution on
cardiovascular diseases in the Philippines: results of a survey assessing cardiologists’
awareness. Paper presented at Fifth Humanoid, Nanotechnology, Information
Technology, Communication and Control Environment and Management (HNICEM)
International Conference, Manila.

Pandey, K. D., Wheeler, D. R., Deichmann, U., Hamilton, K., Ostro, B. & Bolt, K. (2013).
Ambient Particulate Matter Concentrations in Residential and Pollution Hotspot Areas
of World Cities: New Estimates Based on the Global Model of Ambient Particulates,
1960 - 2013. Retrieved September 2, 2018 from
https://www.phileconomist.com/p/philippines-pm10-country-level.html

Peng, W., Ge, S., Liu, Z., & Furuta, Y. (2017). Adsorption characteristics of sulfur powder by
bamboo charcoal to restrain sulfur allergies. Saudi Journal of Biological Sciences, 24(1),
103–107. http://doi.org/10.1016/j.sjbs.2016.08.013

Rai, P. K. (2015). Adverse Health Impacts of Particulate Matter. In Biomagnetic Monitoring

of Particulate Matter: In the Indo-Burma Hotspot Region. Retrieved from
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/B978012805135100002

Tomacruz, S. (2018, July 25). Air pollution deaths 3rd highest in PH. Retrieved September 2,
2018, from https://www.rappler.com/nation/208192-air-pollution-deaths-3rd-highest-phi
lippines

Uy, J. R. (2015, August 23). Metro's air quality getting worse-study. Retrieved September 2,
2018, from http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/715587/metros-air-quality-getting-worse-study

Villas-Alvaren, A. (2017, August 1). Over 1000 Metro commuter buses fail smoke test.
Retrieved September 2, 2018, from https://www.pressreader.com/philippines/manila-
bulletin/20170801/281590945642788

Xing, Y.-F., Xu, Y.-H., Shi, M.-H., & Lian, Y.-X. (2016). The impact of PM2.5 on the human
respiratory system. Journal of Thoracic Disease, 8(1), E69–E74.
doi.org/10.3978/j.issn.2072-1439.2016.01.19

Zhang, K., & Batterman, S. (2013). Air pollution and health risks due to vehicle traffic. The
Science of the Total Environment, 0, 307–316. http://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2013.01
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