Climatic Chamber Configurator
Discover the Climatic Chamber Configurator
Our guide to choosing the climate chamber best suited to your needs.
Among the factors that contribute to environmental pollution and, together, pose a risk to our health, are VOCs or Volatile Organic Compounds.
For testing batteries and accumulators, discover the battery test chamber, designed for testing under controlled conditions.
The VOC class includes a whole series of chemical compounds which, under certain conditions, disperse into the air by “evaporating” from material supports.
For this reason, it is necessary to test products and materials to verify their VOC dispersion rate
This is what SHED Testing or Evaporative Emissions Testing does
The automotive sector is particularly affected, let's see why.
What is SHED Testing for?
We may not think about it, but a typical car is a heterogeneous mix of multiple materials: we have exterior trim, interior trim, components, and gaskets made of a wide variety of materials such as plastic, glass, metal, fabric, and so on.
Each of these parts carries a different risk of VOC emissions, which are harmful both to those who occupy the passenger compartment and to the environment itself.
For this reason, all vehicles are subjected to SHED Testing, an acronym which stands for Sealed Housing for Evaporative Determination.
SHED Testing is used to calculate and evaluate this risk according to internationally defined standards and then judge whether a particular car model is approved or not.
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How SHED Testing Works for the Automotive Sector
SHED Testing is a laboratory test that involves testing material samples or entire vehicles within a controlled environment to simulate vehicle usage conditions and evaluate VOC emissions.
Environmental chambers are a fundamental tool for SHED Testing because factors that influence VOC emissions include exposure to heat, UV rays, and relative humidity; all parameters that can be precisely altered and modified within a climate chamber.
International Standards for SHED Testing
SHED Testing for the automotive sector is governed by a series ofinternationally recognized standards thatestablish evaluation methods and criteria.
The general standard on VOC emissions is Chapter 9 of ISO 16000.
Meanwhile, the automotive sector specifics are regulated in chapters 1 and 2 of ISO 12219.
Both standards require the use of climatic chambers to perform evaporative emissions testing.
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The FDM Climate Chamber for SHED Testing
All the above-mentioned tests can be performed with FDM climate chambers.
For over 70 years, we have been designing and building climate chambers, employing the most modern technologies to satisfy our customers and meet all current regulations.
If you need a climate chamber, please do not hesitate to contact us.
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Reference Standards
- SAE J1603 — Test Procedure for Evaporative Emissions from Motor Vehicles (SHED)
- EPA 40 CFR Part 86 — Control of Emissions from New and In-Use Vehicles (USA)
- CARB LEV III — California Air Resources Board Low Emission Vehicle program
- EU Regulation 2018/858 — Evaporative emissions test type IV
- ECE R83 — Emissions of M1/N1 vehicles (includes evaporative Annex 7)
- SAE J2996 — Mini-SHED for component-level emissions testing
Authoritative Sources
Frequently Asked Questions about the SHED Test
What is a SHED chamber and how is it made?
SHED stands for Sealed Housing for Evaporative Determination. It is an airtight chamber with constant pressure (Variable Volume — VV-SHED) or constant volume (Fixed Volume — FV-SHED), typically 40-50 m³, capable of containing an entire vehicle. It maintains a controlled temperature (typically 20-35°C cyclic according to the diurnal profile) and samples internal air every 30 minutes to measure total hydrocarbons (THC) accumulation with a FID (Flame Ionization Detector).
What emissions does the SHED test measure?
Three categories of evaporative losses: (1) Diurnal losses — evaporation from the tank during daytime warm-up (20→35°C); (2) Hot soak — post-shutdown emissions from a warm engine; (3) Running losses — emissions during operation. The EU limit is 2 g/test total, California LEV III mandates 0.35 g/test. Hydrocarbons measured include benzene, toluene, and related VOCs.
How long does a full SHED test take?
Standard procedure 24-72h: preconditioning, EPA FTP-75 or NEDC/WLTC drive cycle, 1h hot soak, 1-3 days of diurnal cycling. Some extended CARB procedures (High Altitude, Extreme Temperature) reach 144h. For component tests (mini-SHED on tank, fuel line, canister) typical duration is 24h with samples reduced to 0.01-0.1 m³.
What does the mini-SHED test on the component?
The mini-SHED (SAE J2996) tests a single component (pipe, tank, activated carbon canister) instead of the entire vehicle. With a volume of 0.1-1 m³, it allows for leak detection and characterization of permeable materials (plastics, rubbers). Useful in R&D for qualifying new low-permeability polymers (multilayer HDPE, EVOH) required by LEV III and EU6d to reduce total emissions below 0.35 g/test.
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