Molecular simulation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon sorption to black carbon

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Haftka, J.J.H.; Parsons, J.R.; Govers, H.A.J.

2009-01-01

Strong sorption of hydrophobic organic contaminants to soot or black carbon (BC) is an important environmental process limiting the bioremediation potential of contaminated soils and sediments. Reliable methods to predict BC sorption coefficients for organic contaminants are therefore required. A

Soot, unburned carbon and ultrafine particle emissions from air- and oxy-coal flames

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Morris, W.J.; Yu, Dunxi; Wendt, J.O.L.

2010-01-01

Oxy-coal combustion is one possible solution for the mitigation of greenhouse gases. In this process coal is burned in oxygen, rather than air, and the temperatures in the boiler are mitigated by recycling flue gases, so that the inlet mixture may contain either 27 % O 2 to match adiabatic flame temperatures, or 32 % O 2 to match gaseous radiation heat fluxes in the combustion chamber. However, a major issue for heat transfer from coal combustion is the radiative heat transmission from soot. For this research, air and oxy coal firing were compared regarding the emission of soot. A 100 kW down-fired laboratory combustor was used to determine effects of switching from air to oxy-firing on soot, unburned carbon and ultrafine particle emissions from practical pulverized coal flames. Of interest here were potential chemical effects of substitution of the N 2 in air by CO 2 in practical pulverized coal flames. The oxy-coal configuration investigated used once-through CO 2 , simulating cleaned flue gas recycle with all contaminants and water removed. Three coals were each burned in: a) air, b) 27 % O 2 / 73 % CO 2 , c) 32 % O 2 / 68 % CO 2 . Tests were conducted at (nominally) 3 %, 2 %, 1 % and 0 % O 2 in the exhaust (dry basis). For each condition, particulate samples were iso kinetically withdrawn far from the radiant zone, and analyzed using a photoacoustic analyzer (PA) for black carbon, a scanning mobility particle sizer (SMPS) for ultrafine particles, and a total sample loss on ignition (LOI) method for unburned carbon in ash. Data suggest that at low stoichiometric ratios, ultrafine particles consist primarily of black carbon, which, for the bituminous coal, is produced in lesser amounts under oxy-fired conditions than under the air-fired condition, even when adiabatic flame temperatures are matched. However, significant changes in mineral matter vaporization were not observed unless the flames were hotter. These and other results are interpreted in the light of

The pH-dependent adsorption of tributyltin to charcoals and soot

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Fang Liping, E-mail: fang@life.ku.d [Department of Basic Sciences and Environment, Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Thorvaldsensvej 40, DK-1871 Frederiksberg C (Denmark); Borggaard, Ole K.; Marcussen, Helle; Holm, Peter E.; Bruun Hansen, Hans Christian [Department of Basic Sciences and Environment, Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Thorvaldsensvej 40, DK-1871 Frederiksberg C (Denmark)

2010-12-15

Widespread use of tributyltin (TBT) poses a serious environmental problem. Adsorption by black carbon (BC) may strongly affect its behavior. The adsorption of TBT to well characterized soot and two charcoals with specific surface area in the range of 62-111 m{sup 2} g{sup -1} have been investigated with main focus on pH effects. The charcoals but not soot possess acidic functional groups. TBT adsorption reaches maximum at pH 6-7 for charcoals, and at pH > 6 for soot. Soot has between 1.5 and 15 times higher adsorption density (0.09-1.77 {mu}mol m{sup -2}) than charcoals, but charcoals show up to 17 times higher sorption affinities than soot. TBT adsorption is successfully described by a new pH-dependent dual Langmuir model considering electrostatic and hydrophobic adsorption, and pH effects on TBT speciation and BC surface charge. It is inferred that strong sorption of the TBTOH species to BC may affect TBT toxicity. - Tributyltin adsorption to black carbon increases at increasing pH but charcoal exhibits electrostatic and hydrophobic adsorption, whereas soot only adsorbs hydrophobically.

Potential impacts of black carbon on the marine microbial community

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Malits, A.; Cattaneo, R.; Sintes, E.; Gasol, J.M.; Herndl, G.J.; Weinbauer, M.G.

2015-01-01

Black carbon (BC) is the carbonaceous residue of the incomplete combustion of fossil fuels and biomass and encompasses a range of chemically heterogeneous substances from partly charred plant material to highly condensed soot aerosols. We addressed the potential role of BC aerosol deposition on

Characterization of Black Carbon Mixing State Field Campaign Report

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sedlacek, A. [Brookhaven National Lab. (BNL), Upton, NY (United States); Davidovits, P. [Boston College, Chestnut Hill, MA (United States); Lewis, E. R. [Brookhaven National Lab. (BNL), Upton, NY (United States); Onasch, T. B. [Aerodyne Research, Billerica, MA (United States)

2016-04-01

Interpreting the temporal relationship between the scattering and incandescence signals recorded by the Single Particle Soot Photometer (SP2), Sedlacek et al. (2012) reported that 60% of the refractory black carbon containing particles in a plume containing biomass burning tracers exhibited non-core-shell structure. Because the relationship between the rBC (refractory black carbon) incandescence and the scattering signals had not been reported in the peer-reviewed literature, and to further evaluate the initial interpretation by Sedlacek et al., a series of experiments was undertaken to investigate black carbon-containing particles of known morphology using Regal black (RB), a proxy for collapsed soot, as the light-absorbing substance to characterize this signal relationship. Particles were formed by coagulation of RB with either a solid substance (sodium chloride or ammonium sulfate) or a liquid substance (dioctyl sebacate), and by condensation with dioctyl sebacate, the latter experiment forming particles in a core-shell configuration. Each particle type experienced fragmentation (observed as negative lagtimes), and each yielded similar lagtime responses in some instances, confounding attempts to differentiate particle morphology using current SP2 lagtime analysis. SP2 operating conditions, specifically laser power and sample flow rate, which in turn affect the particle heating and dissipation rates, play an important role in the behavior of particles in the SP2, including probability of fragmentation. This behavior also depended on the morphology of the particles and on the thermochemical properties of the non-RB substance. Although these influences cannot currently be unambiguously separated, the SP2 analysis may still provide useful information on particle mixing states and black carbon particle sources. This work was communicated in a 2015 publication (Sedlacek et al. 2015)

An index-based approach to assessing recalcitrance and soil carbon sequestration potential of engineered black carbons (biochars).

Science.gov (United States)

Harvey, Omar R; Kuo, Li-Jung; Zimmerman, Andrew R; Louchouarn, Patrick; Amonette, James E; Herbert, Bruce E

2012-02-07

The ability of engineered black carbons (or biochars) to resist abiotic and, or biotic degradation (herein referred to as recalcitrance) is crucial to their successful deployment as a soil carbon sequestration strategy. A new recalcitrance index, the R(50), for assessing biochar quality for carbon sequestration is proposed. The R(50) is based on the relative thermal stability of a given biochar to that of graphite and was developed and evaluated with a variety of biochars (n = 59), and soot-like black carbons. Comparison of R(50), with biochar physicochemical properties and biochar-C mineralization revealed the existence of a quantifiable relationship between R(50) and biochar recalcitrance. As presented here, the R(50) is immediately applicable to pre-land application screening of biochars into Class A (R(50) ≥ 0.70), Class B (0.50 ≤ R(50) carbon sequestration classes. Class A and Class C biochars would have carbon sequestration potential comparable to soot/graphite and uncharred plant biomass, respectively, whereas Class B biochars would have intermediate carbon sequestration potential. We believe that the coupling of the R(50), to an index-based degradation, and an economic model could provide a suitable framework in which to comprehensively assess soil carbon sequestration in biochars.

Soot in the air may have serious climatic consequences

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Seip, Hans Martin

2002-01-01

Emissions of soot in China and India may be an important cause of changed summer weather in China, with increasing floods in the south-east and increasing droughts in the north-east. In addition to the greenhouse gases, the particulate matter (aerosols) in the air has an important effect on the climate. Most particles have a cooling effect since they reflect solar radiation. However, some particles are dark as they contain soot ('black carbon'). Such particles, which are formed by incomplete combustion of coal, oil and biomass, absorb solar radiation and thus have a warming effect, even if they reduce the solar irradiation on the ground. Soot particles do not have quite the same effect as the greenhouse gases. The soot particles absorb solar radiation, while the greenhouse gases absorb terrestrial heat radiation. In addition, the residence time of the soot particles in the atmosphere is shorter than that of, say, carbon dioxide. The concentration is therefore much higher in areas close to emission sources than elsewhere

Effects of black carbon on bioturbination-induced benthic fluxes of polychlorinated biphenyls

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Koelmans, A.A.; Jonker, M.T.O.

2011-01-01

It is unknown whether carbonaceous geosorbents, such as black carbon (BC) affect bioturbation by benthic invertebrates, thereby possibly affecting sediment–water exchange of sediment-bound contaminants. Here, we assess the effects of oil soot on polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) mass transfer from

Distribution, Transport, and Accumulation of Pyrogenic Black Carbon in Post-Wildfire Watersheds

Science.gov (United States)

Galanter, A.; Cadol, D. D.; Frey, B.; Lohse, K. A.

2014-12-01

Large, high severity wildfires greatly alter forest structure, water quality, and soil development/erosion. With increased frequency of such wildfires also follows heavy post-wildfire debris flows and flooding which deliver high loads of sediment and pyrogenic black carbon (PyC) to downstream waterways. The accumulation of PyC is a multi-faceted and dynamic issue in the critical zone. Generated by incomplete combustion of organic matter, PyC (in the form of soot and char) impacts turbidity, biological and chemical oxygen demand, and pH. In addition, PyC has the potential to sequester contaminants and can store carbon over short and long timescales. The impacts of two recent wildfires in Northern New Mexico are studied with the goal of understanding the fluxes and residence times of PyC in post-wildfire, mountainous watersheds. Employing burn severity maps and geospatial data, we selected three sites to collect soil and water samples to characterize PyC: a control, an area impacted by a large, severe burn (2011), and an area impacted by a smaller, less severe burn (2013). By collaborating with researchers at the Jemez Critical Zone Observatory, soil samples are being analyzed and will provide pre-wildfire PyC concentrations for the 2013 burn area. In this study, PyC is treated as both a particulate and a solute that is transported throughout the watershed as well as degraded in soils, surface water and groundwater. We used two black carbon quantification methods: the chemo-thermal oxidation (CTO-375) method to distinguish between soil soot and char, and the benzene polycarboxylic acids (BPCA) method to quantify the total concentrations of PyC in soil and water samples. Preliminary soil data from the CTO-375 method show comparable soot concentrations in the control, 2011, and 2013 burn indicating that the soot is more recalcitrant than char and remains in the watershed long after a wildfire. This data also suggests that the fluxes of black carbon over short time

Invited article summarizing the Science To Achieve Results research portfolio on Black Carbon for the journal EM of the Air and Waste Management Association.

Science.gov (United States)

Where there’s smoke, there’s fire – and black carbon. Black carbon is the sooty material emitted from combustion processes, including diesel engines and other sources that burn fossil fuels, biofuels, or biomass. This soot contributes to fine particulate matter,...

Technical Note: The single particle soot photometer fails to reliably detect PALAS soot nanoparticles

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M. Gysel

2012-12-01

Full Text Available The single particle soot photometer (SP2 uses laser-induced incandescence (LII for the measurement of atmospheric black carbon (BC particles. The BC mass concentration is obtained by combining quantitative detection of BC mass in single particles with a counting efficiency of 100% above its lower detection limit. It is commonly accepted that a particle must contain at least several tenths of a femtogram BC in order to be detected by the SP2.

Here we show the result that most BC particles from a PALAS spark discharge soot generator remain undetected by the SP2, even if their BC mass, as independently determined with an aerosol particle mass analyser (APM, is clearly above the typical lower detection limit of the SP2. Comparison of counting efficiency and effective density data of PALAS soot with flame generated soot (combustion aerosol standard burner, CAST, fullerene soot and carbon black particles (Cabot Regal 400R reveals that particle morphology can affect the SP2's lower detection limit. PALAS soot particles are fractal-like agglomerates of very small primary particles with a low fractal dimension, resulting in a very low effective density. Such loosely packed particles behave like "the sum of individual primary particles" in the SP2's laser. Accordingly, most PALAS soot particles remain undetected as the SP2's laser intensity is insufficient to heat the primary particles to their vaporisation temperature because of their small size (D_pp ≈ 5–10 nm. Previous knowledge from pulsed laser-induced incandescence indicated that particle morphology might have an effect on the SP2's lower detection limit, however, an increase of the lower detection limit by a factor of ∼5–10, as reported here for PALAS soot, was not expected.

In conclusion, the SP2's lower detection limit at a certain laser power depends primarily on the total BC mass per particle for compact particles with sufficiently high effective

Soot on snow in Iceland: First results on black carbon and organic carbon in Iceland 2016 snow and ice samples, including the glacier Solheimajökull

Science.gov (United States)

Meinander, Outi; Dagsson-Waldhauserova, Pavla; Gritsevich, Maria; Aurela, Minna; Arnalds, Olafur; Dragosics, Monika; Virkkula, Aki; Svensson, Jonas; Peltoniemi, Jouni; Kontu, Anna; Kivekäs, Niku; Leppäranta, Matti; de Leeuw, Gerrit; Laaksonen, Ari; Lihavainen, Heikki; Arslan, Ali N.; Paatero, Jussi

2017-04-01

New results on black carbon (BC) and organic carbon (OC) on snow and ice in Iceland in 2016 will be presented in connection to our earlier results on BC and OC on Arctic seasonal snow surface, and in connection to our 2013 and 2016 experiments on effects of light absorbing impurities, including Icelandic dust, on snow albedo, melt and density. Our sampling included the glacier Solheimajökull in Iceland. The mass balance of this glacier is negative and it has been shrinking during the last 20 years by 900 meters from its southwestern corner. Icelandic snow and ice samples were not expected to contain high concentrations of BC, as power generation with domestic renewable water and geothermal power energy sources cover 80 % of the total energy consumption in Iceland. Our BC results on filters analyzed with a Thermal/Optical Carbon Aerosol Analyzer (OC/EC) confirm this assumption. Other potential soot sources in Iceland include agricultural burning, industry (aluminum and ferroalloy production and fishing industry), open burning, residential heating and transport (shipping, road traffic, aviation). On the contrary to low BC, we have found high concentrations of organic carbon in our Iceland 2016 samples. Some of the possible reasons for those will be discussed in this presentation. Earlier, we have measured and reported unexpectedly low snow albedo values of Arctic seasonally melting snow in Sodankylä, north of Arctic Circle. Our low albedo results of melting snow have been confirmed by three independent data sets. We have explained these low values to be due to: (i) large snow grain sizes up to 3 mm in diameter (seasonally melting snow); (ii) meltwater surrounding the grains and increasing the effective grain size; (iii) absorption caused by impurities in the snow, with concentration of elemental carbon (black carbon) in snow of 87 ppb, and organic carbon 2894 ppb. The high concentrations of carbon were due to air masses originating from the Kola Peninsula, Russia

Coatings of black carbon in Tijuana, Mexico, during the CalMex Campaign

Science.gov (United States)

Takahama, S.; Russell, L. M.; Duran, R.; Subramanian, R.; Kok, G.

2010-12-01

Black carbon number and mass concentrations were measured by a single-particle soot photometer (SP2; by Droplet Measurement Technologies) in Tijuana, Mexico between May 15, 2010, and June 30, 2010, for the CalMex campaign. The measurement site, Parque Morelos, is a recreational area located in the Southeast region of Tijuana. The SP2 was equipped with 8-channels of signal detection that spans a wider range of sensitivity for incandescing and scattering measurements than traditional configurations. The campaign-average number concentration of incandescing particles was 280 #/cc, peaking during traffic activity in the mornings. Incandescing particles made up 50% of all particles (incandescing and purely scattering) detected by the SP2. The mode of the number size distribution estimated for black carbon, according to estimated mass-equivalent diameters, was approximately 100 nm or smaller. Temporal variations in estimated coating thicknesses for these black carbon particles are discussed together with co-located measurements of organic aerosol and inorganic salts.

Effect of strain rate on sooting limits in counterflow diffusion flames of gaseous hydrocarbon fuels: Sooting temperature index and sooting sensitivity index

KAUST Repository

Wang, Yu

2014-05-01

The effect of the strain rate on the sooting limits in counterflow diffusion flames was investigated in various gaseous hydrocarbon fuels by varying the nitrogen dilution in the fuel and oxidizer streams. The sooting limit was defined as the critical fuel and oxygen mole fraction at which soot started to appear in the elastic light scattering signal. The sooting region for normal alkane fuels at a specified strain rate, in terms of the fuel and oxygen mole fraction, expanded as the number of carbon atoms increased. The alkene fuels (ethylene, propene) tested had a higher propensity for sooting as compared with alkane fuels with the same carbon numbers (ethane, propane). Branched iso-butane had a higher propensity for sooting than did n-butane. An increase in the strain rate reduced the tendency for sooting in all the fuels tested. The sensitivity of the sooting limit to the strain rate was more pronounced for less sooting fuels. When plotted in terms of calculated flame temperature, the critical oxygen mole fraction exhibited an Arrhenius form under sooting limit conditions, which can be utilized to significantly reduce the effort required to determine sooting limits at different strain rates. We found that the limiting temperatures of soot formation flames are viable sooting metrics for quantitatively rating the sooting tendency of various fuels, based on comparisons with threshold soot index and normalized smoke point data. We also introduce a sooting temperature index and a sooting sensitivity index, two quantitative measures to describe sooting propensity and its dependence on strain rate. © 2013 The Combustion Institute.

Studies of propane flame soot acting as heterogeneous ice nuclei in conjunction with single particle soot photometer measurements

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

I. Crawford

2011-09-01

Full Text Available The ice nucleation efficiency of propane flame soot particles with and without a sulphuric acid coating was investigated using the aerosol and cloud chamber facility AIDA (Aerosol Interaction and Dynamics in the Atmosphere. The test soot for cloud formation simulations was produced using a propane flame Combustion Aerosol Standard generator (CAST, Jing-CAST Technologies. The organic carbon content (OC of the test soot was altered in a reproducible fashion by changing the fuel/air mixture of the generator. The soot content of ice nuclei was subsequently investigated using a combination of a pumped counterflow virtual impactor (PCVI to separate and evaporate the ice crystals, and a DMT single particle soot photometer (SP2 to examine the mixing state of the BC containing ice residuals.

Ice nucleation was found to be most efficient for uncoated soot of low organic carbon content (~5 % organic carbon content where deposition freezing occurred at an ice saturation ratio S_ice ~ 1.22 at a temperature T = 226.6 K with 25 % of the test soot becoming active as ice nuclei. Propane flame soot of higher organic carbon content (~30 % and ~70 % organic carbon content showed significantly lower ice nucleation efficiency (an activated fraction of the order of a few percent in the experiments than the low organic carbon content soot, with water saturation being required for freezing to occur. Ice nucleation occurred over the range S_ice = 1.22–1.70, and T = 223.2–226.6 K. Analysis of the SP2 data showed that the 5 % organic carbon content soot had an undetectable OC coating whereas the 30 % organic carbon content soot had a thicker or less volatile OC coating.

The application of a sulphuric acid coating to the flame soot shifted the threshold of the onset of freezing towards that of the homogeneous freezing of sulphuric acid; for the minimum OC flame soot this inhibited nucleation since the

T-matrix modeling of linear depolarization by morphologically complex soot and soot-containing aerosols

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mishchenko, Michael I.; Liu, Li; Mackowski, Daniel W.

2013-01-01

We use state-of-the-art public-domain Fortran codes based on the T-matrix method to calculate orientation and ensemble averaged scattering matrix elements for a variety of morphologically complex black carbon (BC) and BC-containing aerosol particles, with a special emphasis on the linear depolarization ratio (LDR). We explain theoretically the quasi-Rayleigh LDR peak at side-scattering angles typical of low-density soot fractals and conclude that the measurement of this feature enables one to evaluate the compactness state of BC clusters and trace the evolution of low-density fluffy fractals into densely packed aggregates. We show that small backscattering LDRs measured with ground-based, airborne, and spaceborne lidars for fresh smoke generally agree with the values predicted theoretically for fluffy BC fractals and densely packed near-spheroidal BC aggregates. To reproduce higher lidar LDRs observed for aged smoke, one needs alternative particle models such as shape mixtures of BC spheroids or cylinders. -- Highlights: ► New superposition T-matrix code is applied to soot aerosols. ► Quasi-Rayleigh side-scattering peak in linear depolarization (LD) is explained. ► LD measurements can be used for morphological characterization of soot aerosols

Candle soot nanoparticles-polydimethylsiloxane composites for laser ultrasound transducers

Science.gov (United States)

Chang, Wei-Yi; Huang, Wenbin; Kim, Jinwook; Li, Sibo; Jiang, Xiaoning

2015-10-01

Generation of high power laser ultrasound strongly demands the advanced materials with efficient laser energy absorption, fast thermal diffusion, and large thermoelastic expansion capabilities. In this study, candle soot nanoparticles-polydimethylsiloxane (CSNPs-PDMS) composite was investigated as the functional layer for an optoacoustic transducer with high-energy conversion efficiency. The mean diameter of the collected candle soot carbon nanoparticles is about 45 nm, and the light absorption ratio at 532 nm wavelength is up to 96.24%. The prototyped CSNPs-PDMS nano-composite laser ultrasound transducer was characterized and compared with transducers using Cr-PDMS, carbon black (CB)-PDMS, and carbon nano-fiber (CNFs)-PDMS composites, respectively. Energy conversion coefficient and -6 dB frequency bandwidth of the CSNPs-PDMS composite laser ultrasound transducer were measured to be 4.41 × 10-3 and 21 MHz, respectively. The unprecedented laser ultrasound transduction performance using CSNPs-PDMS nano-composites is promising for a broad range of ultrasound therapy applications.

Absorbing Aerosols: Field and Laboratory Studies of Black Carbon and Dust

Science.gov (United States)

Aiken, A. C.; Flowers, B. A.; Dubey, M. K.

2011-12-01

Currently, absorbing aerosols are thought to be the most uncertain factor in atmospheric climate models (~0.4-1.2 W/m2), and the 2nd most important factor after CO2 in global warming (1.6 W/m2; Ramanathan and Carmichael, Nature Geoscience, 2008; Myhre, Science, 2009). While most well-recognized atmospheric aerosols, e.g., sulfate from power-plants, have a cooling effect on the atmosphere by scattering solar radiation, black carbon (BC or soot) absorbs sunlight strongly which results in a warming of the atmosphere. Dust particles are also present globally and can absorb radiation, contributing to a warmer and drier atmosphere. Direct on-line measurements of BC and hematite, an absorbing dust aerosol, can be made with the Single Particle Soot Photometer (SP2), which measures the mass of the particles by incandescence on an individual particle basis. Measurements from the SP2 are combined with absorption measurements from the three-wavelength photoacoustic soot spectrometer (PASS-3) at 405, 532, and 781 nm and the ultraviolet photoacoustic soot spectrometer (PASS-UV) at 375 nm to determine wavelength-dependent mass absorption coefficients (MACs). Laboratory aerosol samples include flame-generated soot, fullerene soot, Aquadag, hematite, and hematite-containing dusts. Measured BC MAC's compare well with published values, and hematite MAC's are an order of magnitude less than BC. Absorbing aerosols measured in the laboratory are compared with those from ambient aerosols measured during the Las Conchas fire and BEACHON-RoMBAS. The Las Conchas fire was a wildfire in the Jemez Mountains of New Mexico that burned over 100,000 acres during the Summer of 2011, and BEACHON-RoMBAS (Bio-hydro-atmosphere interactions of Energy, Aerosols, Carbon, H2O, Organics & Nitrogen - Rocky Mountain Biogenic Aerosol Study) is a field campaign focusing on biogenic aerosols at the Manitou Forest Observatory near Colorado Springs, CO in Summer 2011. Optical properties and size

Small particles big effect? - Investigating ice nucleation abilities of soot particles

Science.gov (United States)

Mahrt, Fabian; David, Robert O.; Lohmann, Ulrike; Stopford, Chris; Wu, Zhijun; Kanji, Zamin A.

2017-04-01

Atmospheric soot particles are primary particles produced by incomplete combustion of biomass and/or fossil fuels. Thus soot mainly originates from anthropogenic emissions, stemming from combustion related processes in transport vehicles, industrial and residential uses. Such soot particles are generally complex mixtures of black carbon (BC) and organic matter (OM) (Bond et al., 2013; Petzold et al., 2013), depending on the sources and the interaction of the primary particles with other atmospheric matter and/or gases BC absorbs solar radiation having a warming effect on global climate. It can also act as a heterogeneous ice nucleating particle (INP) and thus impact cloud-radiation interactions, potentially cooling the climate (Lohmann, 2002). Previous studies, however, have shown conflicting results concerning the ice nucleation ability of soot, limiting the ability to predict its effects on Earth's radiation budget. Here we present a laboratory study where we systematically investigate the ice nucleation behavior of different soot particles. Commercial soot samples are used, including an amorphous, industrial carbon frequently used in coatings and coloring (FW 200, Orion Engineered Carbons) and a fullerene soot (572497 ALDRICH), e.g. used as catalyst. In addition, we use soot generated from a propane flame Combustion Aerosol Standard Generator (miniCAST, JING AG), as a proxy for atmospheric soot particles. The ice nucleation ability of these soot types is tested on size-selected particles for a wide temperature range from 253 K to 218 K, using the Horizontal Ice Nucleation Chamber (HINC), a Continuous Flow Diffusion Chamber (CFDC) (Kanji and Abbatt, 2009). Ice nucleation results from these soot surrogates will be compared to chemically more complex real world samples, collected on filters. Filters will be collected during the 2016/2017 winter haze periods in Beijing, China and represent atmospheric soot particles with sources from both industrial and residential

Carbon Nanostructure of Diesel Soot Particles Emitted from 2 and 4 Stroke Marine Engines Burning Different Fuels.

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Won-Ju; Park, Seul-Hyun; Jang, Se-Hyun; Kim, Hwajin; Choi, Sung Kuk; Cho, Kwon-Hae; Cho, Ik-Soon; Lee, Sang-Min; Choi, Jae-Hyuk

2018-03-01

Diesel soot particles were sampled from 2-stroke and 4-stroke engines that burned two different fuels (Bunker A and C, respectively), and the effects of the engine and fuel types on the structural characteristics of the soot particle were analyzed. The carbon nanostructures of the sampled particles were characterized using various techniques. The results showed that the soot sample collected from the 4-stroke engine, which burned Bunker C, has a higher degree of order of the carbon nanostructure than the sample collected from the 2-stroke engine, which burned Bunker A. Furthermore, the difference in the exhaust gas temperatures originating from the different engine and fuel types can affect the nanostructure of the soot emitted from marine diesel engines.

Morphology and Optical Properties of Black-Carbon Particles Relevant to Engine Emissions

Science.gov (United States)

Michelsen, H. A.; Bambha, R.; Dansson, M. A.; Schrader, P. E.

2013-12-01

Black-carbon particles are believed to have a large influence on climate through direct radiative forcing, reduction of surface albedo of snow and ice in the cryosphere, and interaction with clouds. The optical properties and morphology of atmospheric particles containing black carbon are uncertain, and characterization of black carbon resulting from engines emissions is needed. Refractory black-carbon particles found in the atmosphere are often coated with unburned fuel, sulfuric acid, water, ash, and other combustion by-products and atmospheric constituents. Coatings can alter the optical and physical properties of the particles and therefore change their optical properties and cloud interactions. Details of particle morphology and coating state can also have important effects on the interpretation of optical diagnostics. A more complete understanding of how coatings affect extinction, absorption, and incandescence measurements is needed before these techniques can be applied reliably to a wide range of particles. We have investigated the effects of coatings on the optical and physical properties of combustion-generated black-carbon particles using a range of standard particle diagnostics, extinction, and time-resolved laser-induced incandescence (LII) measurements. Particles were generated in a co-flow diffusion flame, extracted, cooled, and coated with oleic acid. The diffusion flame produces highly dendritic soot aggregates with similar properties to those produced in diesel engines, diffusion flames, and most natural combustion processes. A thermodenuder was used to remove the coating. A scanning mobility particle sizer (SMPS) was used to monitor aggregate sizes; a centrifugal particle mass analyzer (CPMA) was used to measure coating mass fractions, and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) was used to characterize particle morphologies. The results demonstrate important differences in optical measurements between coated and uncoated particles.

Optics of Water Microdroplets with Soot Inclusions: Exact Versus Approximate Results

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Li; Mishchenko, Michael I.

2016-01-01

We use the recently generalized version of the multi-sphere superposition T-matrix method (STMM) to compute the scattering and absorption properties of microscopic water droplets contaminated by black carbon. The soot material is assumed to be randomly distributed throughout the droplet interior in the form of numerous small spherical inclusions. Our numerically-exact STMM results are compared with approximate ones obtained using the Maxwell-Garnett effective-medium approximation (MGA) and the Monte Carlo ray-tracing approximation (MCRTA). We show that the popular MGA can be used to calculate the droplet optical cross sections, single-scattering albedo, and asymmetry parameter provided that the soot inclusions are quasi-uniformly distributed throughout the droplet interior, but can fail in computations of the elements of the scattering matrix depending on the volume fraction of soot inclusions. The integral radiative characteristics computed with the MCRTA can deviate more significantly from their exact STMM counterparts, while accurate MCRTA computations of the phase function require droplet size parameters substantially exceeding 60.

Dielectric properties of PMMA/Soot nanocomposites.

Science.gov (United States)

Clayton, Lanetra M; Cinke, Martin; Meyyappan, M; Harmon, Julie P

2007-07-01

Dielectric analysis (DEA) of relaxation behavior in poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) soot nanocomposites is described herein. The soot, an inexpensive material, consists of carbon nanotubes, amorphous and graphitic carbon and metal particles. Results are compared to earlier studies on PMMA/multi-walled nanotube (MWNT) composites and PMMA/single-walled nanotube (SWNT) composites. The beta relaxation process appeared to be unaffected by the presence of the soot, as was noted earlier in nanotube composites. The gamma relaxation region in PMMA, normally dielectrically inactive, was "awakened" in the PMMA/soot composite. This occurrence is consistent with previously published data on nanotube composites. The dielectric permittivity, s', increased with soot content. The sample with 1% soot exhibited a permittivity (at 100 Hz and 25 degrees C) of 7.3 as compared to 5.1 for neat PMMA. Soot increased the dielectric strength, deltaE, of the composites. The 1% soot sample exhibited a dielectric strength of 6.38, while the neat PMMA had a value of 2.95 at 40 degrees C. The symmetric broadening term (alpha) was slightly higher for the 1% composite at temperatures near the secondary relaxation and near the primary relaxation, but all samples deviated from symmetrical semi-circular behavior (alpha = 1). The impact of the soot filler is seen more clearly in dielectric properties than in mechanical properties studies conducted earlier.

Morphological study of fluorescent carbon Nanoparticles (F-CNPs) from ground coffee waste soot oxidation by diluted acid

Science.gov (United States)

Gea, S.; Tjandra, S.; Joshua, J.; Wirjosentono, B.

2018-02-01

Coffee ground waste utilization for fluorescent carbon nanoparticles (F-CNPs) through soot oxidation with diluted HNO3 has been conducted. Soot was obtained through three different treatments to coffee ground waste; which was burned in furnaceat 550°C and 650°C and directly burned in a heat-proofcontainer. Then they were analyzed morphologically with Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) instrument. Soot from direct burning indicated the optimum result where it has denser pores compared to other two soots. Soot obtained from direct burning was refluxed in diluted HNO3 for 12 hours to perform the oxidation. Yellowish brown supernatant was later observed which lead to green fluorescent under the UV light. F-CNPs characterization was done in Transmission Electron Microscopy, which showed that 7.4-23.4 nm of particle size were distributed.

Emissions of soot particles from heat generators

Science.gov (United States)

Lyubov, V. K.; Popov, A. N.; Popova, E. I.

2017-11-01

«Soot carbon» or «Soot» - incomplete combustion or thermal decomposition particulate carbon product of hydrocarbons consisting of particles of various shapes and sizes. Soot particles are harmful substances Class 2 and like a dust dispersed by wind for thousands of kilometers. Soot have more powerful negative factor than carbon dioxide. Therefore, more strict requirements on ecological and economical performance for energy facilities at Arctic areas have to be developed to protect fragile Arctic ecosystems and global climate change from degradation and destruction. Quantity of soot particles in the flue gases of energy facilities is a criterion of effectiveness for organization of the burning process. Some of heat generators do not provide the required energy and environmental efficiency which results in irrational use of energy resources and acute pollution of environment. The paper summarizes the results of experimental study of solid particles emission from wide range of capacity boilers burning different organic fuels (natural gas, fuel oil, coal and biofuels). Special attention is paid to environmental and energy performance of the biofuels combustion. Emissions of soot particles PM2.5 are listed. Structure, composition and dimensions of entrained particles with the use of electronic scanning microscope Zeiss SIGMA VP were also studied. The results reveal an impact of several factors on soot particles emission.

The Ice Nucleation Activity of Surface Modified Soot

Science.gov (United States)

Häusler, Thomas; Witek, Lorenz; Felgitsch, Laura; Hitzenberger, Regina; Grothe, Hinrich

2017-04-01

The ice nucleation efficiency of many important atmospheric particles remains poorly understood. Since soot is ubiquitous in the Earth's troposphere, they might have the potential to significantly impact the Earth's climate (Finlayson-Pitts and Pitts, 2000; Seinfeld and Pandis, 1998). Here we present the ice nucleation activity (INA) in immersion freezing mode of different types of soot. Therefor a CAST (combustion aerosol standard) generator was used to produce different kinds of soot samples. The CAST generator combusts a propane-air-mixture and deposits thereby produced soot on a polyvinyl fluoride filter. By varying the propane to air ratio, the amount of organic portion of the soot can be varied from black carbon (BC) with no organic content to brown carbon (BrC) with high organic content. To investigate the impact of functional sites of ice nuclei (IN), the soot samples were exposed to NO2 gas for a certain amount of time (30 to 360 minutes) to chemically modify the surface. Immersion freezing experiments were carried out in a unique reaction gadget. In this device a water-in-oil suspension (with the soot suspended in the aqueous phase) was cooled till the freezing point and was observed through a microscope (Pummer et al., 2012; Zolles et al., 2015) It was found that neither modified nor unmodified BC shows INA. On the contrary, unmodified BrC shows an INA at -32˚ C, which can be increased up to -20˚ C. The INA of BrC depends on the duration of NO2- exposure. To clarify the characteristics of the surface modifications, surface sensitive analysis like infrared spectroscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy were carried out. Finlayson-Pitts, B. J. and Pitts, J. N. J.: Chemistry of the Upper and Lower Atmosphere, Elsevier, New York, 2000. Pummer, B. G., Bauer, H., Bernardi, J., Bleicher, S., and Grothe, H.: Suspendable macromolecules are responsible for ice nucleation activity of birch and conifer pollen, Atmos Chem Phys, 12, 2541-2550, 2012. Seinfeld, J

Ultra-small-angle X-ray scattering characterization of diesel/gasoline soot: sizes and particle-packing conditions

Science.gov (United States)

Kameya, Yuki; Lee, Kyeong O.

2013-10-01

Regulations on particulate emissions from internal combustion engines tend to become more stringent, accordingly the importance of particulate filters in the after-treatment system has been increasing. In this work, the applicability of ultra-small-angle X-ray scattering (USAXS) to diesel soot cake and gasoline soot was investigated. Gasoline-direct-injection engine soot was collected at different fuel injection timings. The unified fits method was applied to analyze the resultant scattering curves. The validity of analysis was supported by comparing with carbon black and taking the sample images using a transmission electron microscope, which revealed that the primary particle size ranged from 20 to 55 nm. In addition, the effects of particle-packing conditions on the USAXS measurement were demonstrated by using samples suspended in acetone. Then, the investigation was extended to characterization of diesel soot cake deposited on a diesel particulate filter (DPF). Diesel soot was trapped on a small piece of DPF at different deposition conditions which were specified using the Peclet number. The dependence of scattering curve on soot-deposition conditions was demonstrated. To support the interpretation of the USAXS results, soot cake samples were observed using a scanning electron microscope and the influence of particle-packing conditions on scattering curve was discussed.

Ultra-small-angle X-ray scattering characterization of diesel/gasoline soot: sizes and particle-packing conditions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kameya, Yuki; Lee, Kyeong O.

2013-01-01

Regulations on particulate emissions from internal combustion engines tend to become more stringent, accordingly the importance of particulate filters in the after-treatment system has been increasing. In this work, the applicability of ultra-small-angle X-ray scattering (USAXS) to diesel soot cake and gasoline soot was investigated. Gasoline-direct-injection engine soot was collected at different fuel injection timings. The unified fits method was applied to analyze the resultant scattering curves. The validity of analysis was supported by comparing with carbon black and taking the sample images using a transmission electron microscope, which revealed that the primary particle size ranged from 20 to 55 nm. In addition, the effects of particle-packing conditions on the USAXS measurement were demonstrated by using samples suspended in acetone. Then, the investigation was extended to characterization of diesel soot cake deposited on a diesel particulate filter (DPF). Diesel soot was trapped on a small piece of DPF at different deposition conditions which were specified using the Peclet number. The dependence of scattering curve on soot-deposition conditions was demonstrated. To support the interpretation of the USAXS results, soot cake samples were observed using a scanning electron microscope and the influence of particle-packing conditions on scattering curve was discussed

Ultra-small-angle X-ray scattering characterization of diesel/gasoline soot: sizes and particle-packing conditions

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kameya, Yuki, E-mail: ykameya@anl.gov; Lee, Kyeong O. [Argonne National Laboratory, Center for Transportation Research (United States)

2013-10-15

Regulations on particulate emissions from internal combustion engines tend to become more stringent, accordingly the importance of particulate filters in the after-treatment system has been increasing. In this work, the applicability of ultra-small-angle X-ray scattering (USAXS) to diesel soot cake and gasoline soot was investigated. Gasoline-direct-injection engine soot was collected at different fuel injection timings. The unified fits method was applied to analyze the resultant scattering curves. The validity of analysis was supported by comparing with carbon black and taking the sample images using a transmission electron microscope, which revealed that the primary particle size ranged from 20 to 55 nm. In addition, the effects of particle-packing conditions on the USAXS measurement were demonstrated by using samples suspended in acetone. Then, the investigation was extended to characterization of diesel soot cake deposited on a diesel particulate filter (DPF). Diesel soot was trapped on a small piece of DPF at different deposition conditions which were specified using the Peclet number. The dependence of scattering curve on soot-deposition conditions was demonstrated. To support the interpretation of the USAXS results, soot cake samples were observed using a scanning electron microscope and the influence of particle-packing conditions on scattering curve was discussed.

Ice Nucleation of Soot Particles in the Cirrus Regime: Is Pore Condensation and Freezing Relevant for Soot?

Science.gov (United States)

Kanji, Z. A.; Mahrt, F.; David, R.; Marcolli, C.; Lohmann, U.; Fahrni, J.; Brühwiler, D.

2017-12-01

Heterogeneous ice nucleation (HIN) onto soot particles from previous studies have produced inconsistent results of temperature and relative humidity conditions required for freezing depending on the source of soot particle investigated. The ability of soot to act as HIN depended on the type of soot and size of particle. Often homogenous freezing conditions or water saturation conditions were required to freeze soot particles, rendering HIN irrelevant. Using synthesised mesoporous silica particles, we show pore condensation and freezing works with experiments performed in the Zurich Ice Nucleation Chamber (ZINC). By testing a variety of soot particles in parallel in the Horizontal Ice Nucleation Chamber (HINC), we suggest that previously observed HIN on soot particles is not the responsible mechanism for ice formation. Laboratory generated CAST brown and black soot, commercially available soot and acid treated soot were investigated for their ice nucleation abilities in the mixed-phase and cirrus cloud temperature regimes. No heterogeneous ice nucleation activity is inferred at T > -38 °C (mixed-phase cloud regime), however depending on particle size and soot type, HIN was observed for T nucleation of ice in the pores or cavities that are ubiquitous in soot particles between the primary spherules. The ability of some particles to freeze at lower relative humidity compared to others demonstrates why hydrophobicity plays a role in ice nucleation, i.e. controlling the conditions at which these cavities fill with water. Thus for more hydrophobic particles pore filling occurs at higher relative humidity, and therefore freezing of pore water and ice crystal growth. Future work focusses on testing the cloud processing ability of soot particles and water adsorption isotherms of the different soot samples to support the hydrophobicity inferences from the ice nucleation results.

Catalytic oxidation of soot over alkaline niobates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pecchi, G.; Cabrera, B.; Buljan, A.; Delgado, E.J.; Gordon, A.L.; Jimenez, R.

2013-01-01

Highlights: ► No previous reported studies about alkaline niobates as catalysts for soot oxidation. ► NaNbO 3 and KNbO 3 perovskite-type oxides show lower activation energy than other lanthanoid perovskite-type oxides. ► The alkaline niobate does not show deactivation by metal loss. - Abstract: The lack of studies in the current literature about the assessment of alkaline niobates as catalysts for soot oxidation has motivated this research. In this study, the synthesis, characterization and assessment of alkaline metal niobates as catalysts for soot combustion are reported. The solids MNbO 3 (M = Li, Na, K, Rb) are synthesized by a citrate method, calcined at 450 °C, 550 °C, 650 °C, 750 °C, and characterized by AAS, N 2 adsorption, XRD, O 2 -TPD, FTIR and SEM. All the alkaline niobates show catalytic activity for soot combustion, and the activity depends basically on the nature of the alkaline metal and the calcination temperature. The highest catalytic activity, expressed as the temperature at which combustion of carbon black occurs at the maximum rate, is shown by KNbO 3 calcined at 650 °C. At this calcination temperature, the catalytic activity follows an order dependent on the atomic number, namely: KNbO 3 > NaNbO 3 > LiNbO 3 . The RbNbO 3 solid do not follow this trend presumably due to the perovskite structure was not reached. The highest catalytic activity shown by of KNbO 3 , despite the lower apparent activation energy of NaNbO 3 , stress the importance of the metal nature and suggests the hypothesis that K + ions are the active sites for soot combustion. It must be pointed out that alkaline niobate subjected to consecutive soot combustion cycles does not show deactivation by metal loss, due to the stabilization of the alkaline metal inside the perovskite structure.

Incentives for small clubs of Arctic countries to limit black carbon and methane emissions

Science.gov (United States)

Aakre, Stine; Kallbekken, Steffen; Van Dingenen, Rita; Victor, David G.

2018-01-01

Although addressing climate change will ultimately require global cooperation, substantial progress may be achieved through small clubs of countries, where it is easier to forge and implement deals needed for policy coordination. Here we quantify the gains from cooperation in the Arctic region and find that nearly 90% of the potential for abating black carbon can be reached by countries acting in self-interest alone because soot, the main source of black carbon, causes severe harm to human health along with warming. Abating methane, by contrast, requires more cooperation because impacts are more diffused geographically. Well-designed clubs with as few as four members can realize more than 80% of the full group cooperation potential for reducing these pollutants. The pivotal player in every effective club is Russia—most other members of the Arctic Council, the institution most focused on advancing the collective interests of the region, offer little leverage on the problems at hand.

Numerical Investigation of Soot Formation in Non-premixed Flames

KAUST Repository

Abdelgadir, Ahmed Gamaleldin

2017-01-01

Soot is a carbon particulate formed as a result of the combustion of fossil fuels. Due to the health hazard posed by the carbon particulate, government agencies have applied strict regulations to control soot emissions from road vehicles, airplanes

Potassium and soot interaction in fast biomass pyrolysis at high temperatures

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Trubetskaya, Anna; Hofmann Larsen, Flemming; Shchukarev, Andrey

2018-01-01

2 reactivity was studied by thermogravimetric analysis. The XPS results showed that potassium incorporation with oxygen-containing surface groups in the soot matrix did not occur during high temperature pyrolysis. The potassium was mostly found as water-soluble salts such as KCl, KOH, KHCO3 and K2CO...... potassium amount was incorporated in the soot matrix during pyrolysis. Raman spectroscopy results showed that the carbon chemistry of biomass soot also affected the CO2 reactivity. The less reactive pinewood soot was more graphitic than herbaceous biomass soot samples with the disordered carbon structure...

1 Mixing state and absorbing properties of black carbon during Arctic haze

Science.gov (United States)

Zanatta, Marco; Gysel, Martin; Eleftheriadis, Kosas; Laj, Paolo; Hans-Werner, Jacobi

2016-04-01

The Arctic atmosphere is periodically affected by the Arctic haze occurring in spring. One of its particulate components is the black carbon (BC), which is considered to be an important contributor to climate change in the Arctic region. Beside BC-cloud interaction and albedo reduction of snow, BC may influence Arctic climate interacting directly with the solar radiation, warming the corresponding aerosol layer (Flanner, 2013). Such warming depends on BC atmospheric burden and also on the efficiency of BC to absorb light, in fact the light absorption is enhanced by mixing of BC with other atmospheric non-absorbing materials (lensing effect) (Bond et al., 2013). The BC reaching the Arctic is evilly processed, due to long range transport. Aging promote internal mixing and thus absorption enhancement. Such modification of mixing and is quantification after long range transport have been observed in the Atlantic ocean (China et al., 2015) but never investigated in the Arctic. During field experiments conducted at the Zeppelin research site in Svalbard during the 2012 Arctic spring, we investigated the relative precision of different BC measuring techniques; a single particle soot photometer was then used to assess the coating of Arctic black carbon. This allowed quantifying the absorption enhancement induced by internal mixing via optical modelling; the optical assessment of aged black carbon in the arctic will be of major interest for future radiative forcing assessment.Optical characterization of the total aerosol indicated that in 2012 no extreme smoke events took place and that the aerosol population was dominated by fine and non-absorbing particles. Low mean concentration of rBC was found (30 ng m-3), with a mean mass equivalent diameter above 200 nm. rBC concentration detected with the continuous soot monitoring system and the single particle soot photometer was agreeing within 15%. Combining absorption coefficient observed with an aethalometer and rBC mass

Black carbon or brown carbon? The nature of light-absorbing carbonaceous aerosols

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M. O. Andreae

2006-01-01

Full Text Available Although the definition and measurement techniques for atmospheric 'black carbon' ('BC' or 'elemental carbon'' ('EC' have long been subjects of scientific controversy, the recent discovery of light-absorbing carbon that is not black ('brown carbon, Cbrown' makes it imperative to reassess and redefine the components that make up light-absorbing carbonaceous matter (LAC in the atmosphere. Evidence for the atmospheric presence of Cbrown comes from (1 spectral aerosol light absorption measurements near specific combustion sources, (2 observations of spectral properties of water extracts of continental aerosol, (3 laboratory studies indicating the formation of light-absorbing organic matter in the atmosphere, and (4 indirectly from the chemical analogy of aerosol species to colored natural humic substances. We show that brown carbon may severely bias measurements of 'BC' and 'EC' over vast parts of the troposphere, especially those strongly polluted by biomass burning, where the mass concentration of Cbrown is high relative to that of soot carbon. Chemical measurements to determine 'EC' are biased by the refractory nature of Cbrown as well as by complex matrix interferences. Optical measurements of 'BC' suffer from a number of problems: (1 many of the presently used instruments introduce a substantial bias into the determination of aerosol light absorption, (2 there is no unique conversion factor between light absorption and 'EC' or 'BC' concentration in ambient aerosols, and (3 the difference in spectral properties between the different types of LAC, as well as the chemical complexity of Cbrown, lead to several conceptual as well as practical complications. We also suggest that due to the sharply increasing absorption of Cbrown towards the UV, single-wavelength light absorption measurements may not be adequate for the assessment of absorption of solar radiation in the troposphere. We discuss the possible consequences of these effects for our

Formation of Soot in Counterflow Diffusion Flames with Carbon Dioxide Dilution

KAUST Repository

Wang, Yu

2016-05-04

Experimental and numerical modeling studies have been performed to investigate the effect of CO2 dilution on soot formation in ethylene counterflow diffusion flames. Thermal and chemical effects of CO2 addition on soot growth was numerically identified by using a fictitious CO2 species, which was treated as inert in terms of chemical reactions. The results showed that CO2 addition reduces soot formation both thermodynamically and chemically. In terms of chemical effect, the addition of CO2 decreases soot formation through various pathways, including: (1) reduced soot precursor (PAH) formation leading to lower inception rates and soot number density, which in turn results in lower surface area for soot mass addition; (2) reduced H, CH3, and C3H3 concentrations causing lower H abstraction rate and therefore less active site per surface area for soot growth; and (3) reduced C2H2 mole fraction and thus a slower C2H2 mass addition rate. In addition, the sooting limits were also measured for ethylene counterflow flames in both N2 and CO2 atmosphere and the results showed that sooting region was significantly reduced in the CO2 case compared to the N2 case. © 2016 Taylor & Francis.

Delayed condensation and frost formation on superhydrophobic carbon soot coatings by controlling the presence of hydrophilic active sites

Science.gov (United States)

Esmeryan, Karekin D.; Castano, Carlos E.; Mohammadi, Reza; Lazarov, Yuliyan; Radeva, Ekaterina I.

2018-02-01

Condensation frosting is an undesired natural phenomenon that could be impeded efficiently using appropriate wettability and morphologically patterned surfaces. The icephobic properties of carbon soot and the fabrication scalability of its synthesis method are a good foundation for anti-frosting applications; however, the fundamentals of frost growth and spreading on sooted surfaces have not been examined yet. In this study, we investigate the anti-frosting performance of three groups of superhydrophobic soot coatings by means of 16 MHz quartz crystal microbalances (QCMs). The analysis of the real-time sensor signal of each soot coated QCM pattern shows that frost formation and its propagation velocity depend on the quantity of oxygen functionalities and structural defects in the material. In turn, the reduction of both parameters shifts the onset of frost growth to temperatures below  -20 °C, whereas the interdroplet ice bridging is slowed by a factor of four. Moreover, high-resolution scanning electron micrographs of the samples imply delamination upon defrosting of the soot with spherical-like morphology via polar interactions driven mechanism. These results reveal an opportunity for control of frost incipiency on sooted surfaces by adjusting the synthesis conditions and depositing soot coatings with as low as possible content of hydrophilic active sites.

Cosmic: Carbon Monoxide And Soot In Microgravity Inverse Combustion

Science.gov (United States)

Mikofski, M. A.; Blevins, L. G.; Davis, R. W.; Moore, E. F.; Mulholland, G. W.; Sacksteder, Kurt (Technical Monitor)

2003-01-01

Almost seventy percent of fire related deaths are caused by the inhalation of toxins such as CO and soot that are produced when fires become underventilated.(1) Although studies have established the importance of CO formation during underventilated burning,(2) the formation processes of CO (and soot) in underventilated fires are not well understood. The goal of the COSMIC project is to study the formation processes of CO and soot in underventilated flames. A potential way to study CO and soot production in underventilated flames is the use of inverse diffusion flames (IDFs). An IDF forms between a central air jet and a surrounding fuel jet. IDFs are related to underventilated flames because they may allow CO and soot to escape unoxidized. Experiments and numerical simulations of laminar IDFs of CH4 and C2H4 were conducted in 1-g and micro-g to study CO and soot formation. Laminar flames were studied because turbulent models of underventilated fires are uncertain. Microgravity was used to alter CO and soot pathways. A IDF literature survey, providing background and establishing motivation for this research, was presented at the 5th IWMC.(3) Experimental results from 1-g C2H4 IDFs and comparisons with simulations, demonstrating similarities between IDFs and underventilated fires, were presented at the 6th IWMC.(4) This paper will present experimental results from micro-g and 1-g IDFs of CH4 and C2H4 as well as comparisons with simulations, further supporting the relation between IDFs and underventilated flames.

End of the "Little Ice Age" in the Alps not forced by industrial black carbon

Science.gov (United States)

Sigl, Michael; Osmont, Dimtri; Gabrieli, Jacopo; Barbante, Carlo; Schwikowski, Margit

2016-04-01

Light absorbing aerosols present in the atmosphere and cryosphere play an important role in the climate system. Their presence in ambient air and snow changes radiative properties of these media, thus contributing to increased atmospheric warming and snowmelt. High spatio-temporal variability of aerosol concentrations in these media and a shortage of long-term observations contribute to large uncertainties in properly assigning the climate effects of these aerosols through time. Glaciers in the European Alps began to retreat abruptly from their mid-19th century maximum, marking what appeared to be the end of the Little Ice Age. Radiative forcing by increasing deposition of industrial black carbon to snow has been suggested as the main driver of the abrupt glacier retreats in the Alps (Painter et al. 2012). Basis for this hypothesis were model simulations using ice-core measurements of elemental carbon at low temporal resolution from two ice cores in the Alps. Here we present sub-annually resolved, well replicated ice-core measurements of refractory black carbon (rBC; using a SP2 soot photometer), mineral dust (Fe, Ca), biomass burning (NH4, K) and distinctive industrial pollution tracers (Bi, Pb, SO4) from an ice core in the Alps covering the past 250 years. These reconstructions allow to precisely compare the timing of observed acceleration of glacier melt in the mid-19th century with that of the increase of soot deposition on ice-sheets caused by the industrialization of Western Europe. Our study suggests that at the time when European rBC emission rates started to significantly increase Alpine glaciers have already experienced more than 70% of their total 19th century length reduction. Industrial BC emissions can therefore not been considered as the primary forcing of the rapid deglaciation at the end of the Little Ice Age in the Alps. References: Painter, T. H., M. G. Flanner, G. Kaser, B. Marzeion, R. A. VanCuren, and W. Abdalati (2013), End of the Little Ice

Facile synthesis of nano cauliflower and nano broccoli like hierarchical superhydrophobic composite coating using PVDF/carbon soot particles via gelation technique.

Science.gov (United States)

Sahoo, Bichitra Nanda; Balasubramanian, Kandasubramanian

2014-12-15

We have elucidated a cost effective fabrication technique to produce superhydrophobic polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF/DMF/candle soot particle and PVDF/DMF/camphor soot particle composite) porous materials. The water repellent dry composite was formed by the interaction of non-solvent (methanol) into PVDF/carbon soot particles suspension in N,N-dimethylformamide (DMF). It is seen that longer quenching time effectively changes the surface morphology of dry composites. The nano broccoli like hierarchical microstructure with micro or nano scaled roughen surface was obtained for PVDF/DMF/camphor soot particle, which reveals water contact angle of 172° with roll off angle of 2°. However, composite coating of PVDF/DMF/candle soot particle shows nano cauliflower like hierarchical, which illustrates water contact angle of 169° with roll off angle of 3°. To elucidate the enhancement of water repellent property of PVDF composites, we further divulge the evolution mechanism of nano cauliflower and nano broccoli structure. In order to evaluate the water contact angle of PVDF composites, surface diffusion of water inside the pores is investigated. Furthermore, the addition of small amount of carbon soot particles in composite not only provides the crystallization of PVDF, but also leads to dramatical amendment of surface morphology which increases the surface texture and roughness for superhydrophobicity. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Comparison of the Raman spectra of ion irradiated soot and collected extraterrestrial carbon

Science.gov (United States)

Brunetto, R.; Pino, T.; Dartois, E.; Cao, A.-T.; d'Hendecourt, L.; Strazzulla, G.; Bréchignac, Ph.

2009-03-01

We use a low pressure flame to produce soot by-products as possible analogues of the carbonaceous dust present in diverse astrophysical environments, such as circumstellar shells, diffuse interstellar medium, planetary disks, as well as in our own Solar System. Several soot samples, displaying an initial chemical diversity from aromatic to aliphatic dominated material, are irradiated with 200-400 keV H +, He +, and Ar ++ ions, with fluences comprised between 10 14 and 10 16 ions/cm 2, to simulate expected radiation induced modification on extraterrestrial carbon. The evolution of the samples is monitored using Raman spectroscopy, before, during, and after irradiation. A detailed analysis of the first- and second-order Raman spectra is performed, using a fitting combination of Lorentzian and/or Gaussian-shaped bands. Upon irradiation, the samples evolve toward an amorphous carbon phase. The results suggest that the observed variations are more related to vacancy formation than ionization processes. A comparison with Raman spectra of extraterrestrial organic matter and other irradiation experiments of astrophysically relevant carbonaceous materials is presented. The results are consistent with previous experiments showing mostly amorphization of various carbonaceous materials. Irradiated soots have Raman spectra similar to those of some meteorites, IDPs, and Comet Wild 2 grains collected by the Stardust mission. Since the early-Sun expected irradiation fluxes sufficient for amorphization are compatible with accretion timescales, our results support the idea that insoluble organic matter (IOM) observed in primitive meteorites has experienced irradiation-induced amorphization prior to the accretion of the parent bodies, emphasizing the important role played by early solar nebula processing.

Graft-copolymerization onto carbon black

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nakase, Yoshiaki; Nishii, Masanobu; Kijima, Toshiyuki; Kato, Hiroshi.

1988-07-01

Radiation-induced graft copolymerization of vinyl monomer onto carbon black was performed. During the γ-ray- and electron beam-induced polymerization (In-source), or the electron beam post-polymerization, the graft-copolymerization behavior was affected by the kinds of both carbon blacks and monomers, i.e. the smaller the size of carbon black particles, the higher the apparent grafted fraction. Homopolymer in the grafted carbon black samples was washed out by the solvent of the polymer, and the extracted polymer seemed to be dimer or trimer of the used monomer. In the case of the post-polymerization with the pre-irradiation doses of 50 Mrad, homopolymer was hardly observed. The polymer sheets of plastics or rubbers with grafted carbon black had an electrical conductivity unalterable considerably by the heating cycles. The particles of grafted carbon black in the sheet might be kept much more at the surface layer within 100 nm depth than at the inner layer. (author)

Effect of carbon black nanoparticles on methane/air explosions: Influence at low initial turbulence

Science.gov (United States)

Torrado, David; Glaude, Pierre-Alexandre; Dufaud, Olivier

2017-06-01

Nanoparticles are widely used in industrial applications as additives to modify materials properties such as resistance, surface, rheology or UV-radiation. As a consequence, the quantification and characterization of nanoparticles have become almost compulsory, including the understanding of the risks associated to their use. Since a few years ago, several studies of dust explosion properties involving nano-sized powder have been published. During the production and industrial use of nanoparticles, simultaneous presence of gas / vapor / solvents and dispersed nanoparticles mixtures might be obtained, increasing the risk of a hybrid mixture explosion. The aim of this work is to study the severity of the explosion of carbon black nanoparticles/methane mixtures and understand the influence of adding nanopowders on the behavior of the gas explosions. These results are also useful to understand the influence of soot on the efficiency of the gas combustion. Two grades of carbon black nanoparticles (ranging from 20 to 300 nm average diameter) have been mixed with methane. Tests have been performed on these mixtures in a standard 20 L explosion sphere. Regarding the scale precision, the lowest concentration of carbon black nanoparticles was set at 0.5 g.m-3. Tests were also performed at 2.5 g.m-3, which is still far below 60 g.m-3, the minimum explosive concentration of such powders previously determined in our laboratory. The influence of carbon black particles on the severity of the explosions has been compared to that of pure gas. It appears that the use of carbon black nanoparticles increases the explosion overpressure for lean methane mixtures at low initial turbulences by c. 10%. Similar results were obtained for high initial turbulent systems. Therefore, it seems that carbon black nanoparticles have an impact on the severity of the explosion even for quiescent systems, as opposed to systems involving micro-sized powders that require dispersion at high turbulence

Relating black carbon content to reduction of snow albedo

Science.gov (United States)

Brandt, R. E.; Warren, S. G.; Clarke, A. D.

2011-12-01

In remote snow of the Northern Hemisphere, the levels of soot pollution are in the parts-per-billion (ppb) range, where the effect on albedo is at the level of a few percent. A reduction of albedo by 1-2% is significant for climate but is difficult to detect experimentally, because snow albedo depends on several other variables. In our work to quantify the climatic effect of black carbon (BC) in snow, we therefore do not directly measure the albedo reduction. Instead, we use a two-step procedure: (1) We collect snow samples, melt and filter them, and analyze the filters spectrophotometrically for BC concentration. (2) We use the BC amount from the filter measurement, together with snow grain size, in a radiative transfer model to compute the albedo reduction. Our radiative transfer model uses the discrete ordinates algorithm DISORT 2.0. We have chosen a representative BC size distribution and optical constants, and have incorporated those of mineral dust as well. While a given mass of BC causes over an order of magnitude more snow albedo reduction compared to dust, a snowpack containing dust mutes the albedo-reducing effect of BC. Because the computed reduction of snow albedo is model-based, it requires experimental verification. We doubt that direct measurement of albedo-reduction will be feasible in nature, because of the vertical variation of both snow grain size and soot content, and because the natural soot content is small. We conclude that what is needed is an artificial snowpack, with uniform grain size and large uniform soot content (ppm not ppb), to produce a large signal on albedo. We have chosen to pursue this experiment outdoors rather than in the laboratory, for the following reasons: (1) The snowpack in the field of view is uniformly illuminated if the source of radiation is the Sun. (2) Visible radiation penetrates into the snow, so photons emerge horizontally distant from where they entered. In the limited width of a laboratory snowpack, radiation

Soot particles at an elevated site in eastern China during the passage of a strong cyclone

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Niu, Hongya [State Key Laboratory of Coal Resources and Safe Mining, School of Geoscience and Surveying Engineering, China University of Mining and Technology, Beijing 100083 (China); Faculty of Environmental and Symbiotic Sciences, Prefectural University of Kumamoto, Kumamoto 862-8502 (Japan); Shao, Longyi [State Key Laboratory of Coal Resources and Safe Mining, School of Geoscience and Surveying Engineering, China University of Mining and Technology, Beijing 100083 (China); Zhang, Daizhou, E-mail: dzzhang@pu-kumamoto.ac.jp [Faculty of Environmental and Symbiotic Sciences, Prefectural University of Kumamoto, Kumamoto 862-8502 (Japan)

2012-07-15

Atmospheric particles larger than 0.2 {mu}m were collected at the top of Mt. Tai (36.25 Degree-Sign N, 117.10 Degree-Sign E, 1534 m a.s.l.) in eastern China in May 2008 during the passage of a strong cyclone. The particles were analyzed with electron microscopes and characterized by morphology, equivalent diameter and elemental composition. Soot particles with coating (coated soot particles) and those without apparent coating (naked soot particles) were predominant in the diameter range smaller than 0.6 {mu}m in all samples. The number-size distribution of the relative abundance of naked soot particles in the prefrontal air was similar to that in the postfrontal air and their size modes were around 0.2-0.3 {mu}m. However, the distribution of inclusions of coated soot particles showed a mode in the range of 0.1-0.3 {mu}m. The coating degree of coated soot particles, which was defined by the ratio of the diameter of inclusion to the diameter of particle body, showed a mode around 0.5 with the range of 0.3-0.6. These results indicate that the status of soot particles in the prefrontal and postfrontal air was similar although air pollution levels were dramatically different. In addition, the relative abundance of accumulation mode particles increased with the decrease of soot particles after the front passage. - Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Particles at an elevated site in eastern China in a strong cyclone were studied. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Aged status of soot particles in the prefrontal and postfrontal air was similar. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Soot particles in elevated layers could be considered as aged ones.

Single Particle Soot Photometer intercomparison at the AIDA chamber

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M. Laborde

2012-12-01

Full Text Available Soot particles, consisting of black carbon (BC, organic carbon (OC, inorganic salts, and trace elements, are emitted into the atmosphere during incomplete combustion. Accurate measurements of atmospheric BC are important as BC particles cause adverse health effects and impact the climate.

Unfortunately, the accurate measurement of the properties and mass concentrations of BC particles remains difficult. The Single Particle Soot Photometer (SP2 can contribute to improving this situation by measuring the mass of refractory BC in individual particles as well as its mixing state.

Here, the results of the first detailed SP2 intercomparison, involving 6 SP2s from 6 different research groups, are presented, including the most evolved data products that can presently be calculated from SP2 measurements.

It was shown that a detection efficiency of almost 100% down to 1 fg BC per particle can readily be achieved, and that this limit can be pushed down to ∼0.2 fg BC with optimal SP2 setup. Number and mass size distributions of BC cores agreed within ±5% and ±10%, respectively, in between the SP2s, with larger deviations in the range below 1 fg BC.

The accuracy of the SP2's mass concentration measurement depends on the calibration material chosen. The SP2 has previously been shown to be equally sensitive to fullerene soot and ambient BC from sources where fossil fuel was dominant and less sensitive to fullerene soot than to Aquadag. Fullerene soot was therefore chosen as the standard calibration material by the SP2 user community; however, many data sets rely solely on Aquadag calibration measurements. The difference in SP2 sensitivity was found to be almost equal (fullerene soot to Aquadag response ratio of ∼0.75 at 8.9 fg BC for all SP2s. This allows the calculation of a fullerene soot equivalent calibration curve from a measured Aquadag calibration, when no fullerene soot calibration is available. It could be

T-matrix modeling of linear depolarization by morphologically complex soot and soot-containing aerosols

Science.gov (United States)

Mishchenko, Michael I.; Liu, Li; Mackowski, Daniel W.

2013-07-01

We use state-of-the-art public-domain Fortran codes based on the T-matrix method to calculate orientation and ensemble averaged scattering matrix elements for a variety of morphologically complex black carbon (BC) and BC-containing aerosol particles, with a special emphasis on the linear depolarization ratio (LDR). We explain theoretically the quasi-Rayleigh LDR peak at side-scattering angles typical of low-density soot fractals and conclude that the measurement of this feature enables one to evaluate the compactness state of BC clusters and trace the evolution of low-density fluffy fractals into densely packed aggregates. We show that small backscattering LDRs measured with ground-based, airborne, and spaceborne lidars for fresh smoke generally agree with the values predicted theoretically for fluffy BC fractals and densely packed near-spheroidal BC aggregates. To reproduce higher lidar LDRs observed for aged smoke, one needs alternative particle models such as shape mixtures of BC spheroids or cylinders.

Determination of the spectral behaviour of atmospheric soot using different particle models

Science.gov (United States)

Skorupski, Krzysztof

2017-08-01

In the atmosphere, black carbon aggregates interact with both organic and inorganic matter. In many studies they are modeled using different, less complex, geometries. However, some common simplification might lead to many inaccuracies in the following light scattering simulations. The goal of this study was to compare the spectral behavior of different, commonly used soot particle models. For light scattering simulations, in the visible spectrum, the ADDA algorithm was used. The results prove that the relative extinction error δCext, in some cases, can be unexpectedly large. Therefore, before starting excessive simulations, it is important to know what error might occur.

Carbon nanoparticles from corn stalk soot and its novel application as stationary phase of hydrophilic interaction chromatography and per aqueous liquid chromatography

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li Yuanyuan; Xu Luan; Chen Tong; Liu Xiaoyan; Xu Zhigang; Zhang Haixia

2012-01-01

Highlights: ► Carbon nanoparticles (6–18 nm in size) were prepared from corn stalk soot. ► CNPs-based silica were used as novel chromatography stationary phase. ► The new phase shows good separation selectivity for polar compounds. ► The new phase had the similar retention for polar probes in HILIC and PALC modes. ► In contrast to PALC, under HILIC conditions high efficiencies were achieved. - Abstract: Carbon nanoparticles (CNPs) (6–18 nm in size) were prepared by refluxing corn stalk soot in nitric acid. The obtained acid-oxidized CNPs are soluble in water due to the existence of carboxylic and hydroxyl groups. 13 C NMR measurement shows the CNPs are mainly of sp 2 and sp 3 carbon structure different from CNPs obtained from candle soot and natural gas soot. Furthermore, these CNPs exhibit unique photoluminescence properties. Interestingly, the CNPs might be exploited to immobilize on the surface of porous silica particles as chromatographic stationary phase. The resultant packing material was evaluated by high-performance liquid chromatography, indicating that the new stationary phase could be used in hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography (HILIC) and per aqueous liquid chromatography (PALC) modes. The separation of five nucleosides, four sulfa compounds and safflower injection was achieved by using the new column in the HILIC and PALC modes, respectively.

Method for removing soot from exhaust gases

Science.gov (United States)

Suib, Steven L.; Dharmarathna, D. A. Saminda; Pahalagedara, Lakshitha R.

2018-01-16

A method for oxidizing soot from diesel exhaust gas from a diesel engine. The method involves providing a diesel particulate filter for receiving the diesel exhaust gas; coating a catalyst composition on the diesel particulate filter; and contacting the soot from the diesel exhaust gas with the catalyst coated diesel particulate filter at a temperature sufficient to oxidize the soot to carbon dioxide. The catalyst composition is a doped or undoped manganese oxide octahedral molecular sieve (OMS-2) material. A diesel exhaust gas treatment system that includes a diesel particulate filter for receiving diesel exhaust gas from a diesel engine and collecting soot; and a catalyst composition coated on the diesel particulate filter. The catalyst composition is a doped or undoped manganese oxide octahedral molecular sieve (OMS-2).

Sooting Characteristics and Modeling in Counterflow Diffusion Flames

KAUST Repository

Wang, Yu

2013-11-01

Soot formation is one of the most complex phenomena in combustion science and an understanding of the underlying physico-chemical mechanisms is important. This work adopted both experimental and numerical approaches to study soot formation in laminar counterfl ow diffusion flames. As polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are the precursors of soot particles, a detailed gas-phase chemical mechanism describing PAH growth upto coronene for fuels with 1 to 4 carbon atoms was validated against laminar premixed and counter- flow diffusion fl ames. Built upon this gas-phase mechanism, a soot model was then developed to describe soot inception and surface growth. This soot model was sub- sequently used to study fuel mixing effect on soot formation in counterfl ow diffusion flames. Simulation results showed that compared to the baseline case of the ethylene flame, the doping of 5% (by volume) propane or ethane in ethylene tends to increase the soot volume fraction and number density while keeping the average soot size almost unchanged. These results are in agreement with experimental observations. Laser light extinction/scattering as well as laser induced fluorescence techniques were used to study the effect of strain rate on soot and PAH formation in counterfl ow diffusion ames. The results showed that as strain rate increased both soot volume fraction and PAH concentrations decreased. The concentrations of larger PAH were more sensitive to strain rate compared to smaller ones. The effect of CO2 addition on soot formation was also studied using similar experimental techniques. Soot loading was reduced with CO2 dilution. Subsequent numerical modeling studies were able to reproduce the experimental trend. In addition, the chemical effect of CO2 addition was analyzed using numerical data. Critical conditions for the onset of soot were systematically studied in counterfl ow diffusion ames for various gaseous hydrocarbon fuels and at different strain rates. A sooting

129 Xe-NMR of carbon black filled elastomers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sperling-Ischinsky, K.; Veeman, W.S.

1999-01-01

It is shown that 129 Xe-NMR is a powerful tool to investigate carbon black and carbon black filled elastomers. For the carbon black material itself the 129 Xe chemical shift of xenon adsorbed at the surface of carbon black aggregates yields information about the relative average pore size of the carbon black aggregates. The experimental 129 Xe-NMR results of carbon black filled ethylene-propylene-diene (EPDM) can be explained when it is assumed that the xenon atoms in the bound EPDM fraction exchange rapidly on the NMR time scale between a state where they are adsorbed on the carbon black surface and a state in which they are absorbed in the EPDM layer. This would imply that the carbon black aggregates are not completely covered with EPDM chains. (author)

Are emissions of black carbon from gasoline vehicles underestimated? Insights from near and on-road measurements.

Science.gov (United States)

Liggio, John; Gordon, Mark; Smallwood, Gregory; Li, Shao-Meng; Stroud, Craig; Staebler, Ralf; Lu, Gang; Lee, Patrick; Taylor, Brett; Brook, Jeffrey R

2012-05-01

Measurements of black carbon (BC) with a high-sensitivity laser-induced incandescence (HS-LII) instrument and a single particle soot photometer (SP2) were conducted upwind, downwind, and while driving on a highway dominated by gasoline vehicles. The results are used with concurrent CO(2) measurements to derive fuel-based BC emission factors for real-world average fleet and heavy-duty diesel vehicles separately. The derived emission factors from both instruments are compared, and a low SP2 bias (relative to the HS-LII) is found to be caused by a BC mass mode diameter less than 75 nm, that is most prominent with the gasoline fleet but is not present in the heavy-duty diesel vehicle exhaust on the highway. Results from both the LII and the SP2 demonstrate that the BC emission factors from gasoline vehicles are at least a factor of 2 higher than previous North American measurements, and a factor of 9 higher than currently used emission inventories in Canada, derived with the MOBILE 6.2C model. Conversely, the measured BC emission factor for heavy-duty diesel vehicles is in reasonable agreement with previous measurements. The results suggest that greater attention must be paid to black carbon from gasoline engines to obtain a full understanding of the impact of black carbon on air quality and climate and to devise appropriate mitigation strategies. © 2012 American Chemical Society

Effects of airborne black carbon pollution on maize

Science.gov (United States)

Illes, Bernadett; Anda, Angela; Soos, Gabor

2013-04-01

The black carbon (BC) changes the radiation balance of the Earth and contributes to global warming. The airborne BC deposited on the surface of plant, changing the radiation balance, water balance and the total dry matter (TDM) content of plant. The objective of our study was to investigate the impact of soot originated from motor vehicle exhaust on maize. The field experiment was carried out in Keszthely Agrometeorological Research Station (Hungary) in three consecutive years (2010, 2011, 2012) of growing season. The test plant was the maize hybrid Sperlona (FAO 340) with short growing season. The BC was chemically "pure", which means that it is free any contaminants (e.g. heavy metals). The BC was coming from the Hankook Tyre Company (Dunaújváros, Hungary), where used that for improve the wear resistance of tires. We used a motorised sprayer of SP 415 type to spray the BC onto the leaf surface. The leaf area index (LAI) was measured each week on the same 12 sample maize in each treatment using an LI 3000A automatic planimeter (LI-COR, Lincoln, NE). Albedo was measured by pyranometers of the CMA-11 type (Kipp & Zonen, Vaisala), what we placed the middle of the plot of 0.3 ha. The effects of BC were studied under two different water supplies: evapotranspirometers of Thornthwaite type were used for "ad libitum" treatment and rainfed treatment in field plots. In 2010 and 2012, a big difference was not observed in the case of LAI in the effects of BC. However, in 2011 there was a significant difference. The LAI of the BC polluted maize was higher (10-15%, P<0.05), than the LAI of the control maize in the rainfed plot and in the ET chambers, respectively. The albedo of the BC contaminated maize decreased (15-30%, P<0.05) in all three years. We also detected that the green plant surface of maize increased on BC contaminated treatment. These results may suggest that the plant is able to absorb the additional carbon source through the leaves. The albedo decreased

Electron Tomography of Nanoparticle Clusters: Implications for Atmospheric Lifetimes and Radiative Forcing of Soot

Science.gov (United States)

vanPoppel, Laura H.; Friedrich, Heiner; Spinsby, Jacob; Chung, Serena H.; Seinfeld, John H.; Buseck, Peter R.

2005-01-01

Nanoparticles are ubiquitous in nature. Their large surface areas and consequent chemical reactivity typically result in their aggregation into clusters. Their chemical and physical properties depend on cluster shapes, which are commonly complex and unknown. This is the first application of electron tomography with a transmission electron microscope to quantitatively determine the three-dimensional (3D) shapes, volumes, and surface areas of nanoparticle clusters. We use soot (black carbon, BC) nanoparticles as an example because it is a major contributor to environmental degradation and global climate change. To the extent that our samples are representative, we find that quantitative measurements of soot surface areas and volumes derived from electron tomograms differ from geometrically derived values by, respectively, almost one and two orders of magnitude. Global sensitivity studies suggest that the global burden and direct radiative forcing of fractal BC are only about 60% of the value if it is assumed that BC has a spherical shape.

Sooting turbulent jet flame: characterization and quantitative soot measurements

Science.gov (United States)

Köhler, M.; Geigle, K. P.; Meier, W.; Crosland, B. M.; Thomson, K. A.; Smallwood, G. J.

2011-08-01

Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) modelers require high-quality experimental data sets for validation of their numerical tools. Preferred features for numerical simulations of a sooting, turbulent test case flame are simplicity (no pilot flame), well-defined boundary conditions, and sufficient soot production. This paper proposes a non-premixed C2H4/air turbulent jet flame to fill this role and presents an extensive database for soot model validation. The sooting turbulent jet flame has a total visible flame length of approximately 400 mm and a fuel-jet Reynolds number of 10,000. The flame has a measured lift-off height of 26 mm which acts as a sensitive marker for CFD model validation, while this novel compiled experimental database of soot properties, temperature and velocity maps are useful for the validation of kinetic soot models and numerical flame simulations. Due to the relatively simple burner design which produces a flame with sufficient soot concentration while meeting modelers' needs with respect to boundary conditions and flame specifications as well as the present lack of a sooting "standard flame", this flame is suggested as a new reference turbulent sooting flame. The flame characterization presented here involved a variety of optical diagnostics including quantitative 2D laser-induced incandescence (2D-LII), shifted-vibrational coherent anti-Stokes Raman spectroscopy (SV-CARS), and particle image velocimetry (PIV). Producing an accurate and comprehensive characterization of a transient sooting flame was challenging and required optimization of these diagnostics. In this respect, we present the first simultaneous, instantaneous PIV, and LII measurements in a heavily sooting flame environment. Simultaneous soot and flow field measurements can provide new insights into the interaction between a turbulent vortex and flame chemistry, especially since soot structures in turbulent flames are known to be small and often treated in a statistical manner.

Biomass burning plumes and the aging of black carbon aerosols in the tropopause region observed with the CARIBIC single particle soot photometer

Science.gov (United States)

Ditas, J.; Ma, N.; Zhang, Y.; Assmann, D. N.; Neumaier, M.; Wang, S.; Wang, J.; Zahn, A.; Hermann, M.; Brenninkmeijer, C. A. M.; Poeschl, U.; Su, H.; Cheng, Y.

2017-12-01

Biomass burning (BB) events can release large amounts of refractory black carbon (rBC) into the upper troposphere and lowermost stratosphere (UT/LMS) (Dahlkötter et al., 2014). To explore this effect, a Single Particle Soot Photometer (SP2) was added to the scientific payload of the instrumented CARIBIC container that is installed monthly in the cargo bay of a passenger aircraft (the IAGOS-CARIBIC atmospheric observatory, www.iagos.org). Regular measurement flights with different destinations are performed, covering an area of about 120°W to 120°E and 75°N to 30°S. A wide range of in situ measurements (CO, O3, greenhouse gases, aerosol particles and volatile organic compounds) is combined with a collection of air and aerosol samples for laboratory analyses. Since August 2014, the SP2 measures BC number and mass concentration at altitudes between 8 and 12 km. More than 600 BC measurement hours show a strong impact of BB emissions on the lowermost stratosphere. The BB plumes are identified with the help of concurrent carbon monoxide and acetonitrile measurements showing substantially increased concentrations compared to their background level. Transported into the lowermost stratosphere, BB smoke can be transported over long distances and the BC particles can stay in the atmosphere up to one year. The monthly missions of four consecutive CARIBIC flights sometimes enable to revisit a certain air mass, as was the case during a measurement flight to San Francisco in August 2014, with a stopover time of 2h. The revisited biomass burning plume located over the Altlantic ocean near Greenland was traced back by backward and forward trajectories to open fires in Canada (upper Fig.). The transit time of the smoke plume was estimated to 16 - 19h which perfectly matches our flight time difference ( 18h). Based on the LEO-fit method (Leading Edge Only fit) from Gao et al. (2007), the mixing state of the BC particles within the BB plume was calculated. Our unique data set

Characterization of particulate matter emissions from on-road gasoline and diesel vehicles using a soot particle aerosol mass spectrometer

OpenAIRE

Dallmann, T. R.; Onasch, T. B.; Kirchstetter, T. W.; Worton, D. R.; Fortner, E. C.; Herndon, S. C.; Wood, E. C.; Franklin, J. P.; Worsnop, D. R.; Goldstein, A. H.; Harley, R. A.

2014-01-01

Particulate matter (PM) emissions were measured in July 2010 from on-road motor vehicles driving through a highway tunnel in the San Francisco Bay area. A soot particle aerosol mass spectrometer (SP-AMS) was used to measure the chemical composition of PM emitted by gasoline and diesel vehicles at high time resolution. Organic aerosol (OA) and black carbon (BC) concentrations were measured during various time periods that had different levels of diesel influence, as well as d...

Immersion microcalorimetry of a carbon black

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mendelbaum, Georges

1966-01-01

This research thesis first reports a detailed bibliographical study on various topics (fabrication of carbon black, oxidation, immersion heat, adsorptions, main existing theories, and thermodynamics) and then the development of immersion and adsorption microcalorimetry apparatuses aimed at studying the surface of a carbon black and the influence of the oxidation of this carbon black on the adsorption of polar and non-polar solvents. Immersion heats of a raw or oxidised carbon black have been measured in water, in cyclohexane and in methanol. The adsorption of methanol at 20 C and that of nitrogen at -196 C have also been measured. The author outlines that degassing conditions had to be taken into account before performing measurements [fr

Cellphones as a Distributed Platform for Black Carbon Data Collection

Science.gov (United States)

Ramanathan, N.; Ramana, M.; Lukac, M. L.; Siva, P.; Ahmed, T.; Kar, A.; Rehman, I.; Ramanathan, V.

2010-12-01

Black carbon (BC), the visible component of soot that gives emissions such as diesel engine exhaust their dark color, has come to be recognized as a major contributor to global warming, and a frontline concern for climate change strategies (Ramanathan 2001, Jacobson 2010). We have developed a new low-cost instrument for gathering and measuring atmospheric BC concentrations that leverages cellphones to transmit data from an air filtration unit to a centralized database for analysis. Our new system relies on image processing techniques, as opposed to other more expensive optical methods, to interpret images of filters captured with a cellphone camera. As a result, the entire system costs less than $500 (and is orders of magnitude cheaper than an Aethalometer, the prevailing method for measuring atmospheric BC). We are working with three community groups in Los Angeles, and will recruit three groups in the San Francisco Bay Area, to enable 40 citizens to be actively engaged in monitoring BC across California. We are working with The Energy Resources Institute, an international NGO based in India, to deploy this instrument with 60 people in conjunction with Project Surya, which aims to deploy clean cookstoves and rigorously evaluate their impact on BC emissions. Field tests of this new instrument performed in California report an average error of 0.28 µg/m3 when compared with an Aethelometer. These excellent results hold the promise of making large-scale data collection of BC feasible and relatively easy to reproduce (Ramanathan et al., forthcoming). The use of cellphones for data collection permits monitoring of BC to occur on a greater, more comprehensive scale not previously possible, and serves as a means of instituting more precise, variation-sensitive evaluations of emissions. By storing the data in a publicly available repository, our system will provide real-time access to mass-scale BC measurements to researchers and the public. Through our pilot

Aging of Black Carbon during Atmospheric Transport: Understanding Results from the DOE's 2010 CARES and 2012 ClearfLo Campaigns

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Subramanian, R. [Carnegie Mellon Univ., Pittsburgh, PA (United States); Mazzoleni, Claudio [Michigan Technological Univ., Houghton, MI (United States)

2016-08-31

Over the course of this project, we have analyzed data and samples from the CARES and ClearfLo campaigns, as well as conducted or participated in laboratory experiments designed to better understand black carbon mixing state and climate-relevant properties. The laboratory campaigns took place at PNNL and CMU to study various climate-relevant aerosol properties of different sources of soot mixing with secondary organic aerosol precursors. The DMT photoacoustic extinctiometers (PAXs) procured by CMU through this grant were deployed for these experiments, as well as experiments characterizing the optical properties of cookstove soot emissions at Colorado State University (CSU). Results from some of these activities were summarized in the previous progress report. This final report presents the manuscripts that have been published (many in the period since the last progress report), lists presentations at different conferences based on grant-related activities, and presents some results that are likely to be submitted for publication in 2016.

Numerical Investigation of Soot Formation in Non-premixed Flames

KAUST Repository

Abdelgadir, Ahmed Gamaleldin

2017-05-01

Soot is a carbon particulate formed as a result of the combustion of fossil fuels. Due to the health hazard posed by the carbon particulate, government agencies have applied strict regulations to control soot emissions from road vehicles, airplanes, and industrial plants. Thus, understanding soot formation and evolution is critical. Practical combustion devices operate at high pressure and in the turbulent regime. Elevated pressures and turbulence on soot formation significantly and fundamental understanding of these complex interactions is still poor. In this study, the effects of pressure and turbulence on soot formation and growth are investigated numerically. As the first step, the evolution of the particle size distribution function (PSDF) and soot particles morphology are investigated in turbulent non-premixed flames. A Direct Simulation Monte Carlo (DSMC) code is developed and used. The stochastic reactor describes the evolution of soot in fluid parcels following Lagrangian trajectories in a turbulent flow field. The trajectories are sampled from a Direct Numerical Simulation (DNS) of an n-heptane turbulent non-premixed flame. Although individual trajectories display strong bimodality as in laminar flames, the ensemble-average PSDF possesses only one mode and a broad tail, which implies significant polydispersity induced by turbulence. Secondly, the effect of the flow and mixing fields on soot formation at atmospheric and elevated pressures is investigated in coflow laminar diffusion flames. The experimental observation and the numerical prediction of the spatial distribution are in good agreement. Based on the common scaling methodology of the flames (keeping the Reynolds number constant), the scalar dissipation rate decreases as pressure increases, promoting the formation of PAH species and soot. The decrease of the scalar dissipation rate significantly contributes to soot formation occurring closer to the nozzle and outward on the flames wings as pressure

Detection of Black Plastics in the Middle Infrared Spectrum (MIR Using Photon Up-Conversion Technique for Polymer Recycling Purposes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Wolfgang Becker

2017-09-01

Full Text Available The identification of black polymers which contain about 0.5 to 3 mass percent soot or black master batch is still an essential problem in recycling sorting processes. Near infrared spectroscopy (NIRS of non-black polymers offers a reliable and fast identification, and is therefore suitable for industrial application. NIRS is consequently widely used in polymer sorting plants. However, this method cannot be used for black polymers because small amounts of carbon black or soot absorb all light in the NIR spectral region. Spectroscopy in the mid infrared spectral region (MIR offers a possibility to identify black polymers. MIR spectral measurements carried out with Fourier-transform infrared spectrometers (FTIR are not fast enough to meet economic requirements in sorting plants. By contrast, spectrometer systems based on the photon up-conversion technique are fast and sensitive enough and can be applied to sort black polymer parts. Such a system is able to measure several thousand spectra per second hence is suitable for industrial applications. The results of spectral measurements of black polymers are presented.

Effects of diluents on soot surface temperature and volume fraction in diluted ethylene diffusion flames at pressure

KAUST Repository

Kailasanathan, Ranjith Kumar Abhinavam

2014-05-20

Soot surface temperature and volume fraction are measured in ethylene/air coflowing laminar diffusion flames at high pressures, diluted with one of four diluents (argon, helium, nitrogen, and carbon dioxide) using a two-color technique. Both temperature and soot measurements presented are line-of-sight averages. The results aid in understanding the kinetic and thermodynamic behavior of the soot formation and oxidation chemistry with changes in diluents, ultimately leading to possible methods of reducing soot emission from practical combustion hardware. The diluted fuel and coflow exit velocities (top-hat profiles) were matched at all pressures to minimize shear effects. In addition to the velocity-matched flow rates, the mass fluxes were held constant for all pressures. Addition of a diluent has a pronounced effect on both the soot surface temperature and volume fraction, with the helium diluted flame yielding the maximum and carbon dioxide diluted flame yielding minimum soot surface temperature and volume fraction. At low pressures, peak soot volume fraction exists at the tip of the flame, and with an increase in pressure, the location shifts lower to the wings of the flame. Due to the very high diffusivity of helium, significantly higher temperature and volume fraction are measured and explained. Carbon dioxide has the most dramatic soot suppression effect. By comparing the soot yield with previously measured soot precursor concentrations in the same flame, it is clear that the lower soot yield is a result of enhanced oxidation rates rather than a reduction in precursor formation. Copyright © 2014 Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.

Modified carbon black materials for lithium-ion batteries

Science.gov (United States)

Kostecki, Robert; Richardson, Thomas; Boesenberg, Ulrike; Pollak, Elad; Lux, Simon

2016-06-14

A lithium (Li) ion battery comprising a cathode, a separator, an organic electrolyte, an anode, and a carbon black conductive additive, wherein the carbon black has been heated treated in a CO.sub.2 gas environment at a temperature range of between 875-925 degrees Celsius for a time range of between 50 to 70 minutes to oxidize the carbon black and reduce an electrochemical reactivity of the carbon black towards the organic electrolyte.

Investigations of the long-term effects of LII on soot and bath gas

KAUST Repository

Cenker, Emre

2017-08-24

A combination of high-repetition rate imaging, laser extinction measurements, two-colour soot pyrometry imaging, and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy of thermophoretically sampled soot is used to investigate the long-term and permanent effects of rapid heating of in-flame soot during laser-induced incandescence (LII). Experiments are carried out on a laminar non-premixed co-annular ethylene/air flame with various laser fluences. The high-repetition rate images clearly show that the heated and the neighbouring laser-border zones undergo a permanent transformation after the laser pulse, and advect vertically with the flow while the permanent marking is preserved. The soot volume fraction at the heated zone reduces due to the sublimation of soot and the subsequent enhanced oxidation. At the laser-border zones, however, optical thickness increases that may be due to thermophoretic forces drawing hot particles towards relatively cooler zones and the rapid compression of the bath gas induced by the pressure waves created by the expansion of the desorbed carbon clusters. Additionally sublimed carbon clusters can condense onto existing particles and contribute to increase of the optical thickness. Time-resolved two-colour pyrometry imaging show that the increased temperature of soot both in the heated and neighbouring laser-border zones persists for several milliseconds. This can be associated to the increase in the bath-gas temperature, and a change in the wavelength-dependent emissivity of soot particles induced by the thermal annealing of soot. Ex-situ analysis show that the lattice structure of the soot sampled at the laser-border zones tend to change and soot becomes more graphitic. This may be attributed to thermal annealing induced by elevated temperature.

Structure and properties of carbon black particles

Science.gov (United States)

Xu, Wei

Structure and properties of carbon black particles were investigated using atomic force microscopy, gas adsorption, Raman spectroscopy, and X-ray diffraction. Supplementary information was obtained using TEM and neutron scattering. The AFM imaging of carbon black aggregates provided qualitative visual information on their morphology, complementary to that obtained by 3-D modeling based on TEM images. Our studies showed that carbon black aggregates were relatively flat. The surface of all untreated carbon black particles was found to be rough and its fractal dimension was 2.2. Heating reduced the roughness and fractal dimension for all samples heat treated at above 1300 K to 2.0. Once the samples were heat treated rapid cooling did not affect the surface roughness. However, rapid cooling reduced crystallite sizes, and different Raman spectra were obtained for carbon blacks of various history of heat treatment. By analyzing the Raman spectra we determined the crystallite sizes and identified amorphous carbon. The concentration of amorphous carbon depends on hydrogen content. Once hydrogen was liberated at increased temperature, the concentration of amorphous carbon was reduced and crystallites started to grow. Properties of carbon blacks at high pressure were also studied. Hydrostatic pressure did not affect the size of the crystallites in carbon black particles. The pressure induced shift in Raman frequency of the graphitic component was a result of increased intermolecular forces and not smaller crystallites. Two methods of determining the fractal dimension, the FHH model and the yardstick technique based on the BET theory were used in the literature. Our study proved that the FHH model is sensitive to numerous assumptions and leads to wrong conclusions. On the other hand the yardstick method gave correct results, which agreed with the AFM results.

Black carbon: The reverse of its dark side

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Koelmans, A.A.; Jonker, M.T.O.; Cornelissen, G.; Bucheli, T.D.; Noort, van P.C.M.; Gustafsson, O.

2006-01-01

The emission of black carbon is known to cause major environmental problems. Black carbon particles contribute to global warming, carry carcinogenic compounds and cause serious health risks. Here, we show another side of the coin. We review evidence that black carbon may strongly reduce the risk

Chemically treated carbon black waste and its potential applications

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dong, Pengwei; Maneerung, Thawatchai; Ng, Wei Cheng; Zhen, Xu [NUS Environmental Research Institute, National University of Singapore, 1 Create Way, Create Tower #15-02, 138602 (Singapore); Dai, Yanjun [School of Mechanical Engineering, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240 (China); Tong, Yen Wah [NUS Environmental Research Institute, National University of Singapore, 1 Create Way, Create Tower #15-02, 138602 (Singapore); Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, National University of Singapore, 4 Engineering Drive 4, 117585 (Singapore); Ting, Yen-Peng [Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, National University of Singapore, 4 Engineering Drive 4, 117585 (Singapore); Koh, Shin Nuo [Sembcorp Industries Ltd., 30 Hill Street #05-04, 179360 (Singapore); Wang, Chi-Hwa, E-mail: chewch@nus.edu.sg [Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, National University of Singapore, 4 Engineering Drive 4, 117585 (Singapore); Neoh, Koon Gee, E-mail: chenkg@nus.edu.sg [Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, National University of Singapore, 4 Engineering Drive 4, 117585 (Singapore)

2017-01-05

Highlights: • Hazardous impurities separated from carbon black waste with little damage to solid. • Heavy metals were effectively removed from carbon black waste by HNO{sub 3} leaching. • Treated carbon black waste has high adsorption capacity (∼356.4 mg{sub dye}/g). • Carbon black waste was also found to show high electrical conductivity (10 S/cm). - Abstract: In this work, carbon black waste – a hazardous solid residue generated from gasification of crude oil bottom in refineries – was successfully used for making an absorbent material. However, since the carbon black waste also contains significant amounts of heavy metals (especially nickel and vanadium), chemical leaching was first used to remove these hazardous impurities from the carbon black waste. Acid leaching with nitric acid was found to be a very effective method for removal of both nickel and vanadium from the carbon black waste (i.e. up to 95% nickel and 98% vanadium were removed via treatment with 2 M nitric acid for 1 h at 20 °C), whereas alkali leaching by using NaOH under the same condition was not effective for removal of nickel (less than 10% nickel was removed). Human lung cells (MRC-5) were then used to investigate the toxicity of the carbon black waste before and after leaching. Cell viability analysis showed that the leachate from the original carbon black waste has very high toxicity, whereas the leachate from the treated samples has no significant toxicity. Finally, the efficacy of the carbon black waste treated with HNO{sub 3} as an absorbent for dye removal was investigated. This treated carbon black waste has high adsorption capacity (∼361.2 mg {sub dye}/g {sub carbonblack}), which can be attributed to its high specific surface area (∼559 m{sup 2}/g). The treated carbon black waste with its high adsorption capacity and lack of cytotoxicity is a promising adsorbent material. Moreover, the carbon black waste was found to show high electrical conductivity (ca. 10 S

Carbon nanofibers extracted from soot as a sorbent for the determination of aromatic amines from wastewater effluent samples.

Science.gov (United States)

Vadukumpully, Sajini; Basheer, Chanbasha; Jeng, Cheng Suh; Valiyaveettil, Suresh

2011-06-10

The isolation and characterization of carbon nanofibers from soot obtained by burning natural oil is reported. The fibers were extracted from the soot with tetrahydrofuran followed by sonication. The carbon nanofibers were mixed with poly(vinyl alcohol) and electrospun to get the nanofiber mat. The extraction ability of electrospun nanofibers for the separation and preconcentration of aromatic compounds such as 3-nitroaniline, 4-chloroaniline, 4-bromoaniline and 3,4-dichloroaniline were tested and efficiently evaluated using high performance liquid chromatography. Under optimized conditions, the method showed good linearity in a range of 0.5-50 μg L⁻¹ with correlation coefficient ranging from 0.989 to 0.998. High precision of the extraction with RSD values of 4.5-5.8% and low LOD value in a range of 0.009-0.081μg L⁻¹ for all aniline compounds were achieved. The proposed microextraction method offers advantages such as easy operation, high recovery, fast extraction, minimal use of organic solvent and elimination of tedious solvent evaporation and reconstitution steps. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The impact of carbon dioxide and exhaust gas recirculation on the oxidative reactivity of soot from ethylene flames and diesel engines

Science.gov (United States)

Al-Qurashi, Khalid O.

Restrictive emissions standards to reduce nitrogen oxides (NOx) and particulate matter (PM) emissions from diesel engines necessitate the development of advanced emission control technology. The engine manufacturers in the United States have implemented the exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) and diesel particulate filters (DPF) to meet the stringent emissions limits on NOx and PM, respectively. Although the EGR-DPF system is an effective means to control diesel engine emissions, there are some concerns associated with its implementation. The chief concern with this system is the DPF regenerability, which depends upon several factors, among which are the physicochemical properties of the soot. Despite the plethora of research that has been conducted on DPF regenerability, the impact of EGR on soot reactivity and DPF regenerability is yet to be examined. This work concerns the impact of EGR on the oxidative reactivity of diesel soot. It is part of ongoing research to bridge the gap in establishing a relationship between soot formation conditions, properties, and reactivity. This work is divided into three phases. In the first phase, carbon dioxide (CO2) was added to the intake charge of a single cylinder engine via cylinders of compressed CO2. This approach simulates the cold-particle-free EGR. The results showed that inclusion of CO2 changes the soot properties and yields synergistic effects on the oxidative reactivity of the resulting soot. The second phase of this research was motivated by the findings from the first phase. In this phase, post-flame ethylene soot was produced from a laboratory co-flow laminar diffusion flame to better understand the mechanism by which the CO2 affects soot reactivity. This phase was accomplished by successfully isolating the dilution, thermal, and chemical effects of the CO2. The results showed that all of these effects account for a measurable increase in soot reactivity. Nevertheless, the thermal effect was found to be the most

Numerical simulation of combustion and soot under partially premixed combustion of low-octane gasoline

KAUST Repository

An, Yanzhao

2017-09-23

In-cylinder combustion visualization and engine-out soot particle emissions were investigated in an optical diesel engine fueled with low octane gasoline. Single injection strategy with an early injection timing (−30 CAD aTDC) was employed to achieve partially premixed combustion (PPC) condition. A high-speed color camera was used to record the combustion images for 150 cycles. The regulated emission of carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides and soot mass concentration were measured experimentally. Full cycle engine simulations were performed using CONVERGE™ and the simulation results matched with the experimental results. The in-cylinder soot particle evolution was performed by coupling a reduced toluene reference fuel mechanism including the PAHs formation/oxidation reactions with particulate size mimic model. The results showed that PPC presents typical stratified combustion characteristics, which is significantly different from the conventional diesel spray-driven combustion. The in-cylinder temperature and equivalence ratio overlaid with soot-NO formation regime revealed that PPC operating condition under study mostly avoided the main sooting conditions throughout the entire combustion. The evaluation of temperature distribution showed formaldehyde could be regarded as an indicator for low temperature reactions, while hydroxyl group represents the high temperature reactions. Soot evolution happened during the combustion process, hydroxyl radicals promoted the soot oxidation.

Numerical simulation of combustion and soot under partially premixed combustion of low-octane gasoline

KAUST Repository

An, Yanzhao; Jaasim, Mohammed; Vallinayagam, R.; Vedharaj, S.; Im, Hong G.; Johansson, Bengt.

2017-01-01

In-cylinder combustion visualization and engine-out soot particle emissions were investigated in an optical diesel engine fueled with low octane gasoline. Single injection strategy with an early injection timing (−30 CAD aTDC) was employed to achieve partially premixed combustion (PPC) condition. A high-speed color camera was used to record the combustion images for 150 cycles. The regulated emission of carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides and soot mass concentration were measured experimentally. Full cycle engine simulations were performed using CONVERGE™ and the simulation results matched with the experimental results. The in-cylinder soot particle evolution was performed by coupling a reduced toluene reference fuel mechanism including the PAHs formation/oxidation reactions with particulate size mimic model. The results showed that PPC presents typical stratified combustion characteristics, which is significantly different from the conventional diesel spray-driven combustion. The in-cylinder temperature and equivalence ratio overlaid with soot-NO formation regime revealed that PPC operating condition under study mostly avoided the main sooting conditions throughout the entire combustion. The evaluation of temperature distribution showed formaldehyde could be regarded as an indicator for low temperature reactions, while hydroxyl group represents the high temperature reactions. Soot evolution happened during the combustion process, hydroxyl radicals promoted the soot oxidation.

Effects of compositional heterogeneity and nanoporosity of raw and treated biomass-generated soot on adsorption and absorption of organic contaminants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chen Baoliang; Huang Wenhai

2011-01-01

A biomass-generated soot was sequentially treated by HCl-HF solution, organic solvent, and oxidative acid to remove ash, extractable native organic matter (EOM), and amorphous carbon. The compositional heterogeneity and nano-structure of the untreated and treated soot samples were characterized by elemental analysis, thermal gravimetric analysis, BET-N 2 surface area, and electron microscopic analysis. Sorption properties of polar and nonpolar organic pollutants onto the soot samples were compared, and individual contributions of adsorption and absorption were quantified. The sorption isotherms for raw sample were practically linear, while were nonlinear for the pretreated-soot. The removal of EOM enhanced adsorption and reduced absorption, indicating that EOM served as a partitioning phase and simultaneously masked the adsorptive sites. By drastic-oxidation, the outer amorphous carbon and the inner disordered core of the soot particles were completely removed, and a fullerene-like nanoporous structure (aromatic shell) was created, which promoted additional π-π interaction between phenanthrene and the soot. - Graphical abstract: The dual sorptive nature of the biomass-generated soot, i.e., the adsorptive effect of the carbonized soot fraction and the partition effect of the amorphous soot component. Research highlights: → The biomass-generated soot owns the heterogeneous compositions and nano-structures. → The soot exhibits the dual sorptive nature, i.e., adsorption and absorption. → Removal of the amorphous component weakens absorption, but strengthens adsorption. → The exposed adsorptive sites with highly aromatic nature promotes π-π interaction. → The dual sorptive nature of the soot depends on the various soot components. - The compositional heterogeneity and nano-structure play a regulating role in the adsorption and absorption of organic contaminants with the untreated and treated soot samples.

Soot Formation in Laminar Premixed Methane/Oxygen Flames at Atmospheric Pressure

Science.gov (United States)

Xu, F.; Lin, K.-C.; Faeth, G. M.

1998-01-01

Flame structure and soot formation were studied within soot-containing laminar premixed mc1hane/oxygen flames at atmospheric pressure. The following measurements were made: soot volume fractions by laser extinction, soot temperatures by multiline emission, gas temperatures (where soot was absent) by corrected fine-wire thermocouples, soot structure by thermophoretic sampling and transmission electron microscope (TEM), major gas species concentrations by sampling and gas chromatography, and gas velocities by laser velocimetry. Present measurements of gas species concentrations were in reasonably good agreement with earlier measurements due to Ramer et al. as well as predictions based on the detailed mechanisms of Frenklach and co-workers and Leung and Lindstedt: the predictions also suggest that H atom concentrations are in local thermodynamic equilibrium throughout the soot formation region. Using this information, it was found that measured soot surface growth rates could be correlated successfully by predictions based on the hydrogen-abstraction/carbon-addition (HACA) mechanisms of both Frenklach and co-workers and Colket and Hall, extending an earlier assessment of these mechanisms for premixed ethylene/air flames to conditions having larger H/C ratios and acetylene concentrations. Measured primary soot particle nucleation rates were somewhat lower than the earlier observations for laminar premixed ethylene/air flames and were significantly lower than corresponding rates in laminar diffusion flames. for reasons that still must be explained.

Higher Atmosphere Heating due to black carbon Over the Northern Part of India

Science.gov (United States)

Tiwari, S.; Singh, S., , Dr

2017-12-01

Light-absorbing, atmospheric particles have gained greater attention in recent years because of their direct and indirect impacts on regional and global climate. Atmospheric black carbon (BC) aerosol (also called soot particle) is a leading climate warming agent, yet uncertainties in the global direct aerosol radiative forcing remain large. Based on a year of aerosol absorption measurements at seven wavelengths, BC concentrations were investigated in Dhanbad, the coal capital of India. Coal is routinely burned for cooking and residential heat as well as in small industries. The mean daily concentrations of ultraviolet-absorbing black carbon measured at 370 nm (UVBC) and black carbon measured at 880 nm (BC) were 9.8 ± 5.7 and 6.5 ± 3.8 μg m-3, respectively. The difference between UVBC and BC, Delta-C, is an indicator of biomass or residential coal burning and averaged 3.29 ± 4.61 μg m-3. An alternative approach uses the calculation of the Angstrom Exponent (AE) to estimate the amounts of biomass/coal and traffic BC. Biomass/coal burning contributed 87% and fossil fuel combustion contributed 13% to the annual average BC concentration. In the post-monsoon season, potential source contribution function analysis showed that air masses came from the central and northwestern Indo-Gangetic Plains resulting in mean UVBC values of 10.9 μg m-3 and BC of 7.2 μg m-3. The mean winter UVBC and BC concentrations were 15.0 and 10.1 μg m-3, respectively. These highest values were largely driven by local sources under conditions of poor dispersion. The direct radiative forcing (DRF) due to UVBC and BC at the surface (SFC) and the top of the atmosphere (TOA) were calculated. The mean atmospheric heating rates due to UVBC and BC were estimated to be 1.40°K day-1 and 1.18°K day-1, respectively. This high heating rate may affect the monsoon circulation in this region.

Computational Investigation of Soot and Radiation in Turbulent Reacting Flows

Science.gov (United States)

Lalit, Harshad

This study delves into computational modeling of soot and infrared radiation for turbulent reacting flows, detailed understanding of both of which is paramount in the design of cleaner engines and pollution control. In the first part of the study, the concept of Stochastic Time and Space Series Analysis (STASS) as a numerical tool to compute time dependent statistics of radiation intensity is introduced for a turbulent premixed flame. In the absence of high fidelity codes for large eddy simulation or direct numerical simulation of turbulent flames, the utility of STASS for radiation imaging of reacting flows to understand the flame structure is assessed by generating images of infrared radiation in spectral bands dominated by radiation from gas phase carbon dioxide and water vapor using an assumed PDF method. The study elucidates the need for time dependent computation of radiation intensity for validation with experiments and the need for accounting for turbulence radiation interactions for correctly predicting radiation intensity and consequently the flame temperature and NOx in a reacting fluid flow. Comparison of single point statistics of infrared radiation intensity with measurements show that STASS can not only predict the flame structure but also estimate the dynamics of thermochemical scalars in the flame with reasonable accuracy. While a time series is used to generate realizations of thermochemical scalars in the first part of the study, in the second part, instantaneous realizations of resolved scale temperature, CO2 and H2O mole fractions and soot volume fractions are extracted from a large eddy simulation (LES) to carry out quantitative imaging of radiation intensity (QIRI) for a turbulent soot generating ethylene diffusion flame. A primary motivation of the study is to establish QIRI as a computational tool for validation of soot models, especially in the absence of conventional flow field and measured scalar data for sooting flames. Realizations of

Sorption kinetics and equilibrium of the herbicide diuron to carbon nanotubes or soot in absence and presence of algae.

Science.gov (United States)

Schwab, Fabienne; Camenzuli, Louise; Knauer, Katja; Nowack, Bernd; Magrez, Arnaud; Sigg, Laura; Bucheli, Thomas D

2014-09-01

Carbon nanotubes (CNT) are strong sorbents for organic micropollutants, but changing environmental conditions may alter the distribution and bioavailability of the sorbed substances. Therefore, we investigated the effect of green algae (Chlorella vulgaris) on sorption of a model pollutant (diuron, synonyms: 3-(3,4-Dichlorophenyl)-1,1-dimethylurea, DCMU) to CNT (multi-walled purified, industrial grade, pristine, and oxidized; reference material: Diesel soot). In absence of algae, diuron sorption to CNT was fast, strong, and nonlinear (Freundlich coefficients: 10(5.79)-10(6.24) μg/kgCNT·(μg/L)(-n) and 0.62-0.70 for KF and n, respectively). Adding algae to equilibrated diuron-CNT mixtures led to 15-20% (median) diuron re-dissolution. The relatively high amorphous carbon content slowed down ad-/desorption to/from the high energy sorption sites for both industrial grade CNT and soot. The results suggest that diuron binds readily, but - particularly in presence of algae - partially reversibly to CNT, which is of relevance for environmental exposure and risk assessment. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Pyrolytic carbon black composite and method of making the same

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Naskar, Amit K.; Paranthaman, Mariappan Parans; Bi, Zhonghe

2016-09-13

A method of recovering carbon black includes the step of providing a carbonaceous source material containing carbon black. The carbonaceous source material is contacted with a sulfonation bath to produce a sulfonated material. The sulfonated material is pyrolyzed to produce a carbon black containing product comprising a glassy carbon matrix phase having carbon black dispersed therein. A method of making a battery electrode is also disclosed.

Chemical composition and heterogeneous reactivity of soot generated in the combustion of diesel and GTL (Gas-to-Liquid) fuels and amorphous carbon Printex U with NO2 and CF3COOH gases

Science.gov (United States)

Tapia, A.; Salgado, S.; Martín, P.; Villanueva, F.; García-Contreras, R.; Cabañas, B.

2018-03-01

The heterogeneous reactions of nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and trifluoroacetic acid (CF3COOH) with soot produced by diesel and GTL (gas-to-liquid) fuels were investigated using a Knudsen flow reactor with mass spectrometry as a detection system for gas phase species. Soot was generated with a 4 cylinder diesel engine working under steady-state like urban operation mode. Heterogeneous reaction of the mentioned gases with a commercial carbon, Printex U, used as reference, was also analyzed. The initial and the steady-state uptake coefficients, γ0 and γss, respectively, were measured indicating that GTL soot reacts faster than diesel soot and Printex U carbon for NO2 gas reactant. According to the number of reacted molecules on the surface, Printex U soot presents more reducing sites than diesel and GTL soot. Initial uptake coefficients for GTL and diesel soot for the reaction with CF3COOH gas reactant are very similar and no clear conclusions can be obtained related to the initial reactivity. The number of reacted molecules calculated for CF3COOH reactions shows values two orders of magnitude higher than the corresponding to NO2 reactions, indicating a greater presence of basic functionalities in the soot surfaces. More information of the surface composition has been obtained using Diffuse Reflectance Infrared Fourier Transform Spectroscopy (DRIFTS) before and after the reaction of soot samples with gas reactants. As conclusion, the interface of diesel and GTL soot before reaction mainly consists of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), nitro-compounds as well as ether functionalities. After reaction with gas reactant, it was observed that PAHs and nitro-compounds remain on the soot surface and new spectral bands such as carbonyl groups (carboxylic acids, aldehydes, esters and ketones) are observed. Physical properties of soot from both fuels studied such as BET surface isotherm and SEM analysis were also developed and related to the observed reactivity.

Effect of secondary organic aerosol coating thickness on the real-time detection and characterization of biomass-burning soot by two particle mass spectrometers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A. T. Ahern

2016-12-01

Full Text Available Biomass burning is a large source of light-absorbing refractory black carbon (rBC particles with a wide range of morphologies and sizes. The net radiative forcing from these particles is strongly dependent on the amount and composition of non-light-absorbing material internally mixed with the rBC and on the morphology of the mixed particles. Understanding how the mixing state and morphology of biomass-burning aerosol evolves in the atmosphere is critical for constraining the influence of these particles on radiative forcing and climate. We investigated the response of two commercial laser-based particle mass spectrometers, the vacuum ultraviolet (VUV ablation LAAPTOF and the IR vaporization SP-AMS, to monodisperse biomass-burning particles as we sequentially coated the particles with secondary organic aerosol (SOA from α-pinene ozonolysis. We studied three mobility-selected soot core sizes, each with a number of successively thicker coatings of SOA applied. Using IR laser vaporization, the SP-AMS had different changes in sensitivity to rBC compared to potassium as a function of applied SOA coatings. We show that this is due to different effective beam widths for the IR laser vaporization region of potassium versus black carbon. The SP-AMS's sensitivity to black carbon (BC mass was not observed to plateau following successive SOA coatings, despite achieving high OA : BC mass ratios greater than 9. We also measured the ion fragmentation pattern of biomass-burning rBC and found it changed only slightly with increasing SOA mass. The average organic matter ion signal measured by the LAAPTOF demonstrated a positive correlation with the condensed SOA mass on individual particles, despite the inhomogeneity of the particle core compositions. This demonstrates that the LAAPTOF can obtain quantitative mass measurements of aged soot-particle composition from realistic biomass-burning particles with complex morphologies and composition.

Soot, organics, and ultrafine ash from air- and oxy-fired coal combustion

KAUST Repository

Andersen, Myrrha E.

2016-10-19

Pulverized bituminous coal was burned in a 10. W externally heated entrained flow furnace under air-combustion and three oxy-combustion inlet oxygen conditions (28, 32, and 36%). Experiments were designed to produce flames with practically relevant stoichiometric ratios (SR. =1.2-1.4) and constant residence times (2.3. s). Size-classified fly ash samples were collected, and measurements focused on the soot, elemental carbon (EC), and organic carbon (OC) composition of the total and ultrafine (<0.6. μm) fly ash. Results indicate that although the total fly ash carbon, as measured by loss on ignition, was always acceptably low (<2%) with all three oxy-combustion conditions lower than air-combustion, the ultrafine fly ash for both air-fired and oxy-fired combustion conditions consists primarily of carbonaceous material (50-95%). Carbonaceous components on particles <0.6. μm measured by a thermal optical method showed that large fractions (52-93%) consisted of OC rather than EC, as expected. This observation was supported by thermogravimetric analysis indicating that for the air, 28% oxy, and 32% oxy conditions, 14-71% of this material may be OC volatilizing between 100. C and 550. C with the remaining 29-86% being EC/soot. However, for the 36% oxy condition, OC may comprise over 90% of the ultrafine carbon with a much smaller EC/soot contribution. These data were interpreted by considering the effects of oxy-combustion on flame attachment, ignition delay, and soot oxidation of a bituminous coal, and the effects of these processes on OC and EC emissions. Flame aerodynamics and inlet oxidant composition may influence emissions of organic hazardous air pollutants (HAPs) from a bituminous coal. During oxy-coal combustion, judicious control of inlet oxygen concentration and placement may be used to minimize organic HAP and soot emissions.

Chinese Soot on a Vietnamese Soup

Science.gov (United States)

Mari, X.

2015-12-01

Black Carbon (BC) is an aerosol emitted as soot during biomass burning and fossil fuels combustion together with other carbonaceous aerosols such as organic carbon (OC) and polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). While the impacts of BC on health and climate have been studied for many years, studies about its deposition and impact on marine ecosystems are scares. This is rather surprising considering that a large fraction of atmospheric BC deposits on the surface of the ocean via dry or wet deposition. On a global scale, deposition on the ocean is about 45 Tg C per year, with higher fluxes in the northern hemisphere and in inter-tropical regions, following the occurrence of the hot-spots of concentration. In the present study conducted on shore, in Haiphong and Halong cities, North Vietnam, we measured the seasonal variations of atmospheric BC, OC and PAHs during a complete annual cycle. The presentation will discuss the atmospheric results in terms of seasonal variability and sources. Inputs to the marine system are higher during the dry season, concomitantly with the arrival of air masses enriched in BC coming from the North. However, the carbon fingerprint can significantly differ at shorter time periods depending on the air mass pathway and speed. Our work leads to the characterization and the determination of the relative contribution of more specific sources like local traffic, which includes tourism and fishing boats, coal dust emitted from the nearby mine, and long-range transported aerosols. This variable input of carbonaceous aerosols might have consequences for the cycling and the repartition of carbon and nutrients in the marine ecosystem of Halong Bay.

Source attribution of black carbon in Arctic snow.

Science.gov (United States)

Hegg, Dean A; Warren, Stephen G; Grenfell, Thomas C; Doherty, Sarah J; Larson, Timothy V; Clarke, Antony D

2009-06-01

Snow samples obtained at 36 sites in Alaska, Canada, Greenland, Russia, and the Arctic Ocean in early 2007 were analyzed for light-absorbing aerosol concentration together with a suite of associated chemical species. The light absorption data, interpreted as black carbon concentrations, and other chemical data were input into the EPA PMF 1.1 receptor model to explore the sources for black carbon in the snow. The analysis found four factors or sources: two distinct biomass burning sources, a pollution source, and a marine source. The first three of these were responsible for essentially all of the black carbon, with the two biomass sources (encompassing both open and closed combustion) together accounting for >90% of the black carbon.

A Community Network of 100 Black Carbon Sensors

Science.gov (United States)

Preble, C.; Kirchstetter, T.; Caubel, J.; Cados, T.; Keeling, C.; Chang, S.

2017-12-01

We developed a low-cost black carbon sensor, field tested its performance, and then built and deployed a network of 100 sensors in West Oakland, California. We operated the network for 100 days beginning mid-May 2017 to measure spatially resolved black carbon concentrations throughout the community. West Oakland is a San Francisco Bay Area mixed residential and industrial community that is adjacent to regional port and rail yard facilities and surrounded by major freeways. As such, the community is affected by diesel particulate matter emissions from heavy-duty diesel trucks, locomotives, and ships associated with freight movement. In partnership with Environmental Defense Fund, the Bay Area Air Quality Management District, and the West Oakland Environmental Indicators Project, we deployed the black carbon monitoring network outside of residences and business, along truck routes and arterial streets, and at upwind locations. The sensor employs the filter-based light transmission method to measure black carbon and has good precision and correspondence with current commercial black carbon instruments. Throughout the 100-day period, each of the 100 sensors transmitted data via a cellular network. A MySQL database was built to receive and manage the data in real-time. The database included diagnostic features to monitor each sensor's operational status and facilitate the maintenance of the network. Spatial and temporal patterns in black carbon concentrations will be presented, including patterns around industrial facilities, freeways, and truck routes, as well as the relationship between neighborhood concentrations and the BAAQMD's monitoring site. Lessons learned during this first of its kind black carbon monitoring network will also be shared.

Graft polymerization of vynil monomers at carbon black surface (1)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Haryono Arumbinang.

1976-01-01

Effect of aromatic condensates containing functional group on carbon black surface, effect of pH condensates on carbon black chemisorption, analysis and configuration of functional group, the crystal structure, property measurement standard, particle diameter measurement, oil adsorption, colour capacity, volatile acid content, electric resistence and the volume of the granular or carbon black dust, are given. Electron paramagnetic resonance determination of the amount of free radicals on carbon black surface, its oxidation and effects on the surface and inner structure of carbon black, and graft polymerization by radiation copolymerization, are discussed. Experiments on radiation graft copolymerization by acrylic acid, methacrylate, and glycidol methacrylate, in a vacuum condition, have been carried out. It is concluded that further research on the modification and configuration of carbon black should be developed. (author)

Laser Scanning Microscopic Investigations of the Decontamination of Soot Nanoparticles from the Skin.

Science.gov (United States)

Lademann, Jürgen; Knorr, Fanny; Patzelt, Alexa; Meinke, Martina C; Richter, Heike; Krutmann, Jean; Rühl, Eckart; Doucet, Olivier

2018-01-01

Airborne pollutants, such as nano-sized soot particles, are increasingly being released into the environment as a result of growing population densities and industrialization. They can absorb organic and metal compounds with potential biological activity, such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and airborne pollen allergens. Local and systemic toxicities may be induced in the skin if the particulates release their harmful components upon dermal contact. In the present study, skin pretreatments with serum and/or shield as barrier formulations prior to exposure and washing with a cleanser subsequent to exposure were evaluated as a protection and decontamination strategy using laser scanning microscopy. The results indicate that while the application of serum and a cleanser was insufficient for decontamination, the pretreatment with shield prior to nanoparticle exposure followed by washing led to the removal of a considerable amount of the carbon black particles. The combined application of serum and shield before the administration of carbon black particles and subsequent washing led to their elimination from the skin samples. The application of barrier-enhancing formulations in combination with a cleanser may reduce the penetration of harmful airborne particulates by preventing their adhesion to the skin and facilitating their removal by subsequent washing with the cleanser. © 2018 S. Karger AG, Basel.

Black carbon sequestration as an alternative to bioenergy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fowles, Malcolm

2007-01-01

Most policy and much research concerning the application of biomass to reduce global warming gas emissions has concentrated either on increasing the Earth's reservoir of biomass or on substituting biomass for fossil fuels, with or without CO 2 sequestration. Suggested approaches entail varied risks of impermanence, delay, high costs, and unknowable side-effects. An under-researched alternative approach is to extract from biomass black (elemental) carbon, which can be permanently sequestered as mineral geomass and may be relatively advantageous in terms of those risks. This paper reviews salient features of black carbon sequestration and uses a high-level quantitative model to compare the approach with the alternative use of biomass to displace fossil fuels. Black carbon has been demonstrated to produce significant benefits when sequestered in agricultural soil, apparently without bad side-effects. Black carbon sequestration appears to be more efficient in general than energy generation, in terms of atmospheric carbon saved per unit of biomass; an exception is where biomass can efficiently displace coal-fired generation. Black carbon sequestration can reasonably be expected to be relatively quick and cheap to apply due to its short value chain and known technology. However, the model is sensitive to several input variables, whose values depend heavily on local conditions. Because characteristics of black carbon sequestration are only known from limited geographical contexts, its worldwide potential will not be known without multiple streams of research, replicated in other contexts. (author)

Sooting limit in counterflow diffusion flames of ethylene/propane fuels and implication to threshold soot index

KAUST Repository

Joo, Peter H.

2013-01-01

Sooting limits in counterflow diffusion flames of propane/ethylene fuels have been studied experimentally using a light scattering technique, including the effects of dilution, fuel mixing, and strain rate. The results are discussed in view of the threshold soot index (TSI). In soot-formation (SF) flames, where the flame is located on the oxidizer side of the stagnation plane, the sooting limit depends critically on fuel type and subsequently on flame temperature. The sooting limit has a non-linear dependence on the fuel-mixing ratio, which is similar to the non-linear mixing rule for TSI observed experimentally in rich premixed flames, where soot oxidation is absent for both SF and rich premixed flames. In soot-formation-oxidation (SFO) flames, where the flame is located on the fuel side, the sooting limit depends critically on flame temperature, while it is relatively independent on fuel type. This result suggests a linear mixing rule for sooting limits in SFO flames, which is similar to the TSI behavior for coflow diffusion flames. Soot oxidation takes place for both types of flames. The aerodynamic strain effect on the sooting limits has also been studied and an appreciable influence has been observed. Under sooting conditions, soot volume fraction was measured using a light extinction technique. The soot loadings in SF flames of the mixture fuels demonstrated a synergistic effect, i.e., soot production increased for certain mixture fuels as compared to the respective singlecomponent fuels. © 2012 The Combustion Institute.

Structure aggregation of carbon black in ethylene-propylene diene polymer

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

2009-03-01

Full Text Available The modulus of filled and unfilled Ethylene-propylene diene rubber (EPDM vulcanizates was used to predict the shape-factor of carbon black aggregation in the polymer. Four types of carbon black that vary in particle size and structure were used in this study. Quadratic curves relating the carbon black volume concentration and the modulus ratio of filled and unfilled rubber vulcanizates were used to adopt the shape factor of certain carbon black type. The shape factor of MT, HAF, SRF and Lampblack were 3, 3.75, 4 and 4.25 respectively. X-ray diffraction technique (XRD was also used to evaluate the relative size of crystallite on the filler surface to that of the rubber and correlating it to the shape factor of carbon black aggregation in the polymer. Effect of the pH values and structure of carbon blacks used on the shape factor of filler aggregates were also studied. It was found that the shape factor is independent on the particle size while it is dependent on the pH value and structure of carbon black. Also the crystallites size of the filler is proportional to the shape factor.

Bird specimens track 135 years of atmospheric black carbon and environmental policy

Science.gov (United States)

DuBay, Shane G.; Fuldner, Carl C.

2017-10-01

Atmospheric black carbon has long been recognized as a public health and environmental concern. More recently, black carbon has been identified as a major, ongoing contributor to anthropogenic climate change, thus making historical emission inventories of black carbon an essential tool for assessing past climate sensitivity and modeling future climate scenarios. Current estimates of black carbon emissions for the early industrial era have high uncertainty, however, because direct environmental sampling is sparse before the mid-1950s. Using photometric reflectance data of >1,300 bird specimens drawn from natural history collections, we track relative ambient concentrations of atmospheric black carbon between 1880 and 2015 within the US Manufacturing Belt, a region historically reliant on coal and dense with industry. Our data show that black carbon levels within the region peaked during the first decade of the 20th century. Following this peak, black carbon levels were positively correlated with coal consumption through midcentury, after which they decoupled, with black carbon concentrations declining as consumption continued to rise. The precipitous drop in atmospheric black carbon at midcentury reflects policies promoting burning efficiency and fuel transitions rather than regulating emissions alone. Our findings suggest that current emission inventories based on predictive modeling underestimate levels of atmospheric black carbon for the early industrial era, suggesting that the contribution of black carbon to past climate forcing may also be underestimated. These findings build toward a spatially dynamic emission inventory of black carbon based on direct environmental sampling.

Electron spin resonance of particulate soot samples from automobiles to help environmental studies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yamanaka, C.; Matsuda, T.; Ikeya, M.

2005-01-01

The application of electron spin resonance (ESR) was studied for diesel soot samples and suspended particulate matter (SPM) from automobile engines. Soot samples or diesel exhaust particles (DEP) were recovered at various points: in the exhaust pipe of a diesel engine, at the dust sampler of a highway tunnel (standard DEP), on the soundproofing wall alongside a heavy traffic road, and on the filters of a dust sampler for SPM. The diesel soot samples apparently showed two ESR spectra: one was a broad spectrum at g=2.1 with a line width of ca. 80-120mT and the other was a sharp signal of a carbon radical at g=2.003 with a line width of 0.4mT. Annealing experiments with a DEP sample at 250 deg. C revealed drastic enhancement of the sharp ESR signal, which suggested a thermal process of carbonization of remnant organics. An oximetric study by ESR showed an enhancement of the broad signal in the diesel soot sample as well as in the sharp ESR signal. Therefore, the main part of the broad ESR signal would be attributed to carbon radicals, which form a different configuration, probably closely interacting aggregates. Enhancement of the sharp ESR signal was not observed in the standard DEP sample under vacuum condition, which suggested less adsorption sites on the surface of DEP samples

Electrical conductivity of short carbon fibers and carbon black-reinforced chloroprene rubber

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Khoshniat, A. R.; MirAli, M.; Hemmati, M.; Afshar Taromi, F.; Katbab, A.

2002-01-01

Elastomers and plastics are intrinsically insulating materials, but by addition of some conductive particles such as conductive carbon black, carbon fibers and metals, they can change to conductive form. Conductivity of these composites are due to formation of the lattices of conductive filler particles in polymer chains. In this report, conductivity of chloroprene rubber filled with carbon black and carbon fibers as a function of temperature and pressure are studied. Electrical conductivity of chloroprene in a function of temperature and pressure are studied. Electrical conductivity of chloroprene in the presence of carbon black with proper mixing conditions increases to the conductivity level of semiconductors and even in the presence of carbon fibers it increases to the level of a conductor material. Meanwhile, the sensitivity of this compound to heat and pressure rises. Thus these composites have found various applications in the manufacture of heat and pressure sensitive sensors

Comparison of carbon onions and carbon blacks as conductive additives for carbon supercapacitors in organic electrolytes

Science.gov (United States)

Jäckel, N.; Weingarth, D.; Zeiger, M.; Aslan, M.; Grobelsek, I.; Presser, V.

2014-12-01

This study investigates carbon onions (∼400 m2 g-1) as a conductive additive for supercapacitor electrodes of activated carbon and compares their performance with carbon black with high or low internal surface area. We provide a study of the electrical conductivity and electrochemical behavior between 2.5 and 20 mass% addition of each of these three additives to activated carbon. Structural characterization shows that the density of the resulting film electrodes depends on the degree of agglomeration and the amount of additive. Addition of low surface area carbon black (∼80 m2 g-1) enhances the power handling of carbon electrodes but significantly lowers the specific capacitance even when adding small amounts of carbon black. A much lower decrease in specific capacitance is observed for carbon onions and the best values are seen for carbon black with a high surface area (∼1390 m2 g-1). The overall performance benefits from the addition of any of the studied additives only at either high scan rates and/or electrolytes with high ion mobility. Normalization to the volume shows a severe decrease in volumetric capacitance and only at high current densities nearing 10 A g-1 we can see an improvement of the electrode capacitance.

Effect of diluents on soot precursor formation and temperature in ethylene laminar diffusion flames

KAUST Repository

Abhinavam Kailasanathan, Ranjith Kumar

2013-03-01

Soot precursor species concentrations and flame temperature were measured in a diluted laminar co-flow jet diffusion flame at pressures up to eight atmospheres while varying diluent type. The objective of this study was to gain a better understanding of soot production and oxidation mechanisms, which could potentially lead to a reduction in soot emissions from practical combustion devices. Gaseous samples were extracted from the centerline of an ethylene-air laminar diffusion flame, which was diluted individually with four diluents (argon, helium, nitrogen, and carbon dioxide) to manipulate flame temperature and transport properties. The diluted fuel and co-flow exit velocities (top-hat profiles) were matched at all pressures to minimize shear-layer effects, and the mass fluxes were fixed over the pressure range to maintain constant Reynolds number. The flame temperature was measured using a fine gauge R-type thermocouple at pressures up to four atmospheres. Centerline concentration profiles of major non-fuel hydrocarbons collected via extractive sampling with a quartz microprobe and quantification using GC/MS+FID are reported within. The measured hydrocarbon species concentrations are vary dramatically with pressure and diluent, with the helium and carbon dioxide diluted flames yielding the largest and smallest concentrations of soot precursors, respectively. In the case of C2H2 and C6H6, two key soot precursors, helium diluted flames had concentrations more than three times higher compared with the carbon dioxide diluted flame. The peak flame temperature vary with diluents tested, as expected, with carbon dioxide diluted flame being the coolest, with a peak temperature of 1760K at 1atm, and the helium diluted flame being the hottest, with a peak temperature of 2140K. At four atmospheres, the helium diluted flame increased to 2240K, but the CO2 flame temperature increased more, decreasing the difference to approximately 250K. © 2012 The Combustion Institute.

Carbon nanotube-based black coatings

Science.gov (United States)

Lehman, J.; Yung, C.; Tomlin, N.; Conklin, D.; Stephens, M.

2018-03-01

Coatings comprising carbon nanotubes are very black, that is, characterized by uniformly low reflectance over a broad range of wavelengths from the visible to far infrared. Arguably, there is no other material that is comparable. This is attributable to the intrinsic properties of graphitic material as well as the morphology (density, thickness, disorder, and tube size). We briefly describe a history of other coatings such as nickel phosphorous, gold black, and carbon-based paints and the comparable structural morphology that we associate with very black coatings. The need for black coatings is persistent for a variety of applications ranging from baffles and traps to blackbodies and thermal detectors. Applications for space-based instruments are of interest and we present a review of space qualification and the results of outgassing measurements. Questions of nanoparticle safety depend on the nanotube size and aspect ratio as well as the nature and route of exposure. We describe the growth of carbon nanotube forests along with the catalyst requirements and temperature limitations. We also describe coatings derived from carbon nanotubes and applied like paint. Building the measurement apparatus and determining the optical properties of something having negligible reflectance are challenging and we summarize the methods and means for such measurements. There exists information in the literature for effective media approximations to model the dielectric function of vertically aligned arrays. We summarize this along with the refractive index of graphite from the literature that is necessary for modeling the optical properties. In our experience, the scientific questions can be overshadowed by practical matters, so we provide an appendix of recipes for making as-grown and sprayed coatings along with an example of reflectance measurements.

Numerical investigation on soot particles emission in compression ignition diesel engine by using particulate mimic soot model

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ibrahim Fadzli

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Research via computational method, specifically by detailed-kinetic soot model offers much more advantages than the simple model as more detailed formation/oxidation process is taken into consideration, thus providing better soot mass concentration, soot size, soot number density as well as information regarding other related species. In the present computational study, investigation of in-cylinder soot concentration as well as other emissions in a single cylinder diesel engine has been conducted, using a commercial multidimensional CFD software, CONVERGE CFD. The simulation was carried out for a close-cycle combustion environment from inlet valve closing (IVC to exhaust valve opening (EVO. In this case, detailed-kinetic Particulate Mimic (PM soot model was implemented as to take benefit of the method of moment, instead of commonly implemented simple soot model. Analyses of the results are successfully plotted to demonstrate that the soot size and soot mass concentration are strongly dependent on the detailed soot formation and oxidation process rates. The calculated of soot mass concentration and average soot size at EVO provide the end value of 29.2 mg/m3 and 2.04 × 10−8 m, respectively. Besides, post-processing using EnSight shows the qualitative results of soot concentration along simulation period in the combustion chamber.

Toxicity assessment of carbon black waste: A by-product from oil refineries

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhen, Xu; Ng, Wei Cheng [NUS Environmental Research Institute, National University of Singapore, 1 Create Way, Create Tower #15-02, 138602 (Singapore); Fendy; Tong, Yen Wah [Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, National University of Singapore, 4 Engineering Drive 4, 117585 (Singapore); Dai, Yanjun [School of Mechanical Engineering, Shanghai Jiaotong University, Shanghai, 200240 (China); Neoh, Koon Gee, E-mail: chenkg@nus.edu.sg [Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, National University of Singapore, 4 Engineering Drive 4, 117585 (Singapore); Wang, Chi-Hwa, E-mail: chewch@nus.edu.sg [Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, National University of Singapore, 4 Engineering Drive 4, 117585 (Singapore)

2017-01-05

Highlights: • Carbon black waste extract decreased cell viability in a dose and time-dependent manner. • Apoptosis of human cell lines was induced by carbon black waste extract. • Carbon black waste extract elicited oxidative stress by increasing intracellular ROS generation. • Carbon black waste extract impaired antioxidant enzymatic activities of human cell lines. • The high toxicity of carbon black waste extract could be attributed mainly to the effect of vanadium. - Abstract: In Singapore, approximately 30 t/day of carbon-based solid waste are produced from petrochemical processes. This carbon black waste has been shown to possess physical properties that are characteristic of a good adsorbent such as high external surface area. Therefore, there is a growing interest to reutilize and process this carbon black waste into secondary materials such as adsorbents. However, the carbon black waste obtained from petrochemical industries may contain heavy metals that are hazardous to human health and the environment, hence restricting its full potential for re-utilization. Therefore, it is important to examine the possible toxicity effects and toxicity mechanism of carbon black waste on human health. In this study, inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES) analysis showed that the heavy metals, vanadium (V), molybdenum (Mo) and nickel (Ni), were present in the carbon black waste in high concentrations. Three human cell lines (HepG2 cells, MRC-5 cells and MDA-MB-231 cells) were used to investigate the toxicity of carbon black waste extract in a variety of in vitro assays. Results from MTS assays indicated that carbon black waste extract decreased the viability of all three cell lines in a dose and time-dependent manner. Observations from confocal microscopy further confirmed this phenomenon. Flow cytometry assay also showed that carbon black waste extract induced apoptosis of human cell lines, and the level of apoptosis increased with

Toxicity assessment of carbon black waste: A by-product from oil refineries

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhen, Xu; Ng, Wei Cheng; Fendy; Tong, Yen Wah; Dai, Yanjun; Neoh, Koon Gee; Wang, Chi-Hwa

2017-01-01

Highlights: • Carbon black waste extract decreased cell viability in a dose and time-dependent manner. • Apoptosis of human cell lines was induced by carbon black waste extract. • Carbon black waste extract elicited oxidative stress by increasing intracellular ROS generation. • Carbon black waste extract impaired antioxidant enzymatic activities of human cell lines. • The high toxicity of carbon black waste extract could be attributed mainly to the effect of vanadium. - Abstract: In Singapore, approximately 30 t/day of carbon-based solid waste are produced from petrochemical processes. This carbon black waste has been shown to possess physical properties that are characteristic of a good adsorbent such as high external surface area. Therefore, there is a growing interest to reutilize and process this carbon black waste into secondary materials such as adsorbents. However, the carbon black waste obtained from petrochemical industries may contain heavy metals that are hazardous to human health and the environment, hence restricting its full potential for re-utilization. Therefore, it is important to examine the possible toxicity effects and toxicity mechanism of carbon black waste on human health. In this study, inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES) analysis showed that the heavy metals, vanadium (V), molybdenum (Mo) and nickel (Ni), were present in the carbon black waste in high concentrations. Three human cell lines (HepG2 cells, MRC-5 cells and MDA-MB-231 cells) were used to investigate the toxicity of carbon black waste extract in a variety of in vitro assays. Results from MTS assays indicated that carbon black waste extract decreased the viability of all three cell lines in a dose and time-dependent manner. Observations from confocal microscopy further confirmed this phenomenon. Flow cytometry assay also showed that carbon black waste extract induced apoptosis of human cell lines, and the level of apoptosis increased with

Rethinking the distinction between black and brown carbon

Science.gov (United States)

Adler, G. A.; Franchin, A.; Lamb, K. D.; Manfred, K.; Middlebrook, A. M.; Schwarz, J. P.; Wagner, N.; Washenfelder, R. A.; Womack, C.; Murphy, D. M.

2017-12-01

Aerosol radiative properties contribute large uncertainty to modeling of the earth's radiative budget. Black carbon (BC) aerosols originate from combustion processes and substantially contribute to warming and uncertainty - ongoing efforts are focused on reducing their anthropogenic emissions even as their emissions from biomass burning sources, such as wildfire, may increase in the future. Quantifying the radiative effect of BC is challenging, in part due to its association with other light absorbing materials including Brown carbon organic aerosol (BrC) that absorbs primarily blue and ultraviolet light while BC absorbs broadly across the visible. Conventionally BrC is thought of a low volatility spherical particles, distinguishing it from BC, which has a distinctive agglomerate morphology and is refractory at high temperatures. However, the separation of BC and BrC is often operationally defined and dependent on the measurement method. Using measurements of aerosol morphology, mass, absorption, and refractory BC mass content we were able to identify a light absorbing contribution from biomass burning aerosol that does not correspond to either BC or BrC as conventionally defined. Our measurements were collected from realistic biomass burning fires at the Missoula Fire Sciences Laboratory as part of the NOAA FIREX project (2016) and from extensive natural wildfire sampled aloft during NASA SEAC4RS field study (2013). We coin the term Dark Brown Carbon (DBrC) to describe this material, which absorbs broadly across the visible and survives thermal denuding at 250°C but does not incandesce in laser induced incandesce (LII) measurements. DBrC may be an intermediate burning stage product between polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and the mature soot. DBrC deserves further study to quantify its abundance and aging in ambient biomass burning plumes, and its relationship to tar balls. Our findings show that more than half of the light absorption in biomass burning

Laboratory Experiments and Instrument Development for the Study of Atmospheric Aerosols

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Davidovits, Paul

2011-12-10

Soot particles are generated by incomplete combustion of fossil and biomass fuels. Through direct effects clear air aerosols containing black carbon (BC) such as soot aerosols, absorb incoming light heating the atmosphere, while most other aerosols scatter light and produce cooling. Even though BC represents only 1-2% of the total annual emissions of particulate mass to the atmosphere, it has been estimated that the direct radiative effect of BC is the second-most important contributor to global warming after absorption by CO2. Ongoing studies continue to underscore the climate forcing importance of black carbon. However, estimates of the radiative effects of black carbon on climate remain highly uncertain due to the complexity of particles containing black carbon. Quantitative measurement of BC is challenging because BC often occurs in highly non-spherical soot particles of complex morphology. Freshly emitted soot particles are typically fractal hydrophobic aggregates. The aggregates consist of black carbon spherules with diameters typically in the range of about 15-40 nm, and they are usually coated by adsorbed polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) produced during combustion. Diesel-generated soot particles are often emitted with an organic coating composed primarily of lubricating oil and unburned fuel, as well as well as PAH compounds. Sulfuric acid has also been detected in diesel and aircraft-emitted soot particles. In the course of aging, these particle coatings may be substantially altered by chemical reactions and/or the deposition of other materials. Such processes transform the optical and CCN properties of the soot aerosols in ways that are not yet well understood. Our work over the past seven years consisted of laboratory research, instrument development and characterization, and field studies with the central focus of improving our understanding of the black carbon aerosol climate impacts. During the sixth year as well as during this seventh year (no

Gravimetric determination of the iodine number of carbon black

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Murphy, L.J. Jr.

1991-01-01

This paper discusses a gravimetric method for the determination of the iodine adsorption number of carbon black. It comprises determining the concentration of an accurately weighed iodine blank solution by adding a standardized titrant to the iodine solution until a titration endpoint is reached and determining the concentration of the iodine solution by accurately weighing the amount of the standardized titrant necessary to reach the endpoint, accurately weighing an amount of carbon black and adding an appropriate amount of an accurately weighed portion of the iodine solution, equilibrating the carbon black-iodine solution mixture, adding the standardized titrant to an accurately weighed portion of the supernatant from the carbon black-iodine mixture until a titration endpoint is reached and determining the concentration of the supernatant by accurately weighing the amount of the standardized titrant necessary to reach the endpoint, wherein the titration endpoint of the supernatant is obtained using an indicating and a reference electrode, and calculating the iodine adsorption number of the carbon black based on the gravimetrically determined concentration of the titrant, the iodine solution, and the supernatant

Thermal properties of carbon black aqueous nanofluids for solar absorption

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Han Dongxiao

2011-01-01

Full Text Available Abstract In this article, carbon black nanofluids were prepared by dispersing the pretreated carbon black powder into distilled water. The size and morphology of the nanoparticles were explored. The photothermal properties, optical properties, rheological behaviors, and thermal conductivities of the nanofluids were also investigated. The results showed that the nanofluids of high-volume fraction had better photothermal properties. Both carbon black powder and nanofluids had good absorption in the whole wavelength ranging from 200 to 2,500 nm. The nanofluids exhibited a shear thinning behavior. The shear viscosity increased with the increasing volume fraction and decreased with the increasing temperature at the same shear rate. The thermal conductivity of carbon black nanofluids increased with the increase of volume fraction and temperature. Carbon black nanofluids had good absorption ability of solar energy and can effectively enhance the solar absorption efficiency.

Visualizing the mobility of silver during catalytic soot oxidation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Gardini, Diego; Christensen, Jakob M.; Damsgaard, Christian Danvad

2016-01-01

The catalytic activity and mobility of silver nanoparticles used as catalysts in temperature programmed oxidation of soot:silver (1:5 wt:wt) mixtures have been investigated by means of flow reactor experiments and in situ environmental transmission electron microscopy (ETEM). The carbon oxidation...

Soot in the atmosphere and snow surface of Antarctica

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Warren, S.G.; Clarke, A.D.

1990-01-01

Samples of snow collected near the south pole during January and February 1986 were analyzed for the presence of light-absorbing particles by passing the melted snow through a nuclepore filter. Transmission of light through the filter showed that snow far from the station contains the equivalent of 0.1-0.3 ng of carbon per gram of snow (ng/g). Samples of ambient air were filtered and found to contain about 1-2 ng of carbon per kilogram of air, giving a scavenging ratio of about 150. The snow downwind of the station exhibited a well-defined plume of soot due to the burning of diesel fuel, but even in the center of the plume 1 km downwind, the soot concentration was only 3 ng/g, too small to affect snow albedo significantly. Measurements of snow albedo near large inland stations are therefore probably representative of their surrounding regions

Effects of soot by-product from the synthesis of engineered metallofullerene nanomaterials on terrestrial invertebrates.

Science.gov (United States)

Johnson, David R; Boyd, Robert E; Bednar, Anthony J; Weiss, Charles A; Hull, Matt S; Coleman, Jessica G; Kennedy, Alan J; Banks, Cynthia J; Steevens, Jeffery A

2018-02-23

The synthesis of carbon-based nanomaterials is often inefficient, generating large amounts of soot with metals as waste by-product. Currently, there are no specific regulations for disposal of engineered nanomaterials or the waste by-products resulting from their synthesis, so it is presumed that by-products are disposed of in the same way as the parent (bulk) materials. We studied the terrestrial toxicity of soot from gadolinium metallofullerene nanomanufacturing on earthworms (Eisenia fetida) and isopods (Porcellio scaber). The metallofullerene soot consisted of carbon particle agglomerates in the nanometer and submicrometer ranges (1-100 and 101-999 nm, respectively), with metals used during nanomanufacturing detectable on the particles. Despite high metal concentrations (>100 000 mg/kg) in the soot, only a relatively small amount of metals leached out of a spiked field soil, suggesting only moderate mobility. Seven- and 14-d exposures in field soil demonstrated that the soot was only toxic to earthworms at high concentrations (>10 000 mg/kg); however, earthworms avoided spiked soils at lower concentrations (as low as 500 mg/kg) and at lower soil pH. The presence of soot in food and soil did not cause isopod avoidance. These data demonstrate that metallofullerene soot from nanomanufacturing may only be toxic to earthworms at high concentrations representative of improper disposal or accidental spills. However, our results indicate that terrestrial invertebrates may avoid soils contaminated with soot at sublethal concentrations. Environ Toxicol Chem 2018;9999:1-12. Published 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of SETAC. This article is a US government work, and as such, is in the public domain in the United States of America. Published 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of SETAC. This article is a US government work, and as such, is in the public domain in the United States of America.

Evaluation of a Lagrangian Soot Tracking Method for the prediction of primary soot particle size under engine-like conditions

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Cai Ong, Jiun; Pang, Kar Mun; Walther, Jens Honore

2018-01-01

This paper reports the implementation and evaluation of a Lagrangian soot tracking (LST) method for the modeling of soot in diesel engines. The LST model employed here has the tracking capability of a Lagrangian method and the ability to predict primary soot particle sizing. The Moss-Brookes soot...... in predicting temporal soot cloud development, mean soot diameter and primary soot size distribution is evaluated using measurements of n-heptane and n-dodecane spray combustion obtained under diesel engine-like conditions. In addition, sensitivity studies are carried out to investigate the influence of soot....... A higher rate of soot oxidation due to OH causes the soot particles to be fully oxidized downstream of the flame. In general, the LST model performs better than the Eulerian method in terms of predicting soot sizing and accessing information of individual soot particles, both of which are shortcomings...

Soot and radiation in combusting boundary layers

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Beier, R.A.

1981-12-01

In most fires thermal radiation is the dominant mode of heat transfer. Carbon particles within the fire are responsible for most of this emitted radiation and hence warrant quantification. As a first step toward understanding thermal radiation in full scale fires, an experimental and theoretical study is presented for a laminar combusting boundary layer. Carbon particulate volume fraction profiles and approximate particle size distributions are experimentally determined in both free and forced flow for several hydrocarbon fuels and PMMA (polymethylmethacrylate). A multiwavelength laser transmission technique determines a most probable radius and a total particle concentration which are two unknown parameters in an assumed Gauss size distribution. A sooting region is observed on the fuel rich side of the main reaction zone. For free flow, all the flames are in air, but the free stream ambient oxygen mass fraction is a variable in forced flow. To study the effects of radiation heat transfer, a model is developed for a laminar combusting boundary layer over a pyrolyzing fuel surface. An optically thin approximation simplifies the calculation of the radiant energy flux at the fuel surface. For the free flames in air, the liquid fuel soot volume fractions, f/sub v/, range from f/sub v/ approx. 10/sup -7/ for n-heptane, a paraffin, to f/sub v/ approx. 10/sup -7/ for toluene, an aromatic. The PMMA soot volume fractions, f/sub v/ approx. 5 x 10/sup -7/, are approximately the same as the values previously reported for pool fires. Soot volume fraction increases monotonically with ambient oxygen mass fraction in the forced flow flames. For all fuels tested, a most probable radius between 20 nm and 80 nm is obtained which varies only slightly with oxygen mass fraction, streamwise position, or distance normal to the fuel surface. The theoretical analysis yields nine dimensionless parameters, which control the mass flux rate at the pyrolyzing fuel surface.

Using measurements for evaluation of black carbon modeling

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

S. Gilardoni

2011-01-01

Full Text Available The ever increasing use of air quality and climate model assessments to underpin economic, public health, and environmental policy decisions makes effective model evaluation critical. This paper discusses the properties of black carbon and light attenuation and absorption observations that are the key to a reliable evaluation of black carbon model and compares parametric and nonparametric statistical tools for the quantification of the agreement between models and observations. Black carbon concentrations are simulated with TM5/M7 global model from July 2002 to June 2003 at four remote sites (Alert, Jungfraujoch, Mace Head, and Trinidad Head and two regional background sites (Bondville and Ispra. Equivalent black carbon (EBC concentrations are calculated using light attenuation measurements from January 2000 to December 2005. Seasonal trends in the measurements are determined by fitting sinusoidal functions and the representativeness of the period simulated by the model is verified based on the scatter of the experimental values relative to the fit curves. When the resolution of the model grid is larger than 1° × 1°, it is recommended to verify that the measurement site is representative of the grid cell. For this purpose, equivalent black carbon measurements at Alert, Bondville and Trinidad Head are compared to light absorption and elemental carbon measurements performed at different sites inside the same model grid cells. Comparison of these equivalent black carbon and elemental carbon measurements indicates that uncertainties in black carbon optical properties can compromise the comparison between model and observations. During model evaluation it is important to examine the extent to which a model is able to simulate the variability in the observations over different integration periods as this will help to identify the most appropriate timescales. The agreement between model and observation is accurately described by the overlap of

Neutron scattering analysis of rubber carbon black composite structure

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hjelm, R.P. Jr.; Wampler, W.A.; Gerspacher, M.

1994-01-01

We explore the uses of small-angle neutron scattering to dissect component form, structure and distribution in carbon black-reinforced rubber by varying the contrast of the system relative to some fluid by changing the fluid scattering-length density. This is the method of contrast variation. Contrast variation allows us to separate scattering contributions from the different components. Here, we extend our studies on high surface area (HSA) carbon black suspended in cyclohexane/deuterocyclohexane to HSA mixed with polyisoprene as a gel of ''bound'' rubber swollen with the same solvent mixtures. Contrast variation of swollen composite gels shows that there are two length scales in the gel structure. Above 1 nm fluctuations in the carbon black predominate. Interactions with elastomer hold the HSA aggregates appart. Below 1 nm the scattering is largely from the elastomer. The smooth surface structure of the carbon black is unaltered by the interactions with elastomer and appears smooth over length scales above about 1 nm. These results show that contrast variation can provide information on composite structure that is not available by other means. This information relates to the reinforcement mechanism of elastomers by carbon blacks

Simulation of temporal and spatial soot evolution in an automotive diesel engine using the Moss–Brookes soot model

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pang, Kar Mun; Ng, Hoon Kiat; Gan, Suyin

2012-01-01

Highlights: ► Numerical models were validated against experimental data of two diesel engines. ► Soot model constant values were calibrated to predict in-cylinder soot processes. ► Effects of split-main injection parameters on soot distributions were determined. ► Soot cloud was distributed towards cylinder wall when using large dwell period. ► Greater soot deposition expected with large dwell period and retarded injection. - Abstract: In this reported work, computational study on the formation processes of soot particles from diesel combustion is conducted using an approach where Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) is coupled with a chemical kinetic model. A multi-step soot model which accounts for inception, surface growth, coagulation and oxidation was applied. Model constant values in the Moss–Brookes soot formation and Fenimore–Jones soot oxidation models were calibrated, and were validated against in-cylinder soot evolution and exhaust soot density of both heavy- and light-duty diesel engines, respectively. Effects of various injection parameters such as start of injection (SOI) timing, split-main ratio and dwell period of the split-main injection strategy on in-cylinder temporal/spatial soot evolution in a light-duty diesel engine were subsequently investigated. The spatial soot distributions at each crank angle degree after start of injection were found to be insensitive to the change of values in SOI and split-main ratio when close-coupled injection was implemented. Soot cloud was also observed to be distributed towards the cylinder wall when a large separation of 20° was used, even with an advanced SOI timing of −6° after top dead centre (ATDC). The use of large separation is hence not desired for this combustion system as it potentially leads to soot deposition on surface oil film and greater tailpipe soot emissions.

Black carbon in aerosol during BIBLE B

Science.gov (United States)

Liley, J. Ben; Baumgardner, D.; Kondo, Y.; Kita, K.; Blake, D. R.; Koike, M.; Machida, T.; Takegawa, N.; Kawakami, S.; Shirai, T.; Ogawa, T.

2003-02-01

The Biomass Burning and Lightning Experiment (BIBLE) A and B campaigns over the tropical western Pacific during springtime deployed a Gulfstream-II aircraft with systems to measure ozone and numerous precursor species. Aerosol measuring systems included a MASP optical particle counter, a condensation nucleus (CN) counter, and an absorption spectrometer for black carbon. Aerosol volume was very low in the middle and upper troposphere during both campaigns, and during BIBLE A, there was little aerosol enhancement in the boundary layer away from urban areas. In BIBLE B, there was marked aerosol enhancement in the lowest 3 km of the atmosphere. Mixing ratios of CN in cloud-free conditions in the upper troposphere were in general higher than in the boundary layer, indicating new particle formation from gaseous precursors. High concentrations of black carbon were observed during BIBLE B, with mass loadings up to 40 μg m-3 representing as much as one quarter of total aerosol mass. Strong correlations with hydrocarbon enhancement allow the determination of a black carbon emission ratio for the fires at that time. Expressed as elemental carbon, it is about 0.5% of carbon dioxide and 6% of carbon monoxide emissions from the same fires, comparable to methane production, and greater than that of other hydrocarbons.

Synthesis of multiwalled carbon nanotube from different grades of carbon black using arc discharge method

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Arora, Neha, E-mail: n4neha31@gmail.com [Department of Mechanical Engineering, Birla Institute of Technology and Science, Pilani (India); Sharma, N. N. [Department of Mechanical Engineering, Birla Institute of Technology and Science, Pilani (India); Director, School of Automobile, Mechanical & Mechatronics, Manipal University,Jaipur,India (India)

2016-04-13

This paper describes the synthesis of nanotube from different grades (Tread * A(non-ASTM), N134,N121,N660 and N330)of carbon black using DC arc discharge method at 40A current for 60sec. Carbon black samples of different grades were procured from industry (Aditya Birla Science and Technology Limited, India). Scanning Electron Micrographs (SEM) of the deposited carbon nanostructures suggests that MWCNTs are formed at 40A and for a minimal exposure time of 60sec.The result formed indicates the N330 grade of carbon black gets converted to MWCNTs (Multiwall Carbon nanotube) as compared to other grades.

Influence of carbon black distribution on performance of oxide cathodes for Li ion batteries

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dominko, Robert; Gaberscek, Miran; Drofenik, Jernej; Bele, Marjan; Jamnik, Janez

2003-01-01

The influence of carbon black content and carbon black distribution on performance of oxide-based cathodes, such as LiCoO 2 and LiMn 2 O 4 , is investigated. The electronic conductivity of oxide material/carbon black composites is compared with electrochemical characteristics of the same composites. Uniformity of carbon black distribution in cathode composites is achieved using novel coating technology in cathode preparation. In this technology, the active particles are first pretreated in a gelatin solution. The adsorbed gelatin then controls the deposition of carbon black so that carbon black particles are uniformly distributed in the final composite. The influence of various parameters, such as pH of gelatin, amount of gelatin and concentration of carbon black on the uniformity of carbon black distribution is investigated. It is shown that the conventional technology of cathode preparation yields quite non-uniform distribution of carbon black in cathode material. At the end, we demonstrate that uniformity of carbon black distribution has a crucial impact on reversible capacity, especially at high current densities

A cellphone based system for large-scale monitoring of black carbon

Science.gov (United States)

Ramanathan, N.; Lukac, M.; Ahmed, T.; Kar, A.; Praveen, P. S.; Honles, T.; Leong, I.; Rehman, I. H.; Schauer, J. J.; Ramanathan, V.

2011-08-01

Black carbon aerosols are a major component of soot and are also a major contributor to global and regional climate change. Reliable and cost-effective systems to measure near-surface black carbon (BC) mass concentrations (hereafter denoted as [BC]) globally are necessary to validate air pollution and climate models and to evaluate the effectiveness of BC mitigation actions. Toward this goal we describe a new wireless, low-cost, ultra low-power, BC cellphone based monitoring system (BC_CBM). BC_CBM integrates a Miniaturized Aerosol filter Sampler (MAS) with a cellphone for filter image collection, transmission and image analysis for determining [BC] in real time. The BC aerosols in the air accumulate on the MAS quartz filter, resulting in a coloration of the filter. A photograph of the filter is captured by the cellphone camera and transmitted by the cellphone to the analytics component of BC_CBM. The analytics component compares the image with a calibrated reference scale (also included in the photograph) to estimate [BC]. We demonstrate with field data collected from vastly differing environments, ranging from southern California to rural regions in the Indo-Gangetic plains of Northern India, that the total BC deposited on the filter is directly and uniquely related to the reflectance of the filter in the red wavelength, irrespective of its source or how the particles were deposited. [BC] varied from 0.1 to 1 μg m -3 in Southern California and from 10 to 200 μg m -3 in rural India in our field studies. In spite of the 3 orders of magnitude variation in [BC], the BC_CBM system was able to determine the [BC] well within the experimental error of two independent reference instruments for both indoor air and outdoor ambient air. Accurate, global-scale measurements of [BC] in urban and remote rural locations, enabled by the wireless, low-cost, ultra low-power operation of BC_CBM, will make it possible to better capture the large spatial and temporal variations in

A mechanistic study on the simultaneous elimination of soot and nitric oxide from engine exhaust

KAUST Repository

Raj, Abhijeet; Zainuddin, Zakwan; Sander, Markus; Kraft, Markus

2011-01-01

The non-catalytic interaction between soot and nitric oxide (NO) resulting in their simultaneous elimination was studied on different types of reactive site present on soot. The reaction mechanism proposed previously was extended by including seven new reaction pathways for which the reaction energetics and kinetics were studied using density functional theory and transition state theory. This has led to the calculation of a new rate for the removal of carbon monoxide (CO) from soot. The new pathways have been added to our polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) growth model and used to simulate the NO-soot interaction to form CO, N2 and N2O. The simulation results show satisfactory agreement with experiment for the new CO removal rate. The NO-soot reaction was found to depend strongly on the soot site type and temperature. For a set of temperatures, computed PAH structures were analysed to determine the functional groups responsible for the decrease in the reactivity of soot with NO with increasing reaction time. In isothermal conditions, it was found that as temperature is increased, the number of oxygen atoms remaining on the soot surface decreases, while the number of nitrogen atoms increases for a given reaction time. © 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A mechanistic study on the simultaneous elimination of soot and nitric oxide from engine exhaust

KAUST Repository

Raj, Abhijeet

2011-04-01

The non-catalytic interaction between soot and nitric oxide (NO) resulting in their simultaneous elimination was studied on different types of reactive site present on soot. The reaction mechanism proposed previously was extended by including seven new reaction pathways for which the reaction energetics and kinetics were studied using density functional theory and transition state theory. This has led to the calculation of a new rate for the removal of carbon monoxide (CO) from soot. The new pathways have been added to our polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) growth model and used to simulate the NO-soot interaction to form CO, N2 and N2O. The simulation results show satisfactory agreement with experiment for the new CO removal rate. The NO-soot reaction was found to depend strongly on the soot site type and temperature. For a set of temperatures, computed PAH structures were analysed to determine the functional groups responsible for the decrease in the reactivity of soot with NO with increasing reaction time. In isothermal conditions, it was found that as temperature is increased, the number of oxygen atoms remaining on the soot surface decreases, while the number of nitrogen atoms increases for a given reaction time. © 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Preparation of carbon black masterbatch for PET using polymeric dispersing agents

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Oh, D.H. [Kyungpook National University, Taegu (Korea, Republic of); Lim, J.C. [Pukyong National University, Pusan (Korea, Republic of); Seo, K.H. [Yeungnam College of Science and Technology, Taegu (Korea, Republic of)

1999-03-01

Three kinds of copolyesters, dispersing agents, were synthesized from the polycondensation reaction of dimethylterephthalate (DMT), dimethylisophthalate (DMI), sebacic acid (SA), and 1,4-butanediol (BD). Carbon black masterbatches were prepared by mixing carbon black into the dispersing agents (1 : 1.3 weight ratio) in a Brabender Plasticorder Using single screw extruder, masterbatches were compounded with poly(ethylene terephthalate) in 3 wt% concentration and mechanical properties of the compounds were investigated Gel permeation chromatography data implied that thermal degradation of polymeric dispersing agents was not significant through dispersion. Capillary rheometer test showed that PBTI has the highest viscosity and shear sensitivity among the there dispersing agents. Volume resistivities of masterbatch and transmission electron micrographs showed that dispersity of carbon black was improved with increasing melt viscosity of dispersing agent. The ultimate performance and mechanical characteristics of carbon black filled PET compounds depended directly on dispersion quality of the carbon black in masterbatch. Mechanical properties of compounds were improved with increasing dispersity of carbon black and with increasing content of rigid aromatic group in the copolyester dispersing agent. 30 refs., 9 figs., 5 tabs.

An approach to a black carbon emission inventory for Mexico by two methods

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cruz-Núñez, Xochitl

2014-01-01

A black carbon (BC) emission inventory for Mexico is presented. Estimate was performed by using two approaches, based on fuel consumption and emission factors in a top-down scheme, and the second from PM25 emission data and its correlation with black carbon by source category, assuming that black carbon = elemental carbon. Results show that black carbon emissions are in interval 53–473 Gg using the fuel consumption approach and between 62 and 89 using the sector method. Black carbon key sources come from biomass burning in the rural sector, with 47 percent share to the National total. Mobile sources emissions account to 16% to the total. An opportunity to reduce, in the short-term, carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2-eq) emissions by reducing black carbon emissions would be obtained in reducing emissions mainly from biomass burning in rural housing sector and diesel emissions in the transport sector with important co-benefits in direct radiative forcing, public health and air quality. - Highlights: • Black carbon emissions are estimated between 53 and 473 Gg/year on a fuel consumption method. • Black carbon emissions are estimated between 62 and 89 Gg/year on a sector method

An approach to a black carbon emission inventory for Mexico by two methods

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Cruz-Núñez, Xochitl, E-mail: xcruz@unam.mx

2014-05-01

A black carbon (BC) emission inventory for Mexico is presented. Estimate was performed by using two approaches, based on fuel consumption and emission factors in a top-down scheme, and the second from PM25 emission data and its correlation with black carbon by source category, assuming that black carbon = elemental carbon. Results show that black carbon emissions are in interval 53–473 Gg using the fuel consumption approach and between 62 and 89 using the sector method. Black carbon key sources come from biomass burning in the rural sector, with 47 percent share to the National total. Mobile sources emissions account to 16% to the total. An opportunity to reduce, in the short-term, carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2-eq) emissions by reducing black carbon emissions would be obtained in reducing emissions mainly from biomass burning in rural housing sector and diesel emissions in the transport sector with important co-benefits in direct radiative forcing, public health and air quality. - Highlights: • Black carbon emissions are estimated between 53 and 473 Gg/year on a fuel consumption method. • Black carbon emissions are estimated between 62 and 89 Gg/year on a sector method.

Simultaneous measurement of the concentrations of soot particles and gas species in light hydrocarbon flames using mass spectrometry

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li, Qingxun; Liu, Fang; Wang, Dezheng; Wang, Tiefeng

2014-01-01

Besides gas species concentrations, soot volume fractions are also important data in the study of flames. This work describes the simultaneous measurement of the concentrations of soot and gas species in light hydrocarbon flames by in situ sampling and mass spectrometry (MS).The reaction medium was frozen by sampling into a very low-pressure tube, and the soot selectivity (proportion of carbon atoms in the reactant converted to soot) was determined from the C and H mass balances using the measured concentrations of the gas species and the mass of soot present per unit gas volume. The H/C ratio of the soot was measured by a thermogravimetry–mass spectrometry combination. The soot volume fraction was calculated from the soot selectivity and density of the soot. The soot selectivity measured by this reduced pressure sampling mass spectrometry (RPSMS) method was verified by measurements using the gravimetric sampling technique where the mass of soot collected in a volume of gas was weighed by a high precision balance. For most of the measurements, the uncertainty in the soot volume fraction was ±5%, but this would be larger when the soot volume fractions are less than 1 ppm. For demonstration, the RPSMS method was used to study a methane fuel-rich flame where the soot volume fractions were 1–5 ppm. The simultaneous measurement of concentrations of soot and gas species is useful for the quantitative study of flames. (paper)

Effect of Dimethyl Ether Mixing on Soot Size Distribution in Premixed Ethylene Flame

KAUST Repository

Li, Zepeng

2016-04-21

As a byproduct of incomplete combustion, soot attracts increasing attentions as extensive researches exploring serious health and environmental effects from soot particles. Soot emission reduction requires a comprehensive understanding of the mechanism for polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and of soot formation and aging processes. Therefore, advanced experimental techniques and numerical simulations have been conducted to investigate this procedure. In order to investigate the effects of dimethyl ether (DME) mixing on soot particle size distribution functions (PSDFs), DME was mixed in premixed ethylene/oxygen/argon at flames at the equivalence ratio of 2.0 with a range of mixing ratio from 0% to 30% of the total carbon fed. Two series of atmospheric pressure flames were tested in which cold gas velocity was varied to obtain different flame temperatures. The evolution of PSDFs along the centerline of the flame was determined by burner stabilized stagnation probe and scanning mobility particle sizer (SMPS) techniques, yielding the PSDFs for various separation distances above the burner surface. Meanwhile, the flame temperature profiles were carefully measured by a thermocouple and the comparison to that of simulated laminar premixed burner-stabilized stagnation flame was satisfactory. Additionally, to understand the chemical role of DME mixing in soot properties, characterization measurements were conducted on soot samples using thermo-gravimetric analysis (TGA) and elemental analysis (EA). Results of the evolution of PSDFs and soot volume fraction showed that adding DME into ethylene flame could reduce soot yield significantly. The addition of DME led to the decrease of both the soot nucleation rate and the particle mass growth rate. To explain the possible mechanism for the observation, numerical simulations were performed. Although DME addition resulted in the slight increase of methyl radicals from pyrolysis, the decrease in acetylene and propargyl radicals

Reinforcement of Multiwalled Carbon Nanotube in Nitrile Rubber: In Comparison with Carbon Black, Conductive Carbon Black, and Precipitated Silica

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Atip Boonbumrung

2016-01-01

Full Text Available The properties of nitrile rubber (NBR reinforced by multiwalled carbon nanotube (MWCNT, conductive carbon black (CCB, carbon black (CB, and precipitated silica (PSi were investigated via viscoelastic behavior, bound rubber content, electrical properties, cross-link density, and mechanical properties. The filler content was varied from 0 to 15 phr. MWCNT shows the greatest magnitude of reinforcement considered in terms of tensile strength, modulus, hardness, and abrasion resistance followed by CCB, CB, and PSi. The MWCNT filled system also exhibits extremely high levels of filler network and trapped rubber even at relatively low loading (5 phr leading to high electrical properties and poor dynamic mechanical properties. Although CCB possesses the highest specific surface area, it gives lower level of filler network than MWCNT and also gives the highest elongation at break among all fillers. Both CB and PSi show comparable degree of reinforcement which is considerably lower than CCB and MWCNT.

Advantage of SBR/carbon black masterbatch for tire tread application

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sone, K.; Ishiguro, M.; Akimoto, H.; Ishida, M.

1992-04-01

The performance required of tire tread is becoming more severe and more various year by year, as social demands on tires have been changing. To improve wear resistance, driving safety and good drive feeling, new HP tires (high performance passenger car tires) are developed intensively. In addition, good fuel efficiency is required to satisfy the CAFE rule, which was proposed for a better global environment. To support this movement of the tire industry, material suppliers are making an effort to supply better materials. Mitsubishi Kasei has been improving the quality and production process of WMB, a SBR/carbon black master-batch produced by co-coagulation of SBR latex, carbon black and extender oil under the wet dispersion process. Compared to the tire tread made from dry-mixing compounds, that made from the WMB shows the following characteristics: (1) the abrasion resistance and the durability are higher; (2) from the viscoelastic properties, skid performance and driving stability are expected to be improved. These characteristics are remarkable when WMB is compounded in the recipes for HP and racing tires using fine carbon black. In this article, these features of WMB are studied from the view point of carbon black dispersion and polymer-carbon black interaction. Furthermore, the changes of carbon black structure during abrasion and fatigue process are analyzed and the mechanisms of these processes are discussed.

Detection of carbon monoxide (CO) in sooting hydrocarbon flames using femtosecond two-photon laser-induced fluorescence (fs-TPLIF)

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Yejun; Kulatilaka, Waruna D.

2018-01-01

Ultrashort-pulse, femtosecond (fs)-duration, two-photon laser-induced fluorescence (fs-TPLIF) measurements of carbon monoxide (CO) are reported in rich, sooting hydrocarbon flames. CO-TPLIF detection using conventional nanosecond or picosecond lasers are often plagued by photochemical interferences, specifically under fuel-rich flames conditions. In the current study, we investigate the commonly used CO two-photon excitation scheme of the B1Σ+ ← X1Σ+ electronic transition, using approximately 100-fs-duration excitation pulses. Fluorescence emission was observed in the Ångström band originating from directly populated B1Σ+ upper state, as well as, in the third positive band from collisionally populated b3Σ+ upper state. The current work was focused on the Ångström band emission. Interference from nascent C2 emissions originating from hot soot particles in the flame could be reduced to a negligible level using a narrower detection gate width. In contrast, avoiding interferences from laser-generated C2 Swan-band emissions required specific narrowband spectral filtering in sooting flame conditions. The observed less than quadratic laser pulse energy dependence of the TPLIF signal suggests the presence of strong three-photon ionization and stimulated emission processes. In a range of CH4/air and C2H4/air premixed flames investigated, the measured CO fluorescence signals agree well with the calculated equilibrium CO number densities. Reduced-interference CO-TPLIF imaging in premixed C2H4/O2/N2 jet flames is also reported.

Black carbon and mineral dust in snow cover on the Tibetan Plateau

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Yulan; Kang, Shichang; Sprenger, Michael; Cong, Zhiyuan; Gao, Tanguang; Li, Chaoliu; Tao, Shu; Li, Xiaofei; Zhong, Xinyue; Xu, Min; Meng, Wenjun; Neupane, Bigyan; Qin, Xiang; Sillanpää, Mika

2018-02-01

Snow cover plays a key role for sustaining ecology and society in mountainous regions. Light-absorbing particulates (including black carbon, organic carbon, and mineral dust) deposited on snow can reduce surface albedo and contribute to the near-worldwide melting of snow and ice. This study focused on understanding the role of black carbon and other water-insoluble light-absorbing particulates in the snow cover of the Tibetan Plateau (TP). The results found that the black carbon, organic carbon, and dust concentrations in snow cover generally ranged from 202 to 17 468 ng g-1, 491 to 13 880 ng g-1, and 22 to 846 µg g-1, respectively, with higher concentrations in the central to northern areas of the TP. Back trajectory analysis suggested that the northern TP was influenced mainly by air masses from Central Asia with some Eurasian influence, and air masses in the central and Himalayan region originated mainly from Central and South Asia. The relative biomass-burning-sourced black carbon contributions decreased from ˜ 50 % in the southern TP to ˜ 30 % in the northern TP. The relative contribution of black carbon and dust to snow albedo reduction reached approximately 37 and 15 %, respectively. The effect of black carbon and dust reduced the snow cover duration by 3.1 ± 0.1 to 4.4 ± 0.2 days. Meanwhile, the black carbon and dust had important implications for snowmelt water loss over the TP. The findings indicate that the impacts of black carbon and mineral dust need to be properly accounted for in future regional climate projections, particularly in the high-altitude cryosphere.

Measuring and predicting sooting tendencies of oxygenates, alkanes, alkenes, cycloalkanes, and aromatics on a unified scale

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Das, Dhrubajyoti D.; St. John, Peter C.; McEnally, Charles S.; Kim, Seonah; Pfefferle, Lisa D.

2018-04-01

Databases of sooting indices, based on measuring some aspect of sooting behavior in a standardized combustion environment, are useful in providing information on the comparative sooting tendencies of different fuels or pure compounds. However, newer biofuels have varied chemical structures including both aromatic and oxygenated functional groups, which expands the chemical space of relevant compounds. In this work, we propose a unified sooting tendency database for pure compounds, including both regular and oxygenated hydrocarbons, which is based on combining two disparate databases of yield-based sooting tendency measurements in the literature. Unification of the different databases was made possible by leveraging the greater dynamic range of the color ratio pyrometry soot diagnostic. This unified database contains a substantial number of pure compounds (greater than or equal to 400 total) from multiple categories of hydrocarbons important in modern fuels and establishes the sooting tendencies of aromatic and oxygenated hydrocarbons on the same numeric scale for the first time. Using this unified sooting tendency database, we have developed a predictive model for sooting behavior applicable to a broad range of hydrocarbons and oxygenated hydrocarbons. The model decomposes each compound into single-carbon fragments and assigns a sooting tendency contribution to each fragment based on regression against the unified database. The model's predictive accuracy (as demonstrated by leave-one-out cross-validation) is comparable to a previously developed, more detailed predictive model. The fitted model provides insight into the effects of chemical structure on soot formation, and cases where its predictions fail reveal the presence of more complicated kinetic sooting mechanisms. This work will therefore enable the rational design of low-sooting fuel blends from a wide range of feedstocks and chemical functionalities.

Nanoparticle production by UV irradiation of combustion generated soot particles

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stipe, Christopher B.; Choi, Jong Hyun; Lucas, Donald; Koshland, Catherine P.; Sawyer, Robert F.

2004-01-01

Laser ablation of surfaces normally produce high temperature plasmas that are difficult to control. By irradiating small particles in the gas phase, we can better control the size and concentration of the resulting particles when different materials are photofragmented. Here, we irradiate soot with 193 nm light from an ArF excimer laser. Irradiating the original agglomerated particles at fluences ranging from 0.07 to 0.26 J/cm 2 with repetition rates of 20 and 100 Hz produces a large number of small, unagglomerated particles, and a smaller number of spherical agglomerated particles. Mean particle diameters from 20 to 50 nm are produced from soot originally having a mean electric mobility diameter of 265nm. We use a non-dimensional parameter, called the photon/atom ratio (PAR), to aid in understanding the photofragmentation process. This parameter is the ratio of the number of photons striking the soot particles to the number of the carbon atoms contained in the soot particles, and is a better metric than the laser fluence for analyzing laser-particle interactions. These results suggest that UV photofragmentation can be effective in controlling particle size and morphology, and can be a useful diagnostic for studying elements of the laser ablation process

Testing the ``Wildfire Hypothesis:'' Terrestrial Organic Carbon Burning as the Cause of the Paleocene-Eocene Boundary Carbon Isotope Excursion

Science.gov (United States)

Moore, E. A.; Kurtz, A. C.

2005-12-01

The 3‰ negative carbon isotope excursion (CIE) at the Paleocene-Eocene boundary has generally been attributed to dissociation of seafloor methane hydrates. We are testing the alternative hypothesis that the carbon cycle perturbation resulted from wildfires affecting the extensive peatlands and coal swamps formed in the Paleocene. Accounting for the CIE with terrestrial organic carbon rather than methane requires a significantly larger net release of fossil carbon to the ocean-atmosphere, which may be more consistent with the extreme global warming and ocean acidification characteristic of the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM). While other researchers have noted evidence of fires at the Paleocene-Eocene boundary in individual locations, the research presented here is designed to test the "wildfire hypothesis" for the Paleocene-Eocene boundary by examining marine sediments for evidence of a global increase in wildfire activity. Such fires would produce massive amounts of soot, widely distributed by wind and well preserved in marine sediments as refractory black carbon. We expect that global wildfires occurring at the Paleocene-Eocene boundary would produce a peak in black carbon abundance at the PETM horizon. We are using the method of Gelinas et al. (2001) to produce high-resolution concentration profiles of black carbon across the Paleocene-Eocene boundary using seafloor sediments from ODP cores, beginning with the Bass River core from ODP leg 174AX and site 1209 from ODP leg 198. This method involves the chemical and thermal extraction of non-refractory carbon followed by combustion of the residual black carbon and measurement as CO2. Measurement of the δ 13C of the black carbon will put additional constraints on the source of the organic material combusted, and will allow us to determine if this organic material was formed prior to or during the CIE.

Influence of sample composition on aerosol organic and black carbon determinations

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Novakov, T.; Corrigan, C.E.

1995-07-01

In this paper we present results on characterization of filter-collected redwood (Sequoia sempevirens)-needle and eucalyptus smoke particles by thermal, optical, and solvent extraction methods. Our results demonstrate that organic and black carbon concentrations determined by thermal and optical methods are not only method dependent, but also critically influenced by the overall chemical composition of the samples. These conclusions are supported by the following: (1) the organic fraction of biomass smoke particles analyzed includes a component, ranging in concentration from about 6-20% of total carbon or from 16-30% of organic carbon, that is relatively non-volatile and has a combustion temperature close to that of black carbon; (2) presence of K or Na in biomass smoke samples lowers the combustion temperatures of this organic component and of black carbon, making their combustion properties indistinguishable; (3) about 20% of total organic material is nonvolatile when heated to 550{degrees}C in an inert atmosphere. Consequently, thermal methods that rely on a specific temperature to separate organic from black carbon may either underestimate or overestimate the black and organic carbon concentrations, depending on the amounts of Na and K and on the composition and concentration of organic material present in a sample. These analytical uncertainties and, under some conditions, absorption by organic material may contribute to the variability of empirically derived proportionality between light transmission through filter deposits and black carbon concentrations.

Influence of sample composition on aerosol organic and black carbon determinations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Novakov, T.; Corrigan, C.E.

1995-07-01

In this paper we present results on characterization of filter-collected redwood (Sequoia sempevirens)-needle and eucalyptus smoke particles by thermal, optical, and solvent extraction methods. Our results demonstrate that organic and black carbon concentrations determined by thermal and optical methods are not only method dependent, but also critically influenced by the overall chemical composition of the samples. These conclusions are supported by the following: (1) the organic fraction of biomass smoke particles analyzed includes a component, ranging in concentration from about 6-20% of total carbon or from 16-30% of organic carbon, that is relatively non-volatile and has a combustion temperature close to that of black carbon; (2) presence of K or Na in biomass smoke samples lowers the combustion temperatures of this organic component and of black carbon, making their combustion properties indistinguishable; (3) about 20% of total organic material is nonvolatile when heated to 550 degrees C in an inert atmosphere. Consequently, thermal methods that rely on a specific temperature to separate organic from black carbon may either underestimate or overestimate the black and organic carbon concentrations, depending on the amounts of Na and K and on the composition and concentration of organic material present in a sample. These analytical uncertainties and, under some conditions, absorption by organic material may contribute to the variability of empirically derived proportionality between light transmission through filter deposits and black carbon concentrations

TEM and HRTEM of Soot-in-oil particles and agglomerates from internal combustion engines

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fay, M W; Rocca, A La; Shayler, P J

2014-01-01

Over time, the performance of lubricating oil in a diesel engine is affected by the build-up of carbon soot produced by the combustion process. TEM and HRTEM are commonly used to investigate the characteristics of individual and agglomerated particles from diesel exhaust, to understand the structure and distribution of the carbon sheets in the primary particles and the nanostructure morphology. However, high resolution imaging of soot-in-oil is more challenging, as mineral oil is a contaminant for the electron microscope and leads to instability under the electron beam. In this work we compare solvent extraction and centrifugation techniques for removing the mineral oil contaminant, and the effect on particle size distribution

Electrical conductivity of conductive carbon blacks: influence of surface chemistry and topology

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pantea, Dana; Darmstadt, Hans; Kaliaguine, Serge; Roy, Christian

2003-01-01

Conductive carbon blacks from different manufacturers were studied in order to obtain some insight into the relation between their electrical conductivity and their surface properties. The surface chemistry was studied by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and static secondary ion mass spectroscopy (SIMS), whereas the topology of the carbon black surface was investigated using low-pressure nitrogen adsorption. All these techniques yield information on the graphitic character of the surface. In general, the electrical conductivity of the conductive blacks increases with the graphitic character of the surface. For low surface area conductive blacks, the electrical conductivity correlates well with the surface chemistry. In the case of the XPS and SIMS data, this correlation is also valid when other types of carbon blacks such as thermal and furnace blacks are included, confirming the determining influence of the carbon black surface chemistry on the electrical conductivity

Snow darkening caused by black carbon emitted from fires

Science.gov (United States)

Engels, Jessica; Kloster, Silvia; Bourgeois, Quentin

2014-05-01

We implemented the effect of snow darkening caused by black carbon (BC) emitted from forest fires into the Max Planck Institute for Meteorology Earth System Model (MPI-M ESM) to estimate its potential climate impact of present day fire occurrence. Considerable amounts of black carbon emitted from fires are transported into snow covered regions. Already very small quantities of black carbon reduce the snow reflectance, with consequences for snow melting and snow spatial coverage. Therefore, the SNICAR (SNow And Ice Radiation) model (Flanner and Zender (2005)) is implemented in the land surface component (JSBACH) of the atmospheric general circulation model ECHAM6, developed at the MPI-M. The SNICAR model includes amongst other processes a complex calculation of the snow albedo depending on black carbon in snow and snow grain growth depending on water vapor fluxes for a five layer snow scheme. For the implementation of the SNICAR model into the one layer scheme of ECHAM6-JSBACH, we used the SNICAR-online version (http://snow.engin.umich.edu). This single-layer simulator provides the albedo of snow for selectable combinations of impurity content (e.g. black carbon), snow grain size, and incident solar flux characteristics. From this scheme we derived snow albedo values for black carbon in snow concentrations ranging between 0 and 1500 ng(BC)/g(snow) and for different snow grain sizes for the visible (0.3 - 0.7 µm) and near infrared range (0.7 - 1.5 µm). As snow grains grow over time, we assign different snow ages to different snow grain sizes (50, 150, 500, and 1000 µm). Here, a radius of 50 µm corresponds to new snow, whereas a radius of 1000 µm corresponds to old snow. The required snow age is taken from the BATS (Biosphere Atmosphere Transfer Scheme, Dickinson et al. (1986)) snow albedo implementation in ECHAM6-JSBACH. Here, we will present an extended evaluation of the model including a comparison of modeled black carbon in snow concentrations to observed

Biomass Burning Emissions of Black Carbon from African Sources

Science.gov (United States)

Aiken, A. C.; Leone, O.; Nitschke, K. L.; Dubey, M. K.; Carrico, C.; Springston, S. R.; Sedlacek, A. J., III; Watson, T. B.; Kuang, C.; Uin, J.; McMeeking, G. R.; DeMott, P. J.; Kreidenweis, S. M.; Robinson, A. L.; Yokelson, R. J.; Zuidema, P.

2016-12-01

Biomass burning (BB) emissions are a large source of carbon to the atmosphere via particles and gas phase species. Carbonaceous aerosols are emitted along with gas-phase carbon monoxide (CO) and carbon dioxide (CO2) that can be used to determine particulate emission ratios and modified combustion efficiencies. Black carbon (BC) aerosols are potentially underestimated in global models and are considered to be one of the most important global warming factors behind CO2. Half or more BC in the atmosphere is from BB, estimated at 6-9 Tg/yr (IPCC, 5AR) and contributing up to 0.6 W/m2 atmospheric warming (Bond et al., 2013). With a potential rise in drought and extreme events in the future due to climate change, these numbers are expected to increase. For this reason, we focus on BC and organic carbon aerosol species that are emitted from forest fires and compare their emission ratios, physical and optical properties to those from controlled laboratory studies of single-source BB fuels to understand BB carbonaceous aerosols in the atmosphere. We investigate BC in concentrated BB plumes as sampled from the new U.S. DOE ARM Program campaign, Layered Atlantic Smoke Interactions with Clouds (LASIC). The ARM Aerosol Mobile Facility 1 (AMF1) and Mobile Aerosol Observing System (MAOS) are currently located on Ascension Island in the South Atlantic Ocean, located midway between Angola and Brazil. The location was chosen for sampling maximum aerosol outflow from Africa. The far-field aged BC from LASIC is compared to BC from indoor generation from single-source fuels, e.g. African grass, sampled during Fire Lab At Missoula Experiments IV (FLAME-IV). BC is measured with a single-particle soot photometer (SP2) alongside numerous supporting instrumentation, e.g. particle counters, CO and CO2 detectors, aerosol scattering and absorption measurements, etc. FLAME-IV includes both direct emissions and well-mixed aerosol samples that have undergone dilution, cooling, and condensation. BC

Source apportionment of organic pollutants of a highway-traffic-influenced urban area in Bayreuth (Germany) using biomarker and stable carbon isotope signatures.

Science.gov (United States)

Glaser, Bruno; Dreyer, Annekatrin; Bock, Michael; Fiedler, Stefan; Mehring, Marion; Heitmann, Tobias

2005-06-01

Traffic- and urban-influenced areas are prone to enhanced pollution with products of incomplete combustion of fossil fuels and biomass such as black carbon or polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). Black carbon is composed of aromatic and graphitic structures and may act as a carrier for pollutants such as PAHs and heavy metals. However, little is known about possible contributions of traffic-derived black carbon to the black carbon inventory in soils. Similar uncertainties exist regarding the contribution of different pollutant sources to total PAH and black carbon contents. Therefore, the objective of this study was to quantify the importance of traffic pollution to black carbon and PAH inventories in soils. PAH contamination of soils adjacent to a major German highway in the urban area of Bayreuth with about 50,000 vehicles per day was in the same order of magnitude compared to highway-close soils reported in other studies. Using molecular (black carbon and PAHs) and compound-specific stable carbon isotope evidence (PAHs) it was demonstrated that this contamination originated not only from automobile exhausts, here primarily diesel, but also from tire abrasion and tailpipe soot which significantly contributed to the traffic-caused black carbon and PAH contamination. Low molecular weight PAHs were more widely transported than their heavy molecular counterparts (local distillation), whereas highway-traffic-caused black carbon contamination was distributed to at least 30 m from the highway. On the other hand, urban fire exhausts were distributed more homogeneously among the urban area.

Black carbon and particulate matter (PM2.5) concentrations in New York City's subway stations.

Science.gov (United States)

Vilcassim, M J Ruzmyn; Thurston, George D; Peltier, Richard E; Gordon, Terry

2014-12-16

The New York City (NYC) subway is the main mode of transport for over 5 million passengers on an average weekday. Therefore, airborne pollutants in the subway stations could have a significant impact on commuters and subway workers. This study looked at black carbon (BC) and particulate matter (PM2.5) concentrations in selected subway stations in Manhattan. BC and PM2.5 levels were measured in real time using a Micro-Aethalometer and a PDR-1500 DataRAM, respectively. Simultaneous samples were also collected on quartz filters for organic and elemental carbon (OC/EC) analysis and on Teflon filters for gravimetric and trace element analysis. In the underground subway stations, mean real time BC concentrations ranged from 5 to 23 μg/m(3), with 1 min average peaks >100 μg/m(3), while real time PM2.5 levels ranged from 35 to 200 μg/m(3). Mean EC levels ranged from 9 to 12.5 μg/m(3). At street level on the same days, the mean BC and PM2.5 concentrations were below 3 and 10 μg/m(3), respectively. This study shows that both BC soot and PM levels in NYC's subways are considerably higher than ambient urban street levels and that further monitoring and investigation of BC and PM subway exposures are warranted.

Sources of uncertainties in modelling black carbon at the global scale

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

E. Vignati

2010-03-01

Full Text Available Our understanding of the global black carbon (BC cycle is essentially qualitative due to uncertainties in our knowledge of its properties. This work investigates two source of uncertainties in modelling black carbon: those due to the use of different schemes for BC ageing and its removal rate in the global Transport-Chemistry model TM5 and those due to the uncertainties in the definition and quantification of the observations, which propagate through to both the emission inventories, and the measurements used for the model evaluation.

The schemes for the atmospheric processing of black carbon that have been tested with the model are (i a simple approach considering BC as bulk aerosol and a simple treatment of the removal with fixed 70% of in-cloud black carbon concentrations scavenged by clouds and removed when rain is present and (ii a more complete description of microphysical ageing within an aerosol dynamics model, where removal is coupled to the microphysical properties of the aerosol, which results in a global average of 40% in-cloud black carbon that is scavenged in clouds and subsequently removed by rain, thus resulting in a longer atmospheric lifetime. This difference is reflected in comparisons between both sets of modelled results and the measurements. Close to the sources, both anthropogenic and vegetation fire source regions, the model results do not differ significantly, indicating that the emissions are the prevailing mechanism determining the concentrations and the choice of the aerosol scheme does not influence the levels. In more remote areas such as oceanic and polar regions the differences can be orders of magnitude, due to the differences between the two schemes. The more complete description reproduces the seasonal trend of the black carbon observations in those areas, although not always the magnitude of the signal, while the more simplified approach underestimates black carbon concentrations by orders of

Effect of dust and soot on the growth of spruce trees

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Rohmeder, E

1960-07-01

The effect of chronic exposure to road dust, calcium carbonate and soot on plant growth, was investigated in an experiment with 40 spruces of common heredity that were three years old at the start of the experiment and five years old at its conclusion. The plants were exposed for the entire 1956 growing season to the effect of a heavy coating of dust. In the following year, the growth performance and the production of shoots and needle mass in plants treated with dust were substantially below the untreated control plants. The root mass produced was also smaller in the treated plants than in those untreated. The considerable growth retardation after a heavy layering of dust lasting one growing season is primarily explained by the withdrawal of light and the resultant reduction in assimilation performance. In exposure to soot, however, the corrosive effect of the chemicals contained in the soot increased the extent of the damage to the plants.

Multi-wavelength Characterization of Brown and Black Carbon from Filter Samples

Science.gov (United States)

Johnson, M. M.; Yatavelli, R. L. N.; Chen, L. W. A. A.; Gyawali, M. S.; Arnott, W. P.; Wang, X.; Chakrabarty, R. K.; Moosmüller, H.; Watson, J. G.; Chow, J. C.

2014-12-01

Particulate matter (PM) scatters and absorbs solar radiation and thereby affects visibility, the Earth's radiation balance, and properties and lifetimes of clouds. Understanding the radiative forcing (RF) of PM is essential to reducing the uncertainty in total anthropogenic and natural RF. Many instruments that measure light absorption coefficients (βabs [λ], Mm-1) of PM have used light at near-infrared (NIR; e.g., 880 nm) or red (e.g., 633 nm) wavelengths. Measuring βabs over a wider wavelength range, especially including the ultraviolet (UV) and visible, allows for contributions from black carbon (BC), brown carbon (BrC), and mineral dust (MD) to be differentiated. This will help to determine PM RF and its emission sources. In this study, source and ambient samples collected on Teflon-membrane and quartz-fiber filters are used to characterize and develop a multi-wavelength (250 - 1000 nm) filter-based measurement method of PM light absorption. A commercially available UV-visible spectrometer coupled with an integrating sphere is used for quantifying diffuse reflectance and transmittance of filter samples, from which βabs and absorption Ǻngström exponents (AAE) of the PM deposits are determined. The filter-based light absorption measurements of laboratory generated soot and biomass burning aerosol are compared to 3-wavelength photoacoustic absorption measurements to evaluate filter media and loading effects. Calibration factors are developed to account for differences between filter types (Teflon-membrane vs. quartz-fiber), and between filters and in situ photoacoustic absorption values. Application of multi-spectral absorption measurements to existing archived filters, including specific source samples (e.g. diesel and gasoline engines, biomass burning, dust), will also be discussed.

Evaluation of various carbon blacks and dispersing agents for use in the preparation of uranium microspheres with carbon

Science.gov (United States)

Hunt, R. D.; Johnson, J. A.; Collins, J. L.; McMurray, J. W.; Reif, T. J.; Brown, D. R.

2018-01-01

A comparison study on carbon blacks and dispersing agents was performed to determine their impacts on the final properties of uranium fuel kernels with carbon. The main target compositions in this internal gelation study were 10 and 20 mol % uranium dicarbide (UC2), which is UC1.86, with the balance uranium dioxide. After heat treatment at 1900 K in flowing carbon monoxide in argon for 12 h, the density of the kernels produced using a X-energy proprietary carbon suspension, which is commercially available, ranged from 96% to 100% of theoretical density (TD), with full conversion of UC to UC2 at both carbon concentrations. However, higher carbon concentrations such as a 2.5 mol ratio of carbon to uranium in the feed solutions failed to produce gel spheres with the proprietary carbon suspension. The kernels using our former baseline of Mogul L carbon black and Tamol SN were 90-92% of TD with full conversion of UC to UC2 at a variety of carbon levels. Raven 5000 carbon black and Tamol SN were used to produce 10 mol % UC2 kernels with 95% of TD. However, an increase in the Raven 5000 concentration led to a kernel density below 90% of TD. Raven 3500 carbon black and Tamol SN were used to make very dense kernels without complete conversion to UC2. The selection of the carbon black and dispersing agent is highly dependent on the desired final properties of the target kernels.

Correlation between rheological and mechanical properties of black PE100 compounds – Effect of carbon black masterbatch

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

G. Pircheraghi

2017-08-01

Full Text Available Black PE100 compounds were prepared using a co-rotating twin screw extruder by addition of carbon black masterbatches containing 35–40 wt% carbon black and different polymer carriers to a pipe grade PE100 material with bimodal molecular weight distribution. Different properties of carbon black masterbatches and PE100 black compounds were evaluated using thermal, rheological and mechanical tests. Rheological results indicated an inverse correlation between melt flow index (MFI of masterbatch samples and storage modulus, complex viscosity and shear viscosity of black compounds, while flow instabilities of compounds were also postponed to higher shear rates. TGA indicated that masterbatch with highest value of MFI contained highest amount of low molecular weight lubricants which resulted in inhibition of strain hardening behavior in tensile test of its respective black compound unlike all other samples, reflecting possible suppressing of its long term resistance to slow crack growth. This behavior is attributable to facilitated crystallization and chain folding of longer chains in the presence of low molecular weight lubricants in this sample and consequently formation of thicker lamellas as confirmed by DSC, hence lowering density of entanglements in amorphous area and inhibition of strain hardening.

Alumina supported Co-K-Mo based catalytic material for diesel soot oxidation

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Dhakad, M.; Joshi, A.G.; Rayalu, S.; Tanwar, P.; Bassin, J.K.; Kumar, R.; Lokhande, S.; Šubrt, Jan; Mitsuhashi, T.; Labhsetwar, N.

2009-01-01

Roč. 52, 13-20 (2009), s. 2070-2075 ISSN 1022-5528 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z40320502 Keywords : soot oxidation * diesel particulate filter * catalyst carbon oxidation Subject RIV: CA - Inorganic Chemistry Impact factor: 2.379, year: 2009

Black Carbon’s Properties and Role in the Environment: A Comprehensive Review

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Christopher W. Swanston

2010-01-01

Full Text Available Produced from incomplete combustion of biomass and fossil fuel in the absence of oxygen, black carbon (BC is the collective term for a range of carbonaceous substances encompassing partly charred plant residues to highly graphitized soot. Depending on its form, condition of origin and storage (from the atmosphere to the geosphere, and surrounding environmental conditions, BC can influence the environment at local, regional and global scales in different ways. In this paper, we review and synthesize recent findings and discussions on the nature of these different forms of BC and their impacts, particularly in relation to pollution and climate change. We start by describing the different types of BCs and their mechanisms of formation. To elucidate their pollutant sorption properties, we present some models involving polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and organic carbon. Subsequently, we discuss the stability of BC in the environment, summarizing the results of studies that showed a lack of chemical degradation of BC in soil and those that exposed BC to severe oxidative reactions to degrade it. After a brief overview of BC extraction and measurement methods and BC use for source attribution studies, we reflect upon its significance in the environment, first by going over a theory that it could represent parts of what is called the ‘missing sink’ of carbon in global carbon cycle models. Elaborating upon the relationship of BC with polycyclic hydrocarbons, we show its significance for the sorption and transport of pollutants. A description of pulmonary-respiratory health effects of soot BC inhalation is followed by a discussion on its impact on climate and climate change. We explain how soot BC acts as a global warming agent through light (and heat absorption and how it reduces the snow’s albedo and promotes its uncharacteristic thawing. On a more positive note, we conclude this review by illustrating recent observations and simulations of how

Bounding the Role of Black Carbon in the Climate System: a Scientific Assessment

Science.gov (United States)

Bond, T. C.; Doherty, S. J.; Fahey, D. W.; Forster, P. M.; Bernsten, T.; DeAngelo, B. J.; Flanner, M. G.; Ghan, S.; Karcher, B.; Koch, D.;

Bounding the Role of Black Carbon in the Climate System: A Scientific Assessment

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bond, Tami C.; Doherty, Sarah J.; Fahey, D. W.; Forster, Piers; Berntsen, T.; DeAngelo, B. J.; Flanner, M. G.; Ghan, Steven J.; Karcher, B.; Koch, Dorothy; Kinne, Stefan; Kondo, Yutaka; Quinn, P. K.; Sarofim, Marcus; Schultz, Martin; Schulz, M.; Venkataraman, C.; Zhang, Hua; Zhang, Shiqiu; Bellouin, N.; Guttikunda, S. K.; Hopke, P. K.; Jacobson, M. Z.; Kaiser, J. W.; Klimont, Z.; Lohmann, U.; Schwarz, Joshua P.; Shindell, Drew; Storelvmo, Trude; Warren, Stephen G.; Zender, C. S.

2013-06-06

Black carbon aerosol plays a unique and important role in Earth’s climate system. Black carbon is a type of carbonaceous material with a unique combination of physical properties. Predominant sources are combustion related; namely, fossil fuels for transportation, solid fuels for industrial and residential uses, and open burning of biomass. Total global emissions of black carbon using bottom-up inventory methods are 7500 Gg yr-1 in the year 2000 with an uncertainty range of 2000 to 29000. This assessment provides an evaluation of black-carbon climate forcing that is comprehensive in its inclusion of all known and relevant processes and that is quantitative in providing best estimates and uncertainties of the main forcing terms: direct solar absorption, influence on liquid, mixed-phase, and ice clouds, and deposition on snow and ice. These effects are calculated with models, but when possible, they are evaluated with both microphysical measurements and field observations. Global atmospheric absorption attributable to black carbon is too low in many models, and should be increased by about about 60%. After this scaling, the best estimate for the industrial-era (1750 to 2005) direct radiative forcing of black carbon is +0.43 W m-2 with 90% uncertainty bounds of (+0.17, +0.68) W m-2. Total direct forcing by all black carbon sources in the present day is estimated as +0.49 (+0.20, +0.76) W m-2. Direct radiative forcing alone does not capture important rapid adjustment mechanisms. A framework is described and used for quantifying climate forcings and their rapid responses and feedbacks. The best estimate of industrial-era (1750 to 2005) climate forcing of black carbon through all forcing mechanisms is +0.77 W m-2 with 90% uncertainty bounds of +-0.06 to +1.53 W m-2. Thus, there is a 96% probability that black carbon emissions, independent of co-emitted species, have a positive forcing and warm the climate. With a value of +0.77 W m-2, black carbon is likely the second

Studies of activated carbon and carbon black for supercapacitor applications

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Richner, R; Mueller, S; Koetz, R; Wokaun, A [Paul Scherrer Inst. (PSI), Villigen (Switzerland)

1999-08-01

Carbon Black and activated carbon materials providing high surface areas and a distinct pore distribution are prime materials for supercapacitor applications at frequencies < 0.5 Hz. A number of these materials were tested for their specific capacitance, surface and pore size distribution. High capacitance electrodes were manufactured on the laboratory scale with attention to ease of processability. (author) 1 fig., 1 ref.

A model study of aggregates composed of spherical soot monomers with an acentric carbon shell

Science.gov (United States)

Luo, Jie; Zhang, Yongming; Zhang, Qixing

2018-01-01

Influences of morphology on the optical properties of soot particles have gained increasing attentions. However, studies on the effect of the way primary particles are coated on the optical properties is few. Aimed to understand how the primary particles are coated affect the optical properties of soot particles, the coated soot particle was simulated using the acentric core-shell monomers model (ACM), which was generated by randomly moving the cores of concentric core-shell monomers (CCM) model. Single scattering properties of the CCM model with identical fractal parameters were calculated 50 times at first to evaluate the optical diversities of different realizations of fractal aggregates with identical parameters. The results show that optical diversities of different realizations for fractal aggregates with identical parameters cannot be eliminated by averaging over ten random realizations. To preserve the fractal characteristics, 10 realizations of each model were generated based on the identical 10 parent fractal aggregates, and then the results were averaged over each 10 realizations, respectively. The single scattering properties of all models were calculated using the numerically exact multiple-sphere T-matrix (MSTM) method. It is found that the single scattering properties of randomly coated soot particles calculated using the ACM model are extremely close to those using CCM model and homogeneous aggregate (HA) model using Maxwell-Garnett effective medium theory. Our results are different from previous studies. The reason may be that the differences in previous studies were caused by fractal characteristics but not models. Our findings indicate that how the individual primary particles are coated has little effect on the single scattering properties of soot particles with acentric core-shell monomers. This work provides a suggestion for scattering model simplification and model selection.

Sensitive method for dosing carboxylic functions of carbons and its application to the study of thermally processed carbon blacks

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bernardin, Jacques

1968-01-01

This research thesis reports the development of a sensitive method for the dosing of carboxylic functions present at the surface of carbon blacks, and the use of this method to study the evolution of a carbon black during heat treatments. After a brief description of modes of fabrication of carbon blacks and of their structure, the author proposes an overview of knowledge on their oxidation and functional analysis. After having outlined that existing methods do not allow the measurement of function quantities less than ten micro-equivalent per gram of carbon, the author reports the development of a method which allows such measurements. By using this method, the author shows that carboxylic groups of a carbon black, oxidized by air or not, decompose during degassing by forming carbon dioxide, and that, reciprocally, the released carbon dioxide is exclusively produced by the decomposition of carboxylic groups [fr

Black Carbon and Particulate Matter (PM2.5) Concentrations in New York City’s Subway Stations

Science.gov (United States)

2015-01-01

The New York City (NYC) subway is the main mode of transport for over 5 million passengers on an average weekday. Therefore, airborne pollutants in the subway stations could have a significant impact on commuters and subway workers. This study looked at black carbon (BC) and particulate matter (PM2.5) concentrations in selected subway stations in Manhattan. BC and PM2.5 levels were measured in real time using a Micro-Aethalometer and a PDR-1500 DataRAM, respectively. Simultaneous samples were also collected on quartz filters for organic and elemental carbon (OC/EC) analysis and on Teflon filters for gravimetric and trace element analysis. In the underground subway stations, mean real time BC concentrations ranged from 5 to 23 μg/m3, with 1 min average peaks >100 μg/m3, while real time PM2.5 levels ranged from 35 to 200 μg/m3. Mean EC levels ranged from 9 to 12.5 μg/m3. At street level on the same days, the mean BC and PM2.5 concentrations were below 3 and 10 μg/m3, respectively. This study shows that both BC soot and PM levels in NYC’s subways are considerably higher than ambient urban street levels and that further monitoring and investigation of BC and PM subway exposures are warranted. PMID:25409007

Black carbon network in Mexico. First Results

Science.gov (United States)

Barrera, Valter; Peralta, Oscar; Granado, Karen; Ortinez, Abraham; Alvarez-Ospina, Harry; Espinoza, Maria de la Luz; Castro, Telma

2017-04-01

After the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change celebrated in Paris 2016, many countries should adopt some mechanisms in the next years to contribute to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions and support sustainable development. Mexico Government has adopted an unconditional international commitment to carry out mitigation actions that would result in the reduction of 51% in black carbon (BC) emissions by year 2030. However, many BC emissions have been calculated by factor emissions. Since optical measurements of environmental BC concentrations can vary according the different components and their subsequence wavelength measure, it's important to obtain more accurate values. BC is formally defined as an ideally light-absorbing substance composed by carbon (Bond et al., 2013), and is the second main contributor (behind Carbon Dioxide; CO2) to positive radiative forcing (Ramanathan and Carmichael, 2008). Recently, BC has been used as an additional indicator in air quality management in some cities because is emitted from the incomplete combustion of fossil fuels, biofuel and biomass burning in both anthropogenic and it is always emitted with other particles and gases, such as organic carbon (OC), nitrogen oxides (NOx), and sulfur dioxide (SO2). Black Carbon, PM2.5 and pollutant gases were measured from January 2015 to December 2015 at three main cities in Mexico, and two other places to evaluate the BC concentration levels in the country. The urban background sites (Mexico City, Monterrey, Guadalajara, MXC-UB, GDL-UB, MTY-UB), a sub-urban background site (Juriquilla, Queretaro, JUR-SUB) and a regional background site (Altzomoni, ALT-RB). Results showed the relationship between BC and PM2.5 in the 3 large cities, with BC/PM2.5 ratios near 0.14 to 0.09 and a high BC-CO relationship in all the year in Mexico City, who showed that mobile sources are a common, at least in cities with a non-significant biomass burning emission related to agriculture or coal

A contribution of black and brown carbon to the aerosol light absorption

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Sang-Woo; Cho, Chaeyoon; Jo, Duseong; Park, Rokjin

2017-04-01

Black carbon (BC) is functionally defined as the absorbing component of atmospheric total carbonaceous aerosols and is typically dominated by soot-like elemental carbon (EC). Organic carbon (OC) has also been shown to absorb strongly at visible to UV wavelengths and the absorbing organics are referred to as brown carbon (BrC; Alexander et al., 2008). These two aerosols contribute to solar radiative forcing through absorption of solar radiation and heating of the absorbing aerosol layer, but most optical instruments that quantify light absorption are unable to distinguish one type of absorbing aerosol from another (Moosmüller et al. 2009). In this study, we separate total aerosol absorption from these two different light absorbers from co-located simultaneous in-situ measurements, such as Continuous Soot Monitoring System (COSMOS), Continuous Light Absorption Photometer (CLAP) and Sunset EC/OC analyzer, at Gosan climate observatory, Korea. We determine the mass absorption cross-section (MAC) of BC, and then estimate the contribution of BC and BrC on aerosol light absorption, together with a global 3-D chemical transport model (GEOS-Chem) simulation. At 565 nm wavelength, BC MAC is found to be about 5.4±2.8 m2 g-1 from COSMOS and Sunset EC/OC analyzer measurements during January-May 2012. This value is similar to those from Alexander et al. (2008; 4.3 ˜ 4.8 m2 g-1 at 550 nm) and Chung et al. (2012; 5.1 m2 g-1 at 520 nm), but slightly lower than Bond and Bergstrom (2006; 7.5±1.2 m2 g-1 at 550 nm). The COMOS BC mass concentration calculated with 5.4 m2 g-1 of BC MAC shows a good agreement with thermal EC concentration, with a good slope (1.1). Aerosol absorption coefficient and BC mass concentration from COSMOS, meanwhile, are approximately 25 ˜ 30 % lower than those of CLAP. This difference can be attributable to the contribution of volatile light-absorbing aerosols (i.e., BrC). The absorption coefficient of BrC, which is determined by the difference of

Reaction mechanism for the free-edge oxidation of soot by O 2

KAUST Repository

Raj, Abhijeet

2012-11-01

The reaction pathways for the oxidation by O 2 of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons present in soot particles are investigated using density functional theory at B3LYP/6-311++G(d,p) level of theory. For this, pyrene radical (4-pyrenyl) is chosen as the model molecule, as most soot models present in the literature employ the reactions involving the conversion of 4-pyrenyl to 4-phenanthryl by O 2 and OH to account for soot oxidation. Several routes for the formation of CO and CO 2 are proposed. The addition of O 2 on a radical site to form a peroxyl radical is found to be barrierless and exothermic with reaction energy of 188kJ/mol. For the oxidation reaction to proceed further, three pathways are suggested, each of which involve the activation energies of 104, 167 and 115kJ/mol relative to the peroxyl radical. The effect of the presence of H atom on a carbon atom neighboring the radical site on the energetics of carbon oxidation is assessed. Those intermediate species formed during oxidation with seven-membered rings or with a phenolic group are found to be highly stable. The rate constants evaluated using transition state theory in the temperature range of 300-3000K for the reactions involved in the mechanism are provided. © 2012 The Combustion Institute.

Reaction mechanism for the free-edge oxidation of soot by O 2

KAUST Repository

Raj, Abhijeet; da Silva, Gabriel; Chung, Suk-Ho

2012-01-01

The reaction pathways for the oxidation by O 2 of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons present in soot particles are investigated using density functional theory at B3LYP/6-311++G(d,p) level of theory. For this, pyrene radical (4-pyrenyl) is chosen as the model molecule, as most soot models present in the literature employ the reactions involving the conversion of 4-pyrenyl to 4-phenanthryl by O 2 and OH to account for soot oxidation. Several routes for the formation of CO and CO 2 are proposed. The addition of O 2 on a radical site to form a peroxyl radical is found to be barrierless and exothermic with reaction energy of 188kJ/mol. For the oxidation reaction to proceed further, three pathways are suggested, each of which involve the activation energies of 104, 167 and 115kJ/mol relative to the peroxyl radical. The effect of the presence of H atom on a carbon atom neighboring the radical site on the energetics of carbon oxidation is assessed. Those intermediate species formed during oxidation with seven-membered rings or with a phenolic group are found to be highly stable. The rate constants evaluated using transition state theory in the temperature range of 300-3000K for the reactions involved in the mechanism are provided. © 2012 The Combustion Institute.

Characterization of Black and Brown Carbon Concentrations and Sources during winter in Beijing

Science.gov (United States)

Yan, Caiqing; Liu, Yue; Hansen, Anthony D. A.; Močnik, Griša; Zheng, Mei

2017-04-01

Carbonaceous aerosols, including black carbon (BC) and organic carbon (OC), play important roles in air quality, human health, and climate change. A better understanding of sources of light-absorbing carbonaceous aerosol (including black carbon and brown carbon) is particular critical for formulating emission-based control strategies and reducing uncertainties in current aerosol radiative forcing estimates. Beijing, the capital of China, has experienced serious air pollution problems and high concentrations of carbonaceous aerosols in recent years, especially during heating seasons. During November and December of 2016, several severe haze episodes occurred in Beijing, with hourly average PM2.5 mass concentration up to 400 μg/m3. In this study, concentration levels and sources of black carbon and brown carbon were investigated based on 7-wavelength Aethalometer (AE-33) with combination of other PM2.5 chemical composition information. Contributions of traffic and non-traffic emissions (e.g., coal combustion, biomass burning) were apportioned, and brown carbon was separated from black carbon. Our preliminary results showed that (1) Concentrations of BC were around 5.3±4.2 μg/m3 during the study period, with distinct diurnal variations during haze and non-haze days. (2) Traffic emissions contributed to about 37±17% of total BC, and exhibited higher contributions during non-haze days compared to haze days. (3) Coal combustion was a major source of black carbon and brown carbon in Beijing, which was more significant compared to biomass burning. Sources and the relative contributions to black carbon and brown carbon during haze and non-haze days will be further discussed.

Black carbon emissions in gasoline vehicle exhaust: a measurement and instrument comparison.

Science.gov (United States)

Kamboures, Michael A; Hu, Shishan; Yu, Yong; Sandoval, Julia; Rieger, Paul; Huang, Shiou-Mei; Zhang, Sherry; Dzhema, Inna; Huo, Darey; Ayala, Alberto; Chang, M C Oliver

2013-08-01

A pilot study was conducted to evaluate the performance and agreement of several commercially available black carbon (BC) measurement instruments, when applied to the quantification of BC in light-duty vehicle (LDV) exhaust. Samples from six vehicles, three fuels, and three driving cycles were used. The pilot study included determinations of the method detection limit (MDL) and repeatability. With respect to the MDL, the real-time instruments outperformed the time-integrated instruments, with MDL = 0.12 mg/mi for the AE51 Aethalometer, and 0.15 mg/mi for the Micro Soot Sensor (MSS), versus 0.38 mg/mi for the IMPROVE_A thermal/ optical method, and 0.35 mg/mi for the OT21_T Optical Transmissometer. The real-time instruments had repeatability values ranging from 30% to 35%, which are somewhat better than those of the time-integrated instruments (40-41%). These results suggest that, despite being less resource intensive, real-time methods can be equivalent or superior to time-integrated methods in terms of sensitivity and repeatability. BC mass data, from the photoacoustic and light attenuation instruments, were compared against same-test EC data, determined using the IMPROVE_A method. The MSS BC data was well correlated with EC, with R2 = 0.85 for the composite results and R2 = 0.86 for the phase-by-phase (PBP) results. The correlation of BC, by the AE51, AE22, and OT21_T with EC was moderate to weak. The weaker correlation was driven by the inclusion of US06 test data in the linear regression analysis. We hypothesize that test-cycle-dependent BC:EC ratios are due to the different physicochemical properties of particulate matter (PM) in US06 and Federal Test Procedure (FTP) tests. Correlation amongst the real-time MSS, PASS-1, AE51, and AE22 instruments was excellent (R2 = 0.83-0.95), below 1 mg/mi levels. In the process of investigating these BC instruments, we learned that BC emissions at sub-1 mg/mi levels can be measured and are achievable by current

An improved method for quantitatively measuring the sequences of total organic carbon and black carbon in marine sediment cores

Science.gov (United States)

Xu, Xiaoming; Zhu, Qing; Zhou, Qianzhi; Liu, Jinzhong; Yuan, Jianping; Wang, Jianghai

2018-01-01

Understanding global carbon cycle is critical to uncover the mechanisms of global warming and remediate its adverse effects on human activities. Organic carbon in marine sediments is an indispensable part of the global carbon reservoir in global carbon cycling. Evaluating such a reservoir calls for quantitative studies of marine carbon burial, which closely depend on quantifying total organic carbon and black carbon in marine sediment cores and subsequently on obtaining their high-resolution temporal sequences. However, the conventional methods for detecting the contents of total organic carbon or black carbon cannot resolve the following specific difficulties, i.e., (1) a very limited amount of each subsample versus the diverse analytical items, (2) a low and fluctuating recovery rate of total organic carbon or black carbon versus the reproducibility of carbon data, and (3) a large number of subsamples versus the rapid batch measurements. In this work, (i) adopting the customized disposable ceramic crucibles with the microporecontrolled ability, (ii) developing self-made or customized facilities for the procedures of acidification and chemothermal oxidization, and (iii) optimizing procedures and carbon-sulfur analyzer, we have built a novel Wang-Xu-Yuan method (the WXY method) for measuring the contents of total organic carbon or black carbon in marine sediment cores, which includes the procedures of pretreatment, weighing, acidification, chemothermal oxidation and quantification; and can fully meet the requirements of establishing their highresolution temporal sequences, whatever in the recovery, experimental efficiency, accuracy and reliability of the measurements, and homogeneity of samples. In particular, the usage of disposable ceramic crucibles leads to evidently simplify the experimental scenario, which further results in the very high recovery rates for total organic carbon and black carbon. This new technique may provide a significant support for

Sources of uncertainties in modelling black carbon at the global scale

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Vignati, E.; Karl, M.; Krol, M.C.; Wilson, J.; Stier, P.; Cavalli, F.

2010-01-01

Our understanding of the global black carbon (BC) cycle is essentially qualitative due to uncertainties in our knowledge of its properties. This work investigates two source of uncertainties in modelling black carbon: those due to the use of different schemes for BC ageing and its removal rate in

Emissions & Measurements - Black Carbon | Science ...

Science.gov (United States)

Emissions and Measurement (EM) research activities performed within the National Risk Management Research Lab NRMRL) of EPA's Office of Research and Development (ORD) support measurement and laboratory analysis approaches to accurately characterize source emissions, and near source concentrations of air pollutants. They also support integrated Agency research programs (e.g., source to health outcomes) and the development of databases and inventories that assist Federal, state, and local air quality managers and industry implement and comply with air pollution standards. EM research underway in NRMRL supports the Agency's efforts to accurately characterize, analyze, measure and manage sources of air pollution. This pamphlet focuses on the EM research that NRMRL researchers conduct related to black carbon (BC). Black Carbon is a pollutant of concern to EPA due to its potential impact on human health and climate change. There are extensive uncertainties in emissions of BC from stationary and mobile sources. Emissions and Measurement (EM) research activities performed within the National Risk Management Research Lab NRMRL) of EPA's Office of Research and Development (ORD)

Thermal fragmentation and deactivation of combustion-generated soot particles

KAUST Repository

Raj, Abhijeet

2014-09-01

The effect of thermal treatment on diesel soot and on a commercial soot in an inert environment under isothermal conditions at intermediate temperatures (400-900°C) is studied. Two important phenomena are observed in both the soot samples: soot fragmentation leading to its mass loss, and loss of soot reactivity towards O2. Several experimental techniques such as high resolution transmission electron microscopy, electron energy loss spectroscopy, thermo-gravimetric analysis with mass spectrometry, elemental analysis, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction have been used to identify the changes in structures, functional groups such as oxygenates and aliphatics, σ and π bonding, O/C and H/C ratios, and crystallite parameters of soot particles, introduced by heat. A decrease in the size of primary particles and an increase in the average polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) size was observed in soots after thermal treatment. The activation energies of soot oxidation for thermally treated soot samples were found to be higher than those for the untreated ones at most conversion levels. The cyclic or acyclic aliphatics with sp3 hybridization were present in significant amounts in all the soot samples, but their concentration decreased with thermal treatment. Interestingly, the H/C and the O/C ratios of soot particles increased after thermal treatment, and thus, they do not support the decrease in soot reactivity. The increase in the concentration of oxygenates on soot surface indicate that their desorption from soot surface in the form of CO, CO2 and other oxygenated compounds may not be significant at the temperatures (400-900°C) studied in this work. © 2014 The Combustion Institute.

Black Carbon at the Mt. Bachelor Observatory Field Campaign Report

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jaffe, Dan A. [Univ. of Washington, Bothell, WA (United States); Sedlacek, Arthur [Brookhaven National Lab. (BNL), Upton, NY (United States); Laing, James R. [Univ. of Washington, Bothell, WA (United States)

2017-03-01

This campaign was initiated to measure refractory black carbon (rBC, as defined in Schwarz et al. (2010)) at the Mt. Bachelor Observatory (MBO) using the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) Climate Research Facility single-particle soot photometer (SP2; unit 54). MBO is a high-elevation site located on the summit of Mt. Bachelor in central Oregon, USA (43.979°N, 121.687°W, 2,763 meters ASL). This site is operated by Professor Dan Jaffe’s group at the University of Washington Bothell and has been used continuously as an atmospheric observatory for the past 12 years (Jaffe et al., 2005; Gratz et al., 2014). The location of MBO allows frequent sampling of the free troposphere along with a wide array of plumes from regional and distant sources. MBO is currently supported with funding from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to the Principal Investigator (PI; D. Jaffe) via the project “Influence of Free Tropospheric Ozone and PM on Surface Air Quality in the Western U.S.” (#1447832) covering the period 03/15/2015 to 02/28/2018. The SP2 instrument from Droplet Measurement Technologies provides particle-resolved measurements of rBC mass loading, size and mass distributions, and mixing state. The SP2 was installed at MBO on 6/27/2016 and ran through 9/23/2016. Additional measurements at MBO during this campaign included carbon monoxide (CO), fine particulate matter (PM1), aerosol light scattering coefficients (σscat) at three wavelengths using a TSI nephelometer, aerosol absorption coefficients (σabs) with the Brechtel tricolor absorption photometer (TAP), aerosol number size distributions with a scanning mobility particle sizer spectrometer (SMPS), and black carbon (eBC) with an aethalometer. BC data from this campaign have been submitted to the ARM Data Archive. Black carbon (BC) is the predominant light-absorbing aerosol constituent in the atmosphere, and is estimated to exert a positive radiative forcing second only to CO

Stochastic Simulation of Soot Formation Evolution in Counterflow Diffusion Flames

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Xiao Jiang

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Soot generally refers to carbonaceous particles formed during incomplete combustion of hydrocarbon fuels. A typical simulation of soot formation and evolution contains two parts: gas chemical kinetics, which models the chemical reaction from hydrocarbon fuels to soot precursors, that is, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons or PAHs, and soot dynamics, which models the soot formation from PAHs and evolution due to gas-soot and soot-soot interactions. In this study, two detailed gas kinetic mechanisms (ABF and KM2 have been compared during the simulation (using the solver Chemkin II of ethylene combustion in counterflow diffusion flames. Subsequently, the operator splitting Monte Carlo method is used to simulate the soot dynamics. Both the simulated data from the two mechanisms for gas and soot particles are compared with experimental data available in the literature. It is found that both mechanisms predict similar profiles for the gas temperature and velocity, agreeing well with measurements. However, KM2 mechanism provides much closer prediction compared to measurements for soot gas precursors. Furthermore, KM2 also shows much better predictions for soot number density and volume fraction than ABF. The effect of nozzle exit velocity on soot dynamics has also been investigated. Higher nozzle exit velocity renders shorter residence time for soot particles, which reduces the soot number density and volume fraction accordingly.

Evaluating The Performance of Asphalt Concrete Mixes by Utilizing Carbon Black as Asphalt Modifier

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Aliaa Faleh Al.ani

2018-02-01

Full Text Available Carbon black produced from several factories in Iraq is expected to provide a reinforcing agent for asphalt paving materials. Carbon black has many characteristics that distinguish  it from conventional mineral fillers, as well as their different function in pavement mixtures. Theory and exercise advanced  in the inclusive utilize of carbon black as a reinforcing agent for rubber has led to concept of asphalt reinforcement. The very fine particles of micro filler added in different contents will be dispersed in asphalt cement improving the mechanical properties of asphalt concrete mixes. In this Four percentages rates were utilized; 0, 3, 6, and 9 percent adding to asphalt grade (60-70. Mixes of asphalt concrete were destined at their optimum asphalt content (OAC then experienced to assess their engineering characteristics that contain moisture of damage, permanent deformation, modulus of resilient and characteristics of fatigue. These characteristics have been assessed utilizing indirect tensile strength, uniaxial repeated loading and repeated flexural beam tests. Mixtures improved with carbon black were existed to have amended permanent deformation and fatigue characteristics, else exhibited high resilient modulus and lower moisture susceptibility. Result showed that a rate changed from 3 to 9 percent has shown an increase in resilient modulus for increment of carbon black and modulus of resilient for mixes with 9 percent carbon black was 1.4 times that for mixes with 0 percent carbon black. The altering of carbon black from a range (3-9 percent has modified the fatigue property of the asphalt concrete mixes as determined by flexural test, Significantly, to modify the asphalt concrete manner taken the  percent of carbon black 6, and to produce the mixes more durable , higher resistance to distresses by adding the local knowledge.

Global emission inventory and atmospheric transport of black carbon. Evaluation of the associated exposure

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wang, Rong

2015-06-01

This thesis presents research focusing on the improvement of high-resolution global black carbon (BC) emission inventory and application in assessing the population exposure to ambient BC. A particular focus of the thesis is on the construction of a high-resolution (both spatial and sectorial) fuel consumption database, which is used to develop the emission inventory of black carbon. Above all, the author updates the global emission inventory of black carbon, a resource subsequently used to study the atmospheric transport of black carbon over Asia with the help of a high-resolution nested model. The thesis demonstrates that spatial bias in fuel consumption and BC emissions can be reduced by means of the sub-national disaggregation approach. Using the inventory and nested model, ambient BC concentrations can be better validated against observations. Lastly, it provides a complete uncertainty analysis of global black carbon emissions, and this uncertainty is taken into account in the atmospheric modeling, helping to better understand the role of black carbon in regional and global air pollution.

Development and test of a soot-specific method for immission measurement. Pt. 3. Content determination of tire abrasion in atmospherical elementary carbon; Weiterentwicklung und Erprobung eines Immissionsmessverfahrens zur spezifischen Erfassung von Russpartikeln. T. 3. Ermittlung des Anteils von Reifenabrieb am atmosphaerischen elementaren Kohlenstoff

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Pfaender, N.; Weinberg, G.; Wild, U.

1996-12-01

The purpose of this study was to find out methods of discrimination between diesel soot and tire abrasion in carbons of aerosol filter samples. A method of determination between diesel soot and tire abrasion should be found because of the offered standard methods (combustion methods) do not distinguish between the carbon forms. A considerable content of tire abrasion traffic control samples of ``carbon`` would require a correction of the integral ascertained carbon concentration. Three sets of samples have been investigated with the help of TEM, SEM, EDX and ESCA. One basis for discrimination is the chemical activity of the surfaces. While the tire abrasion shows a chemically saturated polymer surface, the diesel soot has a chemically very active soot surface. A second basis for discrimination is the very different particle-size distribution of the diesel soot and the tire abrasion particles. This has been ascertained with the help of TEM and SEM. The results of 3 sets of samples show that a corresponding semi-quantitative discrimination with morphological, element analytical and surface analytical methods between diesel soot and tire abrasion is possible. The main result is a low to very low abundance of the tire abrasion in the total carbon contents. An absolute determination fails mainly because of the interference of the tire abrasion analysis with molecular hydrocarbons. The samples succumb to chemical ageing, where especially diesel soot partially oxidizes. A Thermal treatment also changes the chemical nature of the soot components. (orig.) [Deutsch] Die Aufgabe dieser Arbeit war es, Methoden zu finden, die in einer Aerosolfilterprobe Kohlenstoffe nach Dieselruss und Reifenabrieb zu unterscheiden vermoegen. Es sollte eine grobe Quantitifizerung des Reifenabrieb am Dieselruss ermittelt werden, da in den vorgeschlagenen Standardverfahren (Oxidationsverfahren) nicht zwischen den Kohlenstoff-Formen unterschieden werden kann, was bei erheblichen Anteilen von

Physical and chemical comparison of soot in hydrocarbon and biodiesel fuel diffusion flames: A study of model and commercial fuels

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Matti Maricq, M. [Research and Advanced Engineering, Ford Motor Company, Dearborn, MI (United States)

2011-01-15

Data are presented to compare soot formation in both surrogate and practical fatty acid methyl ester biodiesel and petroleum fuel diffusion flames. The approach here uses differential mobility analysis to follow the size distributions and electrical charge of soot particles as they evolve in the flame, and laser ablation particle mass spectrometry to elucidate their composition. Qualitatively, these soot properties exhibit a remarkably similar development along the flames. The size distributions begin as a single mode of precursor nanoparticles, evolve through a bimodal phase marking the onset of aggregate formation, and end in a self preserving mode of fractal-like particles. Both biodiesel and hydrocarbon fuels yield a common soot composition dominated by C{sub x}H{sub y}{sup +} ions, stabilomer PAHs, and fullerenes in the positive ion mass spectrum, and C{sub x}{sup -} and C{sub 2x}H{sup -} in the negative ion spectrum. These ion intensities initially grow with height in the diffusion flames, but then decline during later stages, consistent with soot carbonization. There are important quantitative differences between fuels. The surrogate biodiesel fuel methyl butanoate substantially reduces soot levels, but soot formation and evolution in this flame are delayed relative to both soy and petroleum fuels. In contrast, soots from soy and hexadecane flames exhibit nearly quantitative agreement in their size distribution and composition profiles with height, suggesting similar soot precursor chemistry. (author)

Simulation of soot size distribution in an ethylene counterflow flame

KAUST Repository

Zhou, Kun

2014-01-06

Soot, an aggregate of carbonaceous particles produced during the rich combustion of fossil fuels, is an undesirable pollutant and health hazard. Soot evolution involves various dynamic processes: nucleation soot formation from polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) condensation PAHs condensing on soot particle surface surface processes hydrogen-abstraction-C2H2-addition, oxidation coagulation two soot particles coagulating to form a bigger particle This simulation work investigates soot size distribution and morphology in an ethylene counterflow flame, using i). Chemkin with a method of moments to deal with the coupling between vapor consumption and soot formation; ii). Monte Carlo simulation of soot dynamics.

A characterization of Arctic aerosols on the basis of aerosol optical depth and black carbon measurements

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R. S. Stone

2014-06-01

Full Text Available Abstract Aerosols, transported from distant source regions, influence the Arctic surface radiation budget. When deposited on snow and ice, carbonaceous particles can reduce the surface albedo, which accelerates melting, leading to a temperature-albedo feedback that amplifies Arctic warming. Black carbon (BC, in particular, has been implicated as a major warming agent at high latitudes. BC and co-emitted aerosols in the atmosphere, however, attenuate sunlight and radiatively cool the surface. Warming by soot deposition and cooling by atmospheric aerosols are referred to as “darkening” and “dimming” effects, respectively. In this study, climatologies of spectral aerosol optical depth AOD (2001–2011 and Equivalent BC (EBC (1989–2011 from three Arctic observatories and from a number of aircraft campaigns are used to characterize Arctic aerosols. Since the 1980s, concentrations of BC in the Arctic have decreased by more than 50% at ground stations where in situ observations are made. AOD has increased slightly during the past decade, with variations attributed to changing emission inventories and source strengths of natural aerosols, including biomass smoke and volcanic aerosol, further influenced by deposition rates and airflow patterns.

Enhancement of micropore filling of water on carbon black by platinum loading

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Miyajima, Naoya, E-mail: miyajima@yamanashi.ac.jp [Interdisciplinary Graduate School of Medicine and Engineering, 4-3-11 Takeda, Kofu, Yamanashi 400-8511 (Japan); Hatori, Hiroaki [Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST), 16-1 Onogawa, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8569 (Japan); Radovic, Ljubisa R. [Department of Energy and Geo-Environmental Engineering, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802 (United States); Yamada, Yoshio [Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST), 16-1 Onogawa, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8569 (Japan)

2010-10-15

Two kinds of typical carbons, carbon black and activated carbon fibers, were modified with platinum nanoparticles without changing their original pore structures. The surface properties of the modified carbons were investigated by measuring of water adsorption isotherms. Micropore filling of water was facilitated by the presence of platinum nanoparticles on the surface of the carbon black. On the other hand, such a filling effect was not observed in the case of the activated carbon fibers. A critical content and/or size of platinum nanoparticles could be required to promote efficiently the water adsorption.

The Ångström Exponent and Turbidity of Soot Component in the ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Corresponding author: ... Origin 50 software was used to plot the graphs. SPSS 16.0 ... The α reflects the dominance of fine-mode particles while α2 at 0% RH reflects the dominance of ... 99% of the mass is carbon, but soot also contains hydrocarbons ...

Plasma polymerization surface modification of Carbon black and its effect in elastomers

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Mathew, T.; Datta, Rabin; Dierkes, Wilma K.; Talma, Auke; Ooij, W.J.; Noordermeer, Jacobus W.M.

2011-01-01

Surface modification of carbon black by plasma polymerization was aimed to reduce its surface energy in order to compatibilize the filler with various elastomers. A fullerenic carbon black was used for the modification process. Thermogravimetric analysis, wetting behavior with liquids of known

Thermal Oxidation of Tail Gases from the Production of Oil-furnace Carbon Black

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Bosak, Z.

2009-01-01

Full Text Available This paper describes the production technology of oil-furnace carbon black, as well as the selected solution for preventing the emissions of this process from contaminating the environment.The products of industrial oil-furnace carbon black production are different grades of carbon black and process tail gases. The qualitative composition of these tail gases during the production of oil-furnace carbon black are: carbon(IV oxide, carbon(II oxide, hydrogen, methane, hydrogen sulfide, nitrogen, oxygen, and water vapor.The quantitative composition and lower caloric value of process tail gases change depending on the type of feedstock used in the production, as well as the type of process. The lower caloric value of process tail gases is relatively small with values ranging between 1500 and 2300 kJ m–3.In the conventional production of oil-furnace carbon black, process tail gases purified from carbon black dust are freely released into the atmosphere untreated. In this manner, the process tail gases pollute the air in the town of Kutina, because their quantitative values are much higher than the prescribed emissions limits for hydrogen sulfide and carbon(II oxide. A logical solution for the prevention of such air pollution is combustion of the process tail gases, i. e. their thermal oxidation. For this purpose, a specially designed flare system has been developed. Consuming minimum amounts of natural gas needed for oxidation, the flare system is designed to combust low caloric process tail gases with 99 % efficiency. Thus, the toxic and flammable components of the tail gases (hydrogen sulfide, hydrogen, carbon(II oxide, methane and other trace hydrocarbons would be transformed into environmentally acceptable components (sulfur(IV oxide, water, carbon(IV oxide and nitrogen(IV oxide, which are in compliance with the emissions limit values prescribed by law.Proper operation of this flare system in the production of oil-furnace carbon black would solve

Automatic Method for Controlling the Iodine Adsorption Number in Carbon Black Oil Furnaces

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Zečević, N.

2008-12-01

Full Text Available There are numerous of different inlet process factors in carbon black oil furnaces which must be continuously and automatically adjusted, due to stable quality of final product. The most important six inlet process factors in carbon black oil-furnaces are:1. volume flow of process air for combustion2. temperature of process air for combustion3. volume flow of natural gas for insurance the necessary heat for thermal reaction of conversionthe hydrocarbon oil feedstock in oil-furnace carbon black4. mass flow rate of hydrocarbon oil feedstock5. type and quantity of additive for adjustment the structure of oil-furnace carbon black6. quantity and position of the quench water for cooling the reaction of oil-furnace carbon black.The control of oil-furnace carbon black adsorption capacity is made with mass flow rate of hydrocarbon feedstock, which is the most important inlet process factor. Oil-furnace carbon black adsorption capacity in industrial process is determined with laboratory analyze of iodine adsorption number. It is shown continuously and automatically method for controlling iodine adsorption number in carbon black oil-furnaces to get as much as possible efficient control of adsorption capacity. In the proposed method it can be seen the correlation between qualitatively-quantitatively composition of the process tail gasses in the production of oil-furnace carbon black and relationship between air for combustion and hydrocarbon feedstock. It is shown that the ratio between air for combustion and hydrocarbon oil feedstock is depended of adsorption capacity summarized by iodine adsorption number, regarding to BMCI index of hydrocarbon oil feedstock.The mentioned correlation can be seen through the figures from 1. to 4. From the whole composition of the process tail gasses the best correlation for continuously and automatically control of iodine adsorption number is show the volume fraction of methane. The volume fraction of methane in the

Ice nucleation activity of diesel soot particles at cirrus relevant temperature conditions: Effects of hydration, secondary organics coating, soot morphology, and coagulation

Science.gov (United States)

Kulkarni, Gourihar; China, Swarup; Liu, Shang; Nandasiri, Manjula; Sharma, Noopur; Wilson, Jacqueline; Aiken, Allison C.; Chand, Duli; Laskin, Alexander; Mazzoleni, Claudio; Pekour, Mikhail; Shilling, John; Shutthanandan, Vaithiyalingam; Zelenyuk, Alla; Zaveri, Rahul A.

2016-04-01

Ice formation by diesel soot particles was investigated at temperatures ranging from -40 to -50°C. Size-selected soot particles were physically and chemically aged in an environmental chamber, and their ice nucleating properties were determined using a continuous flow diffusion type ice nucleation chamber. Bare (freshly formed), hydrated, and compacted soot particles, as well as α-pinene secondary organic aerosol (SOA)-coated soot particles at high relative humidity conditions, showed ice formation activity at subsaturation conditions with respect to water but below the homogeneous freezing threshold conditions. However, SOA-coated soot particles at dry conditions were observed to freeze at homogeneous freezing threshold conditions. Overall, our results suggest that heterogeneous ice nucleation activity of freshly emitted diesel soot particles are sensitive to some of the aging processes that soot can undergo in the atmosphere.

An investigation of late-combustion soot burnout in a DI diesel engine using simultaneous planar imaging of soot and OH radical

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

John E. Dec; Peter L. Kelly-Zion

1999-10-01

Diesel engine design continues to be driven by the need to improve performance while at the same time achieving further reductions in emissions. The development of new designs to accomplish these goals requires an understanding of how the emissions are produced in the engine. Laser-imaging diagnostics are uniquely capable of providing this information, and the understanding of diesel combustion and emissions formation has been advanced considerably in recent years by their application. However, previous studies have generally focused on the early and middle stages of diesel combustion. These previous laser-imaging studies do provide important insight into the soot formation and oxidation processes during the main combustion event. They indicate that prior to the end of injection, soot formation is initiated by fuel-rich premixed combustion (equivalence ratio > 4) near the upstream limit of the luminous portion of the reacting fuel jet. The soot is then oxidized at the diffusion flame around the periphery of the luminous plume. Under typical diesel engine conditions, the diffusion flame does not burn the remaining fuel and soot as rapidly as it is supplied, resulting in an expanding region of rich combustion products and soot. This is evident in natural emission images by the increasing size of the luminous soot cloud prior to the end of injection. Hence, the amount of soot in the combustion chamber typically increases until shortly after the end of fuel injection, at which time the main soot formation period ends and the burnout phase begins. Sampling valve and two-color pyrometry data indicate that the vast majority (more than 90%) of the soot formed is oxidized before combustion ends; however, it is generally thought that a small fraction of this soot from the main combustion zones is not consumed and is the source of tail pipe soot emissions.

Soot oxidation over NOx storage catalysts. Activity and deactivation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Krishna, K.; Makkee, M.

2006-01-01

Soot oxidation activity and deactivation of NO x storage and reduction (NSR) catalysts containing Pt, K, and Ba supported on Al 2 O 3 , are studied under a variety of reaction conditions. K-containing catalysts decrease soot oxidation temperature with O 2 alone and the presence of Pt further enhance the activity due to synergetic effect. The active species responsible for synergism on Pt/K-Al 2 O 3 are unstable and cannot be regenerated. Soot oxidation temperature decreases by about 150 o C with NO+O 2 exhaust feed gas and under lean conditions NSR system acts as catalysed soot filter (CSF). The reactions that are mainly responsible for decreasing soot oxidation temperature are: (1) soot oxidation with NO 2 followed by NO recycles to NO 2 , and (2) soot oxidation with O 2 assisted by NO 2 . Only a part of the stored NO x that is decomposed at high temperatures under lean conditions is found to be useful for soot oxidation. NO x storage capacity of NSR catalysts decreases upon ageing under soot oxidising conditions. This will lead to a decreased soot oxidation activity on stored nitrate decomposition. Pt/K-Al 2 O 3 catalyst is more active, but least stable compared with Pt/Ba-Al 2 O 3 . (author)

A comparative study on the sooting tendencies of various 1-alkene fuels in counterflow diffusion flames

KAUST Repository

Wang, Yu

2018-02-19

Alkenes are important components in transportation fuels, and are known to have increased sooting tendencies compared to analogous saturated hydrocarbons with the same carbon number. This work aims to understand the sooting tendencies of various 1-alkenes through experiments and numerical simulations for counterflow diffusion flames. Soot and PAH formation tendencies of 1-alkene fuels, including ethylene (C2H4), propene (C3H6), 1-butene (1-C4H8), 1-pentene (1-C5H10), 1-hexene (1-C6H12) and 1-octene (1-C8H16), were experimentally studied using laser induced-incandescence (LII) and laser-induced fluorescence (LIF) techniques, respectively. From the LII results, 1-C4H8 was found to be the most sooting fuel, followed by C3H6 > 1-C5H10 > 1-C6H12 > 1-C8H16 > C2H4. The LIF data with a detection wavelength of 500 nm indicated the PAH formation tendencies followed the order of 1-C4H8 > 1-C5H10 ∼1-C6H12 > C3H6 > 1-C8H16 > C2H4, which were different from the order of sooting tendencies. Numerical simulations with a comprehensive chemical kinetic model including PAH growth chemistry for the tested 1-alkene fuels were conducted to elucidate the aromatic formation pathways and rationalize the experimentally observed trends. The numerical results highlighted the importance of intermediate species with odd carbon numbers in aromatic species formation, such as propargyl, allyl, cyclopentadienyl and indenyl radicals. Their concentration differences, which could be traced back to the parent fuel molecules through rate of production analysis, rationalize the experimentally observed differences in soot and PAH formation tendencies.

Soot Formation in Freely-Propagating Laminar Premixed Flames

Science.gov (United States)

Lin, K.-C.; Hassan, M. I.; Faeth, G. M.

1997-01-01

Soot formation within hydrocarbon-fueled flames is an important unresolved problem of combustion science. Thus, the present study is considering soot formation in freely-propagating laminar premixed flames, exploiting the microgravity environment to simplify measurements at the high-pressure conditions of interest for many practical applications. The findings of the investigation are relevant to reducing emissions of soot and continuum radiation from combustion processes, to improving terrestrial and spacecraft fire safety, and to developing methods of computational combustion, among others. Laminar premixed flames are attractive for studying soot formation because they are simple one-dimensional flows that are computationally tractable for detailed numerical simulations. Nevertheless, studying soot-containing burner-stabilized laminar premixed flames is problematical: spatial resolution and residence times are limited at the pressures of interest for practical applications, flame structure is sensitive to minor burner construction details so that experimental reproducibility is not very good, consistent burner behavior over the lengthy test programs needed to measure soot formation properties is hard to achieve, and burners have poor durability. Fortunately, many of these problems are mitigated for soot-containing, freely-propagating laminar premixed flames. The present investigation seeks to extend work in this laboratory for various soot processes in flames by observing soot formation in freely-propagating laminar premixed flames. Measurements are being made at both Normal Gravity (NG) and MicroGravity (MG), using a short-drop free-fall facility to provide MG conditions.

Adsorption of Remazol Black B dye on Activated Carbon Felt

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Donnaperna Lucio

2008-11-01

Full Text Available The adsorption of Remazol Black B (anionic dye on a microporous activated carbon felt is investigated from its aqueous solution. The surface chemistry of activated carbon is studied using X-ray microanalysis, "Boehm" titrations and pH of PZC measurements which indicates that the surface oxygenated groups are mainly acidic in nature. The kinetics of Remazol Black B adsorption is observed to be pH dependent and governed by the diffusion of the dye molecules. The experimental data can be explained by "intra-particle diffusion model". For Remazol Black B, the Khan model is best suited to simulate the adsorption isotherms.

Electrical conductivity of compacts of graphene, multi-wall carbon nanotubes, carbon black, and graphite powder

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Marinho, B.; Gomes Ghislandi, M.; Tkalya, E.; Koning, C.E.; With, de G.

2012-01-01

The electrical conductivity of different carbon materials (multi-walled carbon nanotubes, graphene, carbon black and graphite), widely used as fillers in polymeric matrices, was studied using compacts produced by a paper preparation process and by powder compression. Powder pressing assays show that

Comparative inhalation toxicity of multi-wall carbon nanotubes, graphene, graphite nanoplatelets and low surface carbon black.

Science.gov (United States)

Ma-Hock, Lan; Strauss, Volker; Treumann, Silke; Küttler, Karin; Wohlleben, Wendel; Hofmann, Thomas; Gröters, Sibylle; Wiench, Karin; van Ravenzwaay, Bennard; Landsiedel, Robert

2013-06-17

Carbon nanotubes, graphene, graphite nanoplatelets and carbon black are seemingly chemically identical carbon-based nano-materials with broad technological applications. Carbon nanotubes and carbon black possess different inhalation toxicities, whereas little is known about graphene and graphite nanoplatelets. In order to compare the inhalation toxicity of the mentioned carbon-based nanomaterials, male Wistar rats were exposed head-nose to atmospheres of the respective materials for 6 hours per day on 5 consecutive days. Target concentrations were 0.1, 0.5, or 2.5 mg/m3 for multi-wall carbon nanotubes and 0.5, 2.5, or 10 mg/m3 for graphene, graphite nanoplatelets and low-surface carbon black. Toxicity was determined after end of exposure and after three-week recovery using broncho-alveolar lavage fluid and microscopic examinations of the entire respiratory tract. No adverse effects were observed after inhalation exposure to 10 mg/m3 graphite nanoplatelets or relatively low specific surface area carbon black. Increases of lavage markers indicative for inflammatory processes started at exposure concentration of 0.5 mg/m3 for multi-wall carbon nanotubes and 10 mg/m3 for graphene. Consistent with the changes in lavage fluid, microgranulomas were observed at 2.5 mg/m3 multi-wall carbon nanotubes and 10 mg/m3 graphene. In order to evaluate volumetric loading of the lung as the key parameter driving the toxicity, deposited particle volume was calculated, taking into account different methods to determine the agglomerate density. However, the calculated volumetric load did not correlate to the toxicity, nor did the particle surface burden of the lung. The inhalation toxicity of the investigated carbon-based materials is likely to be a complex interaction of several parameters. Until the properties which govern the toxicity are identified, testing by short-term inhalation is the best option to identify hazardous properties in order to avoid unsafe applications or select

Comparative inhalation toxicity of multi-wall carbon nanotubes, graphene, graphite nanoplatelets and low surface carbon black

Science.gov (United States)

2013-01-01

Background Carbon nanotubes, graphene, graphite nanoplatelets and carbon black are seemingly chemically identical carbon-based nano-materials with broad technological applications. Carbon nanotubes and carbon black possess different inhalation toxicities, whereas little is known about graphene and graphite nanoplatelets. Methods In order to compare the inhalation toxicity of the mentioned carbon-based nanomaterials, male Wistar rats were exposed head-nose to atmospheres of the respective materials for 6 hours per day on 5 consecutive days. Target concentrations were 0.1, 0.5, or 2.5 mg/m3 for multi-wall carbon nanotubes and 0.5, 2.5, or 10 mg/m3 for graphene, graphite nanoplatelets and low-surface carbon black. Toxicity was determined after end of exposure and after three-week recovery using broncho-alveolar lavage fluid and microscopic examinations of the entire respiratory tract. Results No adverse effects were observed after inhalation exposure to 10 mg/m3 graphite nanoplatelets or relatively low specific surface area carbon black. Increases of lavage markers indicative for inflammatory processes started at exposure concentration of 0.5 mg/m3 for multi-wall carbon nanotubes and 10 mg/m3 for graphene. Consistent with the changes in lavage fluid, microgranulomas were observed at 2.5 mg/m3 multi-wall carbon nanotubes and 10 mg/m3 graphene. In order to evaluate volumetric loading of the lung as the key parameter driving the toxicity, deposited particle volume was calculated, taking into account different methods to determine the agglomerate density. However, the calculated volumetric load did not correlate to the toxicity, nor did the particle surface burden of the lung. Conclusions The inhalation toxicity of the investigated carbon-based materials is likely to be a complex interaction of several parameters. Until the properties which govern the toxicity are identified, testing by short-term inhalation is the best option to identify hazardous properties in

Influences on the fraction of hydrophobic and hydrophilic black carbon in the atmosphere

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

G. R. McMeeking

2011-05-01

Full Text Available Black carbon (BC is a short term climate forcer that directly warms the atmosphere, slows convection, and hinders quantification of the effect of greenhouse gases on climate change. The atmospheric lifetime of BC particles with respect to nucleation scavenging in clouds is controlled by their ability to serve as cloud condensation nuclei (CCN. To serve as CCN under typical conditions, hydrophobic BC particles must acquire hygroscopic coatings. However, the quantitative relationship between coatings and hygroscopic properties for ambient BC particles is not known nor is the time scale for hydrophobic-to-hydrophilic conversion. Here we introduce a method for measuring the hygroscopicity of externally and internally mixed BC particles by coupling a single particle soot photometer with a humidified tandem differential mobility analyzer. We test this technique using uncoated and coated laboratory generated model BC compounds and apply it to characterize the hygroscopicity distribution of ambient BC particles. From these data we derive that the observed number fraction of BC that is CCN active at 0.2 % supersaturation is generally low in an urban area near sources and that it varies with the trajectory of the airmass. We anticipate that our method can be combined with measures of air parcel physical and photochemical age to provide the first quantitative estimates for characterizing hydrophobic-to-hydrophilic conversion rates in the atmosphere.

Effect of relative humidity on soot - secondary organic aerosol mixing: A case study from the Soot Aerosol Aging Study (PNNL-SAAS)

Science.gov (United States)

Sharma, N.; China, S.; Zaveri, R. A.; Shilling, J. E.; Pekour, M. S.; Liu, S.; Aiken, A. C.; Dubey, M. K.; Wilson, J. M.; Zelenyuk, A.; OBrien, R. E.; Moffet, R.; Gilles, M. K.; Gourihar, K.; Chand, D.; Sedlacek, A. J., III; Subramanian, R.; Onasch, T. B.; Laskin, A.; Mazzoleni, C.

2014-12-01

Atmospheric processing of fresh soot particles emitted by anthropogenic as well as natural sources alters their physical and chemical properties. For example, fresh and aged soot particles interact differently with incident solar radiation, resulting in different overall radiation budgets. Varying atmospheric chemical and meteorological conditions can result in complex soot mixing states. The Soot Aerosol Aging Study (SAAS) was conducted at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory in November 2013 and January 2014 as a step towards understanding the evolution of mixing state of soot and its impact on climate-relevant properties. Aging experiments on diesel soot were carried out in a controlled laboratory chamber, and the effects of condensation and coagulation processes were systematically explored in separate sets of experiments. In addition to online measurement of aerosol properties, aerosol samples were collected for offline single particle analysis to investigate the evolution of the morphology, elemental composition and fine structure of sample particles from different experiments. Condensation experiments focused on the formation of α-pinene secondary organic aerosol on diesel soot aerosol seeds. Experiments were conducted to study the aging of soot under dry (RH < 2%) and humid conditions (RH ~ 80%). We present an analysis of the morphology of soot, its evolution, and its correlation with optical properties, as the condensation of α-pinene SOA is carried out for the two different RH conditions. The analysis was performed by using scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, scanning transmission x-ray microscopy and atomic force microscopy for single particle characterization. In addition, particle size, mass, composition, shape, and density were characterized in-situ, as a function of organics condensed on soot seeds, using single particle mass spectrometer.

Potential contributions of asphalt and coal tar to black carbon quantification in urban dust, soils, and sediments

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yang, Y.; Mahler, B.J.; Van Metre, P.C.; Ligouis, B.; Werth, C.J. [University of Illinois Urbana Champaign, Urbana, IL (USA). Dept. of Civil & Environmental Engineering

2010-12-01

Measurements of black carbon (BC) using either chemical or thermal oxidation methods are generally thought to indicate the amount of char and/or soot present in a sample. In urban environments, however, asphalt and coal-tar particles worn from pavement are ubiquitous and, because of their pyrogenic origin, could contribute to measurements of BC. Here we explored the effect of the presence of asphalt and coal-tar particles on the quantification of BC in a range of urban environmental sample types, and evaluated biases in the different methods used for quantifying BC. Samples evaluated were pavement dust, residential and commercial area soils, lake sediments from a small urban watershed, and reference materials of asphalt and coal tar. Total BC was quantified using chemical treatment through acid dichromate (Cr{sub 2}O{sub 7}) oxidation and chemo-thermal oxidation at 375{sup o}C (CTO-375). BC species, including soot and char/charcoal, asphalt, and coal tar, were quantified with organic petrographic analysis. Comparison of results by the two oxidation methods and organic petrography indicates that both coal tar and asphalt contribute to BC quantified by Cr{sub 2}O{sub 7} oxidation, and that coal tar contributes to BC quantified by CTO-375. These results are supported by treatment of asphalt and coal-tar reference samples with Cr2O7 oxidation and CTO-375. The reference asphalt is resistant to Cr{sub 2}O{sub 7} oxidation but not to CTO-375, and the reference coal tar is resistant to both Cr2O7 oxidation and CTO-375. These results indicate that coal tar and/or asphalt can contribute to BC measurements in samples from urban areas using Cr{sub 2}O{sub 7} oxidation or CTO-375, and caution is advised when interpreting BC measurements made with these methods.

The Contribution of Black Carbon to Ice Nucleating Particle Concentrations from Prescribed Burns and Wildfires

Science.gov (United States)

Schill, G. P.; DeMott, P. J.; Suski, K. J.; Emerson, E. W.; Rauker, A. M.; Kodros, J.; Levin, E. J.; Hill, T. C. J.; Farmer, D.; Pierce, J. R.; Kreidenweis, S. M.

2017-12-01

Black carbon (BC) has been implicated as a potential immersion-mode ice nucleating particle (INP) because of its relative abundance in the upper troposphere. Furthermore, several field and aircraft measurements have observed positive correlations between BC and INP concentrations. Despite this, the efficiency of BC to act as an immersion-mode INP is poorly constrained. Indeed, previous results from laboratory studies are in conflict, with estimates of BC's impact on INP ranging from no impact to being efficient enough to rival the well-known INP mineral dust. It is, however, becoming clear that the ice nucleation activity of BC may depend on both its fuel type and combustion conditions. For example, previous work has shown that diesel exhaust BC is an extremely poor immersion-mode INP, but laboratory burns of biomass fuels indicate that BC can contribute up to 70% of all INP for some fuel types. Given these dependencies, we propose that sampling from real-world biomass burning sources would provide the most useful new information on the contribution of BC to atmospheric INP. In this work, we will present recent results looking at the sources of INP from prescribed burns and wildfires. To determine the specific contribution of refractory black carbon (rBC) to INP concentrations, we utilized a new technique that couples the Single Particle Soot Photometer (SP2) to the Colorado State University Continuous Flow Diffusion Chamber (CFDC). The SP2 utilizes laser-induced incandescence to quantify rBC mass on a particle-by-particle basis; in doing so, it also selectively destroys rBC particles by heating them to their vaporization temperature. Thus, the SP2 can be used as a selective pre-filter for rBC into the CFDC. Furthermore, we have also used a filter-based technique for measuring INP, the Ice Spectrometer, which can employ pretreatments such as heating and digestion by H2O2 to determine the contribution of heat-labile and organic particles, respectively.

Impacts of black carbon and co-pollutant emissions from transportation sector in Mexico City

Science.gov (United States)

Zavala, Miguel; Almanza, Victor; Garcia, Agustin; Jazcilevich, Aron; Lei, Wenfang; Molina, Luisa

2016-04-01

Black carbon is one of the most important short-lived climate-forcing agents, which is harmful to human health and also contributes significantly to climate change. Transportation is one of the largest sources of black carbon emissions in many megacities and urban complexes, with diesel vehicles leading the way. Both on-road and off-road vehicles can emit substantial amounts of harmful BC-containing particulate matter (PM) and are also responsible for large emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2), carbon monoxide (CO), nitrogen oxides (NOx), and many other co-emitted volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Regionally, black carbon emissions contributions from mobile sources may vary widely depending on the technical characteristics of the vehicle fleet, the quality and chemical properties of the fuels consumed, and the degree of local development and economic activities that foster wider and more frequent or intensive use of vehicles. This presentation will review and assess the emissions of black carbon from the on-road and off-road transportation sector in the Mexico City Metropolitan Area. Viable mitigation strategies, including innovative technological alternatives to reduce black carbon and co-pollutants in diesel vehicles and their impacts on climate, human health and ecosystems will be described.

Monte carlo simulation for soot dynamics

KAUST Repository

Zhou, Kun

2012-01-01

A new Monte Carlo method termed Comb-like frame Monte Carlo is developed to simulate the soot dynamics. Detailed stochastic error analysis is provided. Comb-like frame Monte Carlo is coupled with the gas phase solver Chemkin II to simulate soot formation in a 1-D premixed burner stabilized flame. The simulated soot number density, volume fraction, and particle size distribution all agree well with the measurement available in literature. The origin of the bimodal distribution of particle size distribution is revealed with quantitative proof.

Final Progress Report for Collaborative Research: Aging of Black Carbon during Atmospheric Transport: Understanding Results from the DOE’s 2010 CARES and 2012 ClearfLo Campaigns

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mazzoleni, Claudio [Michigan Technological Univ., Houghton, MI (United States); Subramanian, R. [Carnegie Mellon Univ., Pittsburgh, PA (United States)

2016-08-31

Over the course of this project, we have analyzed data and samples from the Carbonaceous Aerosol and Radiative Effects Study (CARES) and the Clear air for London (ClearfLo) campaign, as well as conducted or participated in laboratory experiments designed to better understand black carbon mixing state and climate-relevant properties. The laboratory campaigns took place at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and Carnegie Mellon University to study various climate-relevant aerosol properties of different sources of soot mixing with secondary organic aerosol precursors. Results from some of these activities were summarized in the previous progress report. This final report presents the manuscripts that have been published (many in the period since the last progress report), lists presentations at different conferences based on grant-related activities, and presents some results that are likely to be submitted for publication in the near future.

A study of the mixing state of black carbon in urban zone

Science.gov (United States)

Mallet, M.; Roger, J. C.; Despiau, S.; Putaud, J. P.; Dubovik, O.

2004-02-01

The knowledge of the mixing state of black carbon particle with other aerosol species is critical for adequate simulations of the direct radiative effect of black carbon particles and its effect on climate. This paper reports the investigation of the mixing state of black carbon aerosol in the urban zone. The study uses a combination of in situ and ground-based remote sensing observations conducted during the ESCOMPTE experiment, which took place in industrialized region in France in summer of 2001. The criteria we used for identifying mixing state relies on the known enhancement of absorption for aerosol composed by internal versus external mixtures of black carbon with weakly absorbing aerosol components. First, using in situ aerosol data, we performed Mie computations and reconstructed the single scattering albedo of aerosol for the two different mixing assumptions: black carbon mixed externally or internally with other aerosol species. Then, we compared the obtained values ωo,int and ωo,ext with the retrievals of ωo from independent AERONET Sun-photometric measurements. The aerosol single scattering albedo (ωo,aer.) derived from the AERONET photometer observations (with the mean value equal to 0.84 ± 0.04) was found to be close to ωo,ext reconstructed from in situ observation under assumptions of external mixture. This similarity between AERONET values and external mixture simulations was observed during all the days studied. Our conclusion on external mixture of black carbon aerosol with other particles in urban zone during ESCOMPTE (close to the pollution source) is coherent with observations made during other independent studies reported in a number of recent publications.

Low black carbon concentration in agricultural soils of central and northern Ethiopia.

Science.gov (United States)

Yli-Halla, Markku; Rimhanen, Karoliina; Muurinen, Johanna; Kaseva, Janne; Kahiluoto, Helena

2018-08-01

Soil carbon (C) represents the largest terrestrial carbon stock and is key for soil productivity. Major fractions of soil C consist of organic C, carbonates and black C. The turnover rate of black C is lower than that of organic C, and black C abundance decreases the vulnerablility of soil C stock to decomposition under climate change. The aim of this study was to determine the distribution of soil C in different pools and impact of agricultural management on the abundance of different species. Soil C fractions were quantified in the topsoils (0-15cm) of 23 sites in the tropical highlands of Ethiopia. The sites in central Ethiopia represented paired plots of agroforestry and adjacent control plots where cereal crops were traditionally grown in clayey soils. In the sandy loam and loam soils of northern Ethiopia, the pairs represented restrained grazing with adjacent control plots with free grazing, and terracing with cereal-based cropping with adjacent control plots without terracing. Soil C contained in carbonates, organic matter and black C along with total C was determined. The total C median was 1.5% (range 0.3-3.6%). The median proportion of organic C was 85% (range 53-94%), 6% (0-41%) for carbonate C and 6% (4-21%) for black C. An increase was observed in the organic C and black C fractions attributable to agroforestry and restrained grazing. The very low concentration of the relatively stable black C fraction and the dominance of organic C in these Ethiopian soils suggest vulnerability to degradation and the necessity for cultivation practices maintaining the C stock. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Mutagenicity of diesel exhaust soot dispersed in phospholipid surfactants

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wallace, W.; Keane, M.; Xing, S.; Harrison, J.; Gautam, M.; Ong, T.

1994-06-01

Organics extractable from respirable diesel exhaust soot particles by organic solvents have been known for some time to be direct acting frameshift mutagens in the Ames Salmonella typhimurium histidine reversion assay. Upon deposition in a pulmonary alveolus or respiratory bronchiole, respirable diesel soot particles will contact first the hypophase which is coated by and laden with surfactants. To model interactions of soot and pulmonary surfactant, the authors dispersed soots in vitro in the primary phospholipid pulmonary surfactant dipalmitoyl glycerophosphorylcholine (lecithin) (DPL) in physiological saline. They have shown that diesel soots dispersed in lecithin surfactant can express mutagenic activity, in the Ames assay system using S. typhimurium TA98, comparable to that expressed by equal amounts of soot extracted by dichloromethane/dimethylsulfoxide (DCM/DMSO). Here the authors report additional data on the same system using additional exhaust soots and also using two other phospholipids, dipalmitoyl glycerophosphoryl ethanolamine (DPPE), and dipalmitoyl phosphatidic acid (DPPA), with different ionic character hydrophilic moieties. A preliminary study of the surfactant dispersed soot in an eucaryotic cell test system also is reported.

Lanthanum-promoted copper-based hydrotalcites derived mixed oxides for NO{sub x} adsorption, soot combustion and simultaneous NO{sub x}-soot removal

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wang, Zhongpeng [School of Resources and Environment, University of Jinan, 106 Jiwei Road, Jinan 250022 (China); Inorganic Chemistry Laboratory, University of Oxford, South Parks Road, Oxford OX1 3QR (United Kingdom); Yan, Xiaotong; Bi, Xinlin; Wang, Liguo [School of Resources and Environment, University of Jinan, 106 Jiwei Road, Jinan 250022 (China); Zhang, Zhaoliang, E-mail: chm_zhangzl@ujn.edu.cn [School of Resources and Environment, University of Jinan, 106 Jiwei Road, Jinan 250022 (China); Jiang, Zheng; Xiao, Tiancun [Inorganic Chemistry Laboratory, University of Oxford, South Parks Road, Oxford OX1 3QR (United Kingdom); Umar, Ahmad [Department of Chemistry, College of Science and Arts, Najran University, P.O. Box 1988, Najran 11001 (Saudi Arabia); Promising Centre for Sensors and Electronic Devices (PCSED), Najran University, P.O. Box 1988, Najran 11001 (Saudi Arabia); Wang, Qiang, E-mail: qiang.wang.ox@gmail.com [College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Beijing Forestry University, 35 Tsinghua East Road, Beijing 100083 (China)

2014-03-01

Graphical abstract: - Highlights: • The addition of La in Cu-based oxides increased the types of active oxygen. • NO{sub x} adsorption, soot oxidation and simultaneous NO{sub x}-soot removal were enhanced. • The possible catalytic mechanism was studied via in situ FTIR analysis. • Soot oxidation was promoted by the NO{sub 2} intermediate. - Abstract: La-promoted Cu-based hydrotalcites derived mixed oxides were prepared and their catalytic activities for NO{sub x} adsorption, soot oxidation, and simultaneous NO{sub x}-soot removal were investigated. The catalysts were characterized by XRD, DTG, BET, FTIR, H2-TPR, TPD and TPO techniques. The oxides catalysts exhibited mesoporous properties with specific surface area of 45–160 m{sup 2}/g. The incorporation of La and Cu decreased the amount of basic sites due to the large decrease in surface areas. Under O{sub 2} atmosphere, La incorporation is dominant for soot oxidation activity, while Cu favors high selectivity to CO{sub 2} formation. A synergetic effect between La and Cu for catalyzed soot oxidation lies in the improved redox property and suitable basicity. The presence of NO in O{sub 2} significantly promoted soot oxidation on the catalysts with the ignition temperature decreased to about 300 °C. In O{sub 2}/NO atmosphere, NO{sub 2} acts as an intermediate which oxidizes soot to CO{sub 2} at a lower temperature with itself reduced to NO or N{sub 2}, contributing to the high catalytic performance in simultaneous removal of NO{sub x} and soot.

Experimental and computational investigation of temperature effects on soot mechanisms

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bi Xiaojie

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Effects of initial ambient temperatures on combustion and soot emission characteristics of diesel fuel were investigated through experiment conducted in optical constant volume chamber and simulation using phenomenological soot model. There are four difference initial ambient temperatures adopted in our research: 1000 K, 900 K, 800 K and 700 K. In order to obtain a better prediction of soot behavior, phenomenological soot model was revised to take into account the soot oxidation feedback on soot number density and good agreement was observed in the comparison of soot measurement and prediction. Results indicated that ignition delay prolonged with the decrease of initial ambient temperature. The heat release rate demonstrated the transition from mixing controlled combustion at high ambient temperature to premixed combustion mode at low ambient temperature. At lower ambient temperature, soot formation and oxidation mechanism were both suppressed. But finally soot mass concentration reduced with decreasing initial ambient temperature. Although the drop in ambient temperature did not cool the mean in-cylinder temperature during the combustion, it did shrink the total area of local high equivalence ratio, in which soot usually generated fast. At 700 K initial ambient temperature, soot emissions were almost negligible, which indicates that sootless combustion might be achieved at super low initial temperature operation conditions.

Black Ink of Activated Carbon Derived From Palm Kernel Cake (PKC)

Science.gov (United States)

Selamat, M. H.; Ahmad, A. H.

2009-06-01

Recycling the waste from natural plant to produce useful end products will benefit many industries and help preserve the environment. The research reported in this paper is an investigation on the use of the natural waste of palm kernel cake (PKC) to produce carbon residue as a black carbon for pigment source by using pyrolysis process. The activated carbons (AC) is produced in powder form using ball milling process. Rheological spectra in ink is one of quality control process in determining its performance properties. Findings from this study will help expand the scientific knowledge-base for black ink production and formulation base on PKC. Various inks with different weight percentage compositions of AC will be made and tested against its respective rheological properties in order to determine ideal ink printing system. The items in the formulation used comprised of organic and bio-waste materials with added additive to improve the quality of the black ink. Modified Polyurethane was used as binder. The binder's properties highlighted an ideal vehicle to be applied for good black ink opacity performance. The rheological behaviour is a general foundation for ink characterization where the wt% of AC-PKC resulted in different pseudoplastic behaviors, including the Newtonian behavior. The result found that Newtonian field was located in between 2 wt% and 10 wt% of AC-PKC composition with binder. Mass spectroscopy results shown that the carbon content in PKC is high and very suitable for black performance. In the ageing test, the pigment of PKC perform fairly according to the standard pigment of Black carbon (CB) of ferum oxide pigment. The contact angle for substrate's wettability of the ink system shown a good angle proven to be a water resistive coating on paper subtrates; an advantage of the PKC ink pigment performance.

Penelitian pengaruh campuran carbon black dan china clay terhadap sifat tegangan putus dan kekerasan karet vulkanisat

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Supraptiningsih Supraptiningsih

1999-07-01

Full Text Available It has been done a research of the influence of mixed carbon black and hardness properties on the vulcanization of rubber. It has been made with additive of carbon black and china clay mixed, in total variation. The result is seen that total variation of carbon black and china clay not influence to tensile strength, but their interacton can do it. The hardness of vulcanization of rubber will be influence by total variation of carbon black china clay anad their interaction.

Estimating soot emissions from an elevated flare

Science.gov (United States)

Almanza, Victor; Sosa, Gustavo

2009-11-01

Combustion aerosols are one of the major concerns in flaring operations, due to both health and environmental hazards. Preliminary results are presented for a 2D transient simulation of soot formation in a reacting jet with exit velocity of 130 m/s under a 5 m/s crossflow released from a 50 m high elevated flare and a 50 cm nozzle. Combustion dynamics was simulated with OpenFOAM. Gas-phase non-premixed combustion was modeled with the Chalmers PaSR approach and a κ-ɛ turbulence model. For soot formation, Moss model was used and the ISAT algorithm for solving the chemistry. Sulfur chemistry was considered to account for the sourness of the fuel. Gas composition is 10 % H2S and 90 % C2H4. A simplified Glassman reaction mechanism was used for this purpose. Results show that soot levels are sensitive to the sulfur present in the fuel, since it was observed a slight decrease in the soot volume fraction. NSC is the current oxidation model for soot formation. Predicted temperature is high (about 2390 K), perhaps due to soot-radiation interaction is not considered yet, but a radiation model implementation is on progress, as well as an oxidation mechanism that accounts for OH radical. Flame length is about 50 m.

Roles of black carbon on the fate of heavy metals and agrochemicals in soil

Science.gov (United States)

Char(coal) and other black carbon materials can comprise up to 35% of total organic carbon in US agricultural soils, and are known to strongly and often irreversibly bind contaminants including heavy metals. Black carbon has received renewed interests in recent years as a solid co-product formed du...

Heterogeneous reaction of SO2 with soot: The roles of relative humidity and surface composition of soot in surface sulfate formation

Science.gov (United States)

Zhao, Yan; Liu, Yongchun; Ma, Jinzhu; Ma, Qingxin; He, Hong

2017-03-01

The conversion of SO2 to sulfates on the surface of soot is still poorly understood. Soot samples with different fractions of unsaturated hydrocarbons and oxygen-containing groups were prepared by combusting n-hexane under well-controlled conditions. The heterogeneous reaction of SO2 with soot was investigated using in situ attenuated total internal reflection infrared (ATR-IR) spectroscopy, ion chromatography (IC) and a flow tube reactor at the ambient pressure and relative humidity (RH). Water promoted SO2 adsorption and sulfate formation at the RH range from 6% to 70%, while exceeded water condensed on soot was unfavorable for sulfate formation due to inhibition of SO2 adsorption when RH was higher than 80%. The surface composition of soot, which was governed by combustion conditions, also played an important role in the heterogeneous reaction of SO2 with soot. This effect was found to greatly depend on RH. At low RH of 6%, soot with the highest fuel/oxygen ratio of 0.162 exhibited a maximum uptake capacity for SO2 because it contained a large amount of aromatic Csbnd H groups, which acted as active sites for SO2 adsorption. At RH of 54%, soot produced with a fuel/oxygen ratio of 0.134 showed the highest reactivity toward SO2 because it contained appropriate amounts of aromatic Csbnd H groups and oxygen-containing groups, subsequently leading to the optimal surface concentrations of both SO2 and water. These results suggest that variation in the surface composition of soot from different sources and/or resulting from chemical aging in the atmosphere likely affects the conversion of SO2 to sulfates.

Large eddy simulation of soot evolution in an aircraft combustor

Science.gov (United States)

Mueller, Michael E.; Pitsch, Heinz

2013-11-01

An integrated kinetics-based Large Eddy Simulation (LES) approach for soot evolution in turbulent reacting flows is applied to the simulation of a Pratt & Whitney aircraft gas turbine combustor, and the results are analyzed to provide insights into the complex interactions of the hydrodynamics, mixing, chemistry, and soot. The integrated approach includes detailed models for soot, combustion, and the unresolved interactions between soot, chemistry, and turbulence. The soot model is based on the Hybrid Method of Moments and detailed descriptions of soot aggregates and the various physical and chemical processes governing their evolution. The detailed kinetics of jet fuel oxidation and soot precursor formation is described with the Radiation Flamelet/Progress Variable model, which has been modified to account for the removal of soot precursors from the gas-phase. The unclosed filtered quantities in the soot and combustion models, such as source terms, are closed with a novel presumed subfilter PDF approach that accounts for the high subfilter spatial intermittency of soot. For the combustor simulation, the integrated approach is combined with a Lagrangian parcel method for the liquid spray and state-of-the-art unstructured LES technology for complex geometries. Two overall fuel-to-air ratios are simulated to evaluate the ability of the model to make not only absolute predictions but also quantitative predictions of trends. The Pratt & Whitney combustor is a Rich-Quench-Lean combustor in which combustion first occurs in a fuel-rich primary zone characterized by a large recirculation zone. Dilution air is then added downstream of the recirculation zone, and combustion continues in a fuel-lean secondary zone. The simulations show that large quantities of soot are formed in the fuel-rich recirculation zone, and, furthermore, the overall fuel-to-air ratio dictates both the dominant soot growth process and the location of maximum soot volume fraction. At the higher fuel

Black carbon measurements during winter 2013-2014 in Athens and intercomparison between different techniques

Science.gov (United States)

Liakakou, Eleni; Stravroulas, Jason; Roukounakis, Nikolaos; Paraskevopoulou, Despina; Fourtziou, Luciana; Psiloglou, Vassilis; Gerasopoulos, Evangelos; Sciare, Jean; Mihalopoulos, Nikolaos

2014-05-01

Black carbon (BC) is a particulate pollutant species emitted from the combustion of fuels, biomass burning for agricultural purposes and forest fires, with the first two anthropogenic sources being the major contributors to the atmospheric burden of BC. The presence of BC is important due to its direct and indirect physicochemical effects and its use as a tracer of burning and subsequent transport processes. Black carbon measurements took place during winter 2013 -2014 in the frame of a pollution monitoring experiment conducted at the urban site of Thissio, Athens (city center) at the premises of the National Observatory of Athens. The economic crisis in Greece and the resulting turn of Athens inhabitants to wood burning for domestic heating, has led to increased daily concentrations of BC in the range of 2-6 μg m-3, peaking at night time (15-20 μg m-3). Three different optical methods were used for the determination of BC. A Particle Soot Absorption Photometer (PSAP; Radiance Research) commercial instrument was used to monitor the light absorption coefficient (σap) at 565 nm of ambient aerosols, with 1 minute resolution. During parts of the campaign, a portable Aethalometer (AE-42; Magee Scientific) was also used to provide measurement of the aerosol BC content at 7 wavelengths over 5 minutes intervals. Exploiting the measurements at different wavelengths is was feasible to separate wood burning BC from BC related to fossil fuel. Two Multi Angle Absorption Photometers (MAAP; Thermo) were also operated as reference. Finally, aerosol samples were collected on 12-hour basis using a sequential dichotomous sampler for the sampling of PM2.5, PM2.5-10and PM10 fractions of aerosols on quartz filters, and the filters were analyzed for elemental carbon (EC) by a thermal - optical transmission technique. The main objective of the study is the intercomparison of the different BC monitoring techniques under a large range of ambient concentrations achieved due to the special

Candle Soot-Driven Performance Enhancement in Pyroelectric Energy Conversion

Science.gov (United States)

Azad, Puneet; Singh, V. P.; Vaish, Rahul

2018-05-01

We observed substantial enhancement in pyroelectric output with the help of candle soot coating on the surface of lead zirconate titanate (PZT). Candle soot of varying thicknesses was coated by directly exposing pyroelectric material to the candle flame. The open-circuit pyroelectric voltage and closed-circuit pyroelectric current were recorded while applying infrared heating across the uncoated and candle soot-coated samples for different heating and cooling cycles. In comparison to the uncoated sample, the maximum open-circuit voltage improves seven times for the candle soot-coated sample and electric current increases by eight times across a resistance of 10Å. Moreover, the harvested energy is enhanced by 50 times for candle soot-coated sample. Results indicate that candle soot coating is an effective and economic method to improve infrared sensing performance of pyroelectric materials.

Conductive additive content balance in Li-ion battery cathodes: Commercial carbon blacks vs. in situ carbon from LiFePO{sub 4}/C composites

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Palomares, Veronica; Goni, Aintzane; Muro, Izaskun Gil de; Rojo, Teofilo [Departamento de Quimica Inorganica, Universidad del Pais Vasco UPV/EHU, P.O. Box. 644, 48080, Bilbao (Spain); de Meatza, Iratxe; Bengoechea, Miguel [Energy Department, CIDETEC-IK4, P Miramon 196, Parque Tecnologico de San Sebastian, 20009, San Sebastian (Spain); Cantero, Igor [Departamento I+D+i Nuevas Tecnologias, CEGASA, Artapadura, 11, 01013 Vitoria-Gasteiz (Spain)

2010-11-15

Two samples of commercial conducting carbon black and the carbon generated in situ during LiFePO{sub 4}/C composite synthesis from citric acid are studied, with the aim of finding out whether carbon from the composite can fulfil the same function as carbon black in the electrode blend for a Li-ion battery. For this purpose, the carbon samples are analyzed by several techniques, such as X-ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy, granulometry, BET specific area and conductivity measurements. Different cathode compositions and component proportions are tested for pellet and cast electrodes. Electrochemical results show that a moderate reduction of commercial carbon black content in both kinds of cathodes, by adding more LiFePO{sub 4}/C composite, enhanced the electrochemical behaviour by around 10%. In situ generated carbon can partially replace commercial conducting carbon black because its high specific surface probably enhances electrolyte penetration into the cathode, but it is always necessary to maintain a minimum amount of carbon black that provides better conductivity in order to obtain a good electrochemical response. (author)

Characterization of black carbon in the ambient air of Agra, India: Seasonal variation and meteorological influence

Science.gov (United States)

Gupta, Pratima; Singh, Shalendra Pratap; Jangid, Ashok; Kumar, Ranjit

2017-09-01

This study characterizes the black carbon in Agra, India home to the Taj Mahal—and situated in the Indo-Gangetic basin. The mean black carbon concentration is 9.5 μg m-3 and, owing to excessive biomass/fossil fuel combustion and automobile emissions, the concentration varies considerably. Seasonally, the black carbon mass concentration is highest in winter, probably due to the increased fossil fuel consumption for heating and cooking, apart from a low boundary layer. The nocturnal peak rises prominently in winter, when the use of domestic heating is excessive. Meanwhile, the concentration is lowest during the monsoon season because of the turbulent atmospheric conditions and the process of washout by precipitation. The ratio of black carbon to brown carbon is less than unity during the entire study period, except in winter (December). This may be because that biomass combustion and diesel exhaust are major black carbon contributors in this region, while a higher ratio in winter may be due to the increased consumption of fossil fuel and wood for heating purposes. ANOVA reveals significant monthly variation in the concentration of black carbon; plus, it is negatively correlated with wind speed and temperature. A high black carbon mass concentration is observed at moderate (1-2 m s-1) wind speed, as compared to calm or turbulent atmospheric conditions.

Steady State Investigations of DPF Soot Burn Rates and DPF Modeling

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Cordtz, Rasmus Lage; Ivarsson, Anders; Schramm, Jesper

2011-01-01

and soot mass concentrations are used as model boundary conditions. An in-house developed raw exhaust gas sampling technique is used to measure the soot concentration upstream the DPF which is also needed to find the DPF soot burn rate. The soot concentration is measured basically by filtering the soot...... characteristics are used to fit model constants of soot and filter properties. Measured DPF gas conversions and soot burn rates are used to fit model activation energies of four DPF regeneration reactions using O2 and NO2 as reactants. Modeled DPF pressure drops and soot burn rates are compared to the steady...... state DPF experiments in the temperature range between 260 and 480 °C. The model widely reproduces the experimental results. Especially the exponential soot burn rate versus temperature is accurately reproduced by the model....

Lightning-produced Carbon Species in the Atmosphere of Saturn

Science.gov (United States)

Delitsky, Mona; Baines, K. H.

2010-10-01

Recent studies by Baines et al (2009) indicate that thunderstorm-associated clouds on Saturn are spectrally dark from 0.7 to 4 um, darker than regular clouds. This darkening is found to be consistent with the presence of particles of elemental carbon, such as in the form of soot particles mixed in with spectrally bright condensates. This carbon is thought to be generated by lightning-induced dissociation of methane. Lightning on Saturn will input large amounts of energy to a narrow column of atmosphere and generate products at high energies such as radicals and ions. After the column cools down, the new chemical species recombine and are frozen into a new chemical equilibrium. Experimental studies in the literature of reactions of methane and other gases in plasma discharges (which simulate lightning) indicate that, even with high ratios of hydrogen/methane, the elemental carbon obtained will form solid dark particles that persist and have a very high C/H ratio. Basically, they are mostly pure carbon, in the form of soot, amorphous carbon, graphite, graphene, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, carbon black, carbon onions, etc. Hydrogen will act as a sealant onto the particles and attach to dangling bonds on their growing surfaces. Even in experiments to form the most crystalline allotrope of carbon, that is, diamond, the presence of hydrogen does not inhibit diamond formation, even at the low pressures in the atmospheres of the Jovian planets or in the interstellar medium (Allamandola et al 1991). Therefore, some form of elemental carbon is likely produced in Saturnian storm clouds and may occur as dark particles of either amorphous carbon, PAHs or crystalline carbon in a form such as graphite. ..Refs: Baines et al., PSS 57, 1650-1658 (2009) ; Allamandola et al., Meteoritics 26, 313 (1991).

Black Carbon Measurements From Ireland's Transboundary Network (TXB)

Science.gov (United States)

Spohn, T. K.; Martin, D.; O'Dowd, C. D. D.

2017-12-01

Black Carbon (BC) is carbonaceous aerosol formed by incomplete fossil fuel combustion. Named for its light absorbing properties, it acts to trap heat in the atmosphere, thus behaving like a greenhouse gas, and is considered a strong, short-lived climate forcer by the International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). Carbonaceous aerosols from biomass burning (BB) such as forest fires and residential wood burning, also known as brown carbon, affect the ultra violet (UV) light absorption in the atmosphere as well. In 2016 a three node black carbon monitoring network was established in Ireland as part of a Transboundary Monitoring Network (TXB). The three sites (Mace Head, Malin Head, and Carnsore Point) are coastal locations on opposing sides of the country, and offer the opportunity to assess typical northern hemispheric background concentrations as well national and European pollution events. The instruments deployed in this network (Magee Scientific AE33) facilitate elimination of the changes in response due to `aerosol loading' effects; and a real-time calculation of the `loading compensation' parameter which offers insights into aerosol optical properties. Additionally, these instruments have an inbuilt algorithm, which estimates the difference in absorption in the ultraviolet wavelengths (mostly by brown carbon) and the near infrared wavelengths (only by black carbon).Presented here are the first results of the BC measurements from the three Irish stations, including instrument validation, seasonal variation as well as local, regional, and transboundary influences based on air mass trajectories as well as concurrent in-situ observations (meteorological parameters, particle number, and aerosol composition). A comparison of the instrumental algorithm to off-line sensitivity calculations will also be made to assess the contribution of biomass burning to BC pollution events.

Ignition delay and soot oxidative reactivity of MTBE blended diesel fuel

KAUST Repository

Yang, Seung Yeon; Naser, Nimal; Chung, Suk-Ho; Al-Qurashi, Khalid

2014-01-01

Methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE) was added to diesel fuel to investigate the effect on ignition delay and soot oxidative reactivity. An ignition quality tester (IQT) was used to study the ignition propensity of MTBE blended diesel fuels in a reactive spray environment. The IQT data showed that ignition delay increases linearly as the MTBE fraction increases in the fuel. A four-stroke single cylinder diesel engine was used to generate soot samples for a soot oxidation study. Soot samples were pre-treated using a tube furnace in a nitrogen environment to remove any soluble organic fractions and moisture content. Non-isothermal oxidation of soot samples was conducted using a thermogravimetric analyzer (TGA). It was observed that oxidation of 'MTBE soot' started began at a lower temperature and had higher reaction rate than 'diesel soot' across a range of temperatures. Several kinetic analyses including an isoconversional method and a combined model fitting method were carried out to evaluate kinetic parameters. The results showed that Diesel and MTBE soot samples had similar activation energy but the pre-exponential factor of MTBE soot was much higher than that of the Diesel soot. This may explain why MTBE soot was more reactive than Diesel soot. It is suggested that adding MTBE to diesel fuel is better for DPF regeneration since an MTBE blend can significantly influence the ignition characteristics and, consequently, the oxidative reactivity of soot. Copyright © 2014 SAE International.

Ignition delay and soot oxidative reactivity of MTBE blended diesel fuel

KAUST Repository

Yang, Seung Yeon

2014-04-01

Methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE) was added to diesel fuel to investigate the effect on ignition delay and soot oxidative reactivity. An ignition quality tester (IQT) was used to study the ignition propensity of MTBE blended diesel fuels in a reactive spray environment. The IQT data showed that ignition delay increases linearly as the MTBE fraction increases in the fuel. A four-stroke single cylinder diesel engine was used to generate soot samples for a soot oxidation study. Soot samples were pre-treated using a tube furnace in a nitrogen environment to remove any soluble organic fractions and moisture content. Non-isothermal oxidation of soot samples was conducted using a thermogravimetric analyzer (TGA). It was observed that oxidation of \\'MTBE soot\\' started began at a lower temperature and had higher reaction rate than \\'diesel soot\\' across a range of temperatures. Several kinetic analyses including an isoconversional method and a combined model fitting method were carried out to evaluate kinetic parameters. The results showed that Diesel and MTBE soot samples had similar activation energy but the pre-exponential factor of MTBE soot was much higher than that of the Diesel soot. This may explain why MTBE soot was more reactive than Diesel soot. It is suggested that adding MTBE to diesel fuel is better for DPF regeneration since an MTBE blend can significantly influence the ignition characteristics and, consequently, the oxidative reactivity of soot. Copyright © 2014 SAE International.

Selection and Characterization of Carbon Black and Surfactants for Development of Small Scale Uranium Oxicarbide Kernels

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Contescu, Cristian I [ORNL

2006-01-01

This report supports the effort for development of small scale fabrication of UCO (a mixture of UO{sub 2} and UC{sub 2}) fuel kernels for the generation IV high temperature gas reactor program. In particular, it is focused on optimization of dispersion conditions of carbon black in the broths from which carbon-containing (UO{sub 2} {center_dot} H{sub 2}O + C) gel spheres are prepared by internal gelation. The broth results from mixing a hexamethylenetetramine (HMTA) and urea solution with an acid-deficient uranyl nitrate (ADUN) solution. Carbon black, which is previously added to one or other of the components, must stay dispersed during gelation. The report provides a detailed description of characterization efforts and results, aimed at identification and testing carbon black and surfactant combinations that would produce stable dispersions, with carbon particle sizes below 1 {micro}m, in aqueous HMTA/urea and ADUN solutions. A battery of characterization methods was used to identify the properties affecting the water dispersability of carbon blacks, such as surface area, aggregate morphology, volatile content, and, most importantly, surface chemistry. The report introduces the basic principles for each physical or chemical method of carbon black characterization, lists the results obtained, and underlines cross-correlations between methods. Particular attention is given to a newly developed method for characterization of surface chemical groups on carbons in terms of their acid-base properties (pK{sub a} spectra) based on potentiometric titration. Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy was used to confirm the identity of surfactants, both ionic and non-ionic. In addition, background information on carbon black properties and the mechanism by which surfactants disperse carbon black in water is also provided. A list of main physical and chemical properties characterized, samples analyzed, and results obtained, as well as information on the desired trend or

Effect of sterilization on mineralization of straw and black carbon

OpenAIRE

Bobul'ská, Lenka; Bruun, Sander; Fazekašová, Danica

2013-01-01

The study was aimed at investigating the role of microorganisms in the degradation of BC (black carbon). CO evolution was measured under sterilized and non-sterilized soil using BC and straw amendments. Black carbon and straw were produced from homogenously C labelled roots of barley (Hordeum vulgare) with a specific activity 2.9 MBq g C. Production of BC was implemented at 300 °C for 24 h in a muffle oven, incubated in soil and C in the evolved CO was measured after 0.5, 1, 2, 4, 8, 16, 26 a...

Effects of carbon blacks with various structures on vulcanization and reinforcement of filled ethylene-propylene-diene rubber

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

2008-10-01

Full Text Available The effects of carbon blacks on vulcanization and mechanical properties of filled ethylene-propylene-diene rubber (EPDM are investigated, by comparing with five types of rubber-grade carbon blacks. Curing kinetics is studied by rheometer and the results indicate that the curing characteristics are influenced by combination of surface area of carbon black and sulphur content on the filler surface, because the former one enhances the physical cross-linking and the latter one introduces the additional chemical cross-linking. Both the degree of cross-linking and cure rate increase with increasing surface area and sulphur content, whereas the optimum cure time and scorch time decrease. The reinforcing nature of the carbon black is assessed from mechanical measurements. It is suggested that the surface area of carbon blacks strongly affects the physical properties of EPDM/carbon black composites. Conductive carbon black (N472 can be used as desirable reinforcing filler due to the higher degree of cross-linking of EPDM with N472 than other EPDM/carbon black composites. The morphology and distribution of particles are studied by using scanning electron microscope. The sound reinforcing ability of N472 is also supported by scanning electron microscope due to the notable dispersibility of N472 within EPDM matrix. N472 ensures the EPDM/N472 composite the most conductive sample among the five composites.

Hydrogen and Carbon Black Production from Thermal Decomposition of Sub-Quality Natural Gas

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M. Javadi

2010-03-01

Full Text Available The objective of this paper is computational investigation of the hydrogen and carbon black production through thermal decomposition of waste gases containing CH4 and H2S, without requiring a H2S separation process. The chemical reaction model, which involves solid carbon, sulfur compounds and precursor species for the formation of carbon black, is based on an assumed Probability Density Function (PDF parameterized by the mean and variance of mixture fraction and β-PDF shape. The effects of feedstock mass flow rate and reactor temperature on hydrogen, carbon black, S2, SO2, COS and CS2 formation are investigated. The results show that the major factor influencing CH4 and H2S conversions is reactor temperature. For temperatures higher than 1100° K, the reactor CH4 conversion reaches 100%, whilst H2S conversion increases in temperatures higher than 1300° K. The results reveal that at any temperature, H2S conversion is less than that of CH4. The results also show that in the production of carbon black from sub-quality natural gas, the formation of carbon monoxide, which is occurring in parallel, play a very significant role. For lower values of feedstock flow rate, CH4 mostly burns to CO and consequently, the production of carbon black is low. The results show that the yield of hydrogen increases with increasing feedstock mass flow rate until the yield reaches a maximum value, and then drops with further increase in the feedstock mass flow rate.

Comparative DEMS study on the electrochemical oxidation of carbon blacks

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ashton, Sean James; Arenz, Matthias

2012-01-01

Publication year: 2012 Source:Journal of Power Sources, Volume 217 Sean J. Ashton, Matthias Arenz The intention of the study presented here is to compare the electrochemical oxidation tendencies of a pristine Ketjen Black EC300 high surface area (HSA) carbon black, and four graphitised counterparts...... heat-treated between 2100 and 3200 °C, such as those typically used as corrosion resistant carbon (CRC) supports for polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) catalysts. A methodology combining cyclic voltammetry (CV) and differential electrochemical mass spectrometry (DEMS) is used, which allows......; however, CRC samples graphitised =2800 °C did not exhibit this same behaviour. Highlights ¿ We quantitatively determine electrooxidation of carbon support materials. ¿ We can distinguish between the total and partial electrooxidation. ¿ Non or mildly heat treated carbon forms passivating layer. ¿ Heat...

High Altitude Emissions of Black Carbon Aerosols: Potential Climate Implications

Science.gov (United States)

Satheesh, S. K.

2017-12-01

Synthesizing a series of ground-based and airborne measurements of aerosols over the Indian region during summer and pre-monsoon seasons have revealed the persistence of elevated absorbing aerosol layers over most of the Indian region; more than 50% of which located above clouds. Subsequent, in situ measurements of black carbon (BC) using high-altitude balloons, showed surprising layers with high concentrations in the middle and upper troposphere even at an altitude of 8 to 10 kms. Simultaneous measurements of the vertical thermal structure have shown localized warming due to BC absorption leading to large reduction in lapse rate and sharp temperature inversion, which in turn increases the atmospheric stability. This aerosol-induced stable layer is conducive for maintaining the black carbon layer longer at that level, leading thereby to further solar absorption and subsequently triggering dry convection. These observations support the `solar escalator' concept through which absorption-warming-convection cycles lead to self-lifting of BC to upper troposphere or even to lower stratosphere under favorable conditions in a matter of a few days. Employing an on-line regional chemistry transport model (WRF-Chem), incorporating aircraft emissions, it is shown that emissions from high-flying aircrafts as the most likely source of these elevated black carbon layers. These in-situ injected particles, produce significant warming of the thin air in those heights and lift these layers to even upper tropospheric/lower stratospheric heights, aided by the strong monsoonal convection occurring over the region, which are known to overshoot the tropical tropopause leading to injection of tropospheric air mass (along with its constituent aerosols) into the stratosphere, especially during monsoon season when the tropical tropopause layer is known to be thinnest. These simulations are further supported by the CALIPSO space-borne LIDAR derived extinction coefficient profiles. Based on

Numerical Modelling of Soot Formation in Laminar Axisymmetric Ethylene-Air Coflow Flames at Atmospheric and Elevated Pressures

KAUST Repository

Abdelgadir, Ahmed; Rakha, Ihsan Allah; Steinmetz, Scott A.; Attili, Antonio; Bisetti, Fabrizio; Roberts, William L.

2015-01-01

, coupled with detailed transport and kinetic models, to reproduce experimental measurements of a series of ethylene-air coflow flames. Detailed finite rate chemistry describing the formation of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydro-carbons is used. Soot is modeled

Effects of diluents on soot surface temperature and volume fraction in diluted ethylene diffusion flames at pressure

KAUST Repository

Kailasanathan, Ranjith Kumar Abhinavam; Zhang, Ji; Fang, Tiegang; Roberts, William L.

2014-01-01

Soot surface temperature and volume fraction are measured in ethylene/air coflowing laminar diffusion flames at high pressures, diluted with one of four diluents (argon, helium, nitrogen, and carbon dioxide) using a two-color technique. Both

Single nanocrystals of uranium dicarbide encapsulated in carbon

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pasqualini, Enrique; Adelfang, Pablo

1996-01-01

The simultaneous volatilization of carbon and uranium compounds in an inert atmosphere produces the encapsulation of uranium dicarbide in graphitic material. These composite particles are of nanoscopic dimensions (smaller than 100 nanometers) and have the appearance of a black soot. Nanocapsules are as chemically inert as graphite and providers a more secure handling and processing of nuclear toxic materials. They preserve uranium dicarbide from environmental decomposition. The kernel of the nanoparticles is a single crystal of uranium dicarbide. The covers of the crystal are of graphitic structures of two types: parallel graphite layers and randomly oriented graphite crystallites. Both type of covers surround the UC 2 nanocrystal kernel. Density separation and measurements of specific area (BET technique) of purified soot were done. Particular adsorption and desorption kinetics of nitrogen monolayers indicate the presence of nanoparticles agglomeration. This is confirmed by direct observation by transmission electron microscopy (TEM). From density measurement and high resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) observation it can be inferred that there are gaps between kernel and cover and probably closed porosity inside clusters. Raman spectroscopy indicates only the presence of graphitic type carbon. Rietveld refinement of the nanoencapsulated material helps in the interpretation of X-Ray diffraction spectra. (author)

Single nanocrystals of uranium dicarbide encapsulated in carbon

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Pasqualini, Enrique; Adelfang, Pablo [Comision Nacional de Energia Atomica, Buenos Aires (Argentina). Dept. de Combustibles Nucleares

1996-07-01

The simultaneous volatilization of carbon and uranium compounds in an inert atmosphere produces the encapsulation of uranium dicarbide in graphitic material. These composite particles are of nanoscopic dimensions (smaller than 100 nanometers) and have the appearance of a black soot. Nanocapsules are as chemically inert as graphite and providers a more secure handling and processing of nuclear toxic materials. They preserve uranium dicarbide from environmental decomposition. The kernel of the nanoparticles is a single crystal of uranium dicarbide. The covers of the crystal are of graphitic structures of two types: parallel graphite layers and randomly oriented graphite crystallites. Both type of covers surround the UC{sub 2} nanocrystal kernel. Density separation and measurements of specific area (BET technique) of purified soot were done. Particular adsorption and desorption kinetics of nitrogen monolayers indicate the presence of nanoparticles agglomeration. This is confirmed by direct observation by transmission electron microscopy (TEM). From density measurement and high resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) observation it can be inferred that there are gaps between kernel and cover and probably closed porosity inside clusters. Raman spectroscopy indicates only the presence of graphitic type carbon. Rietveld refinement of the nanoencapsulated material helps in the interpretation of X-Ray diffraction spectra. (author)

Refractory black carbon at the Whistler Peak High Elevation Research Site - Measurements and simulations

Science.gov (United States)

Hanna, Sarah J.; Xu, Jun-Wei; Schroder, Jason C.; Wang, Qiaoqiao; McMeeking, Gavin R.; Hayden, Katherine; Leaitch, W. Richard; Macdonald, AnneMarie; von Salzen, Knut; Martin, Randall V.; Bertram, Allan K.

2018-05-01

Measurements of black carbon at remote and high altitude locations provide an important constraint for models. Here we present six months of refractory black carbon (rBC) data collected in July-August of 2009, June-July of 2010, and April-May of 2012 using a single particle soot photometer (SP2) at the remote Whistler High Elevation Research Site in the Coast Mountains of British Columbia (50.06°N, 122.96°W, 2182 m a.m.s.l). In order to reduce regional boundary layer influences, only measurements collected during the night (2000-0800 PST) were considered. Times impacted by local biomass burning were removed from the data set, as were periods of in-cloud sampling. Back trajectories and back trajectory cluster analysis were used to classify the sampled air masses as Southern Pacific, Northern Pacific, Western Pacific/Asian, or Northern Canadian in origin. The largest rBC mass median diameter (182 nm) was seen for air masses in the Southern Pacific cluster, and the smallest (156 nm) was seen for air masses in the Western Pacific/Asian cluster. Considering all the clusters, the median mass concentration of rBC was 25.0 ± 7.6 ng/m3-STP. The Northern Pacific, Southern Pacific, Western Pacific/Asian, and Northern Canada clusters had median mass concentrations of 25.0 ± 7.6, 21.3 ± 6.9, 25.0 ± 7.9, and 40.6 ± 12.9 ng/m3-STP, respectively. We compared these measurements with simulations from the global chemical transport model GEOS-Chem. The default GEOS-Chem simulations overestimated the median rBC mass concentrations for the different clusters by a factor of 1.2-2.2. The largest difference was observed for the Northern Pacific cluster (factor of 2.2) and the smallest difference was observed for the Northern Canada cluster (factor of 1.2). A sensitivity simulation that excluded Vancouver emissions still overestimated the median rBC mass concentrations for the different clusters by a factor of 1.1-2.0. After implementation of a revised wet scavenging scheme, the

Strain rate effect on sooting characteristics in laminar counterflow diffusion flames

KAUST Repository

Wang, Yu

2016-01-20

The effects of strain rate, oxygen enrichment and fuel type on the sooting characteristics of counterflow diffusion flames were studied. The sooting structures and relative PAH concentrations were measured with laser diagnostics. Detailed soot modeling using recently developed PAH chemistry and surface reaction mechanism was performed and the results were compared with experimental data for ethylene flames, focusing on the effects of strain rates. The results showed that increase in strain rate reduced soot volume fraction, average size and peak number density. Increase in oxygen mole fraction increased soot loading and decreased its sensitivity on strain rate. The soot volume fractions of ethane, propene and propane flames were also measured as a function of global strain rate. The sensitivity of soot volume fraction to strain rate was observed to be fuel dependent at a fixed oxygen mole fraction, with the sensitivity being higher for more sooting fuels. However, when the soot loadings were matched at a reference strain rate for different fuels by adjusting oxygen mole fraction, the dependence of soot loading on strain rate became comparable among the tested fuels. PAH concentrations were shown to decrease with increase in strain rate and the dependence on strain rate is more pronounced for larger PAHs. Soot modeling was performed using detailed PAH growth chemistry with molecular growth up to coronene. A qualitative agreement was obtained between experimental and simulation results, which was then used to explain the experimentally observed strain rate effect on soot growth. However, quantitatively, the simulation result exhibits higher sensitivity to strain rate, especially for large PAHs and soot volume fractions.

Hot electron-induced electrochemiluminescence at polyetherimide-carbon black-based electrodes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Salminen, Kalle; Grönroos, Päivi; Johansson, Leena-Sisko; Campbell, Joseph; Kulmala, Sakari

2017-01-01

Highlights: • Generation of hydrated electrons at carbon paste electrodes. • Hydrated electrons are able to produce intense chemiluminescence. • Relationship between carbon black content in electrode and HECL studied. • Performance of composite electrodes is similar to aluminum electrodes. • The present electrodes are good alternative for disposable assay cartridges. - Abstract: Various luminophores produce strong electrogenerated chemiluminescence during cathodic pulse polarization of the present insulating film-covered carbon paste electrodes in fully aqueous solutions. First electrodes made of a commercial conductive carbon paste were successfully utilized as working electrodes and their surface was characterized by ESCA. Then custom in-laboratory made improved composite electrodes were manufactured from the same insulating polymer and conducting carbon black particles. The relationship between the amount of carbon present on the composite electrode, in the bulk and on the surface, and the intensity of electrogenerated chemiluminescence was studied further. The overall performance of these composite electrodes makes them viable low-cost replacements for metal/insulator type electrodes such as oxide-coated silicon electrodes.

Dynamac molecular structure of plant biomass-derived black carbon (Biochar)

Science.gov (United States)

Char black carbon (BC), the solid residue of incomplete combustion, is continuously being added to soils and sediments due to natural vegetation fires, anthropogenic pollution, and new strategies for carbon sequestration (“biochar”). Here we present a molecular-level assessment o...

Effect of sulfur and Nano- carbon black on the mechanical properties of hard rubber

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mohamed Hamza Al-Maamori

2018-01-01

Full Text Available To improve the properties of hard rubber(Ebonite from natural rubber, added Nano-Carbon black, where measured the properties of tensile, density, hardness and the properties of the vulcanization of a group of samples with different amount of sulfur from 18-36 pphr and different of carbon black (18-26-30 pphr. The results showed that the best carbon black ratio is 30 pphr, where it gives a balance between tensile properties of hand and toughness and flexibility of on the other hand and reduce brittleness in hard rubber.

Influence of public transport in black carbon

Science.gov (United States)

Vasquez, Y.; Oyola, P.; Gramsch, E. V.; Moreno, F.; Rubio, M.

2013-05-01

As a consequence of poor air quality in Santiago de Chile, several measures were taken by the local authorities to improve the environmental conditions and protect the public health. In year 2005 the Chilean government implemented a project called "Transantiago" aimed to introduce major modifications in the public transportation system. The primary objectives of this project were to: provide an economically, socially and environmentally sustainable service and improve the quality of service without increasing fares. In this work we evaluate the impact of the Transantiago system on the black carbon pollution along four roads directly affected by the modification to the transport system. The black carbon has been used to evaluate changes in air quality due to changes in traffic. The assessment was done using measurements of black carbon before Transantiago (June-July 2005) and after its implementation (June-July 2007). Four sites were selected to monitor black carbon at street levels, one site (Alameda) that represents trunk-bus streets, i.e., buses crossing the city through main avenues. Buses using these streets had an important technological update with respect to 2005. Two streets (Usach and Departamental) show a mixed condition, i.e., they combine feeder and trunk buses. These streets combine new EURO III buses with old buses with more than 3 years of service. The last street (Eliodoro Yañez) represent private cars road without public transportation and did not experience change. Hence, the results from the years 2005 and 2007 can be directly compared using an appropriate methodology. To ensure that it was not the meteorological conditions that drive the trends, the comparison between year 2005 and 2007 was done using Wilcoxon test and a regression model. A first assessment at the four sites suggested a non decrease in black carbon concentration from 2005 to 2007, except for Alameda. A first statistical approach confirmed small increases in BC in Usach and E

Estimation of Black Carbon Emissions from Dry Dipterocarp Forest Fires in Thailand

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ubonwan Chaiyo

2014-12-01

Full Text Available This study focused on the estimation of black carbon emissions from dry dipterocarp forest fires in Thailand. Field experiments were set up at the natural forest, Mae Nam Phachi wildlife sanctuary, Ratchaburi Province, Thailand. The dead leaves were the main component consumed of the surface biomass with coverage higher than 90% in volume and mass. The dead leaves load was 342 ± 190 g∙m−2 and followed by a little mass load of twig, 100 g∙m−2. The chemical analysis of the dead leaves showed that the carbon content in the experimental biomass fuel was 45.81 ± 0.04%. From the field experiments, it was found that 88.38 ± 2.02% of the carbon input was converted to carbon released to the atmosphere, while less than 10% were left in the form of residues, and returned to soil. The quantity of dead leaves consumed to produce each gram of carbon released was 2.40 ± 0.02 gdry biomass burned. From the study, the emissions factor of carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, particulate matter (PM2.5 and black carbon amounted 1329, 90, 26.19 and 2.83 g∙kg−1dry biomass burned, respectively. In Thailand, the amount of black carbon emissions from dry dipterocarp forest fires amounted 17.43 tonnes∙y−1.

A black body absorber from vertically aligned single-walled carbon nanotubes

Science.gov (United States)

Mizuno, Kohei; Ishii, Juntaro; Kishida, Hideo; Hayamizu, Yuhei; Yasuda, Satoshi; Futaba, Don N.; Yumura, Motoo; Hata, Kenji

2009-01-01

Among all known materials, we found that a forest of vertically aligned single-walled carbon nanotubes behaves most similarly to a black body, a theoretical material that absorbs all incident light. A requirement for an object to behave as a black body is to perfectly absorb light of all wavelengths. This important feature has not been observed for real materials because materials intrinsically have specific absorption bands because of their structure and composition. We found a material that can absorb light almost perfectly across a very wide spectral range (0.2–200 μm). We attribute this black body behavior to stem from the sparseness and imperfect alignment of the vertical single-walled carbon nanotubes. PMID:19339498

Aromatics Oxidation and Soot Formation in Flames

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Howard, J. B.; Richter, H.

2005-03-29

This project is concerned with the kinetics and mechanisms of aromatics oxidation and the growth process to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) of increasing size, soot and fullerenes formation in flames. The overall objective of the experimental aromatics oxidation work is to extend the set of available data by measuring concentration profiles for decomposition intermediates such as phenyl, cyclopentadienyl, phenoxy or indenyl radicals which could not be measured with molecular-beam mass spectrometry to permit further refinement and testing of benzene oxidation mechanisms. The focus includes PAH radicals which are thought to play a major role in the soot formation process while their concentrations are in many cases too low to permit measurement with conventional mass spectrometry. The radical species measurements are used in critical testing and improvement of a kinetic model describing benzene oxidation and PAH growth. Thermodynamic property data of selected species are determined computationally, for instance using density functional theory (DFT). Potential energy surfaces are explored in order to identify additional reaction pathways. The ultimate goal is to understand the conversion of high molecular weight compounds to nascent soot particles, to assess the roles of planar and curved PAH and relationships between soot and fullerenes formation. The specific aims are to characterize both the high molecular weight compounds involved in the nucleation of soot particles and the structure of soot including internal nanoscale features indicative of contributions of planar and/or curved PAH to particle inception.

Dynamics of flow–soot interaction in wrinkled non-premixed ethylene–air flames

KAUST Repository

Arias, Paul G.

2015-08-17

A two-dimensional simulation of a non-premixed ethylene–air flame was conducted by employing a detailed gas-phase reaction mechanism considering polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, an aerosol-dynamics-based soot model using a method of moments with interpolative closure, and a grey gas and soot radiation model using the discrete transfer method. Interaction of the sooting flame with a prescribed decaying random velocity field was investigated, with a primary interest in the effects of velocity fluctuations on the flame structure and the associated soot formation process for a fuel-strip configuration and a composition with mature soot growth. The temporally evolving simulation revealed a multi-layered soot formation process within the flame, at a level of detail not properly described by previous studies based on simplified soot models utilizing acetylene or naphthalene precursors for initial soot inception. The overall effect of the flame topology on the soot formation was found to be consistent with previous experimental studies, while a unique behaviour of localised strong oxidation was also noted. The imposed velocity fluctuations led to an increase of the scalar dissipation rate in the sooting zone, causing a net suppression in the soot production rate. Considering the complex structure of the soot formation layer, the effects of the imposed fluctuations vary depending on the individual soot reactions. For the conditions under study, the soot oxidation reaction was identified as the most sensitive to the fluctuations and was mainly responsible for the local suppression of the net soot production. © 2015 Taylor & Francis

Determination of wood burning and fossil fuel contribution of black carbon at Delhi, India using aerosol light absorption technique.

Science.gov (United States)

Tiwari, S; Pipal, A S; Srivastava, A K; Bisht, D S; Pandithurai, G

2015-02-01

A comprehensive measurement program of effective black carbon (eBC), fine particle (PM2.5), and carbon monoxide (CO) was undertaken during 1 December 2011 to 31 March 2012 (winter period) in Delhi, India. The mean mass concentrations of eBC, PM2.5, and CO were recorded as 12.1 ± 8.7 μg/m(3), 182.75 ± 114.5 μg/m(3), and 3.41 ± 1.6 ppm, respectively, during the study period. Also, the absorption Angstrom exponent (AAE) was estimated from eBC and varied from 0.38 to 1.29 with a mean value of 1.09 ± 0.11. The frequency of occurrence of AAE was ~17 % less than unity whereas ~83 % greater than unity was observed during the winter period in Delhi. The mass concentrations of eBC were found to be higher by ~34 % of the average value of eBC (12.1 μg/m(3)) during the study period. Sources of eBC were estimated, and they were ~94 % from fossil fuel (eBCff) combustion whereas only 6 % was from wood burning (eBCwb). The ratio between eBCff and eBCwb was 15, which indicates a higher impact from fossil fuels compared to biomass burning. When comparing eBCff during day and night, a factor of three higher concentrations was observed in nighttime than daytime, and it is due to combustion of fossil fuel (diesel vehicle emission) and shallow boundary layer conditions. The contribution of eBCwb in eBC was higher between 1800 and 2100 hours due to burning of wood/biomass. A significant correlation between eBC and PM2.5 (r = 0.78) and eBC and CO (r = 0.46) indicates the similarity in location sources. The mass concentration of eBC was highest (23.4 μg/m(3)) during the month of December when the mean visibility (VIS) was lowest (1.31 km). Regression analysis among wind speed (WS), VIS, soot particles, and CO was studied, and significant negative relationships were seen between VIS and eBC (-0.65), eBCff (-0.66), eBCwb (-0.34), and CO (-0.65); however, between WS and eBC (-0.68), eBCff (-0.67), eBCwb (-0.28), and CO (-0.53). The regression analysis indicated

Simulation of soot size distribution in an ethylene counterflow flame

KAUST Repository

Zhou, Kun; Abdelgadir, Ahmed Gamaleldin; Bisetti, Fabrizio

2014-01-01

Soot, an aggregate of carbonaceous particles produced during the rich combustion of fossil fuels, is an undesirable pollutant and health hazard. Soot evolution involves various dynamic processes: nucleation soot formation from polycyclic aromatic

Century-long Record of Black Carbon in an Ice Core from the Eastern Pamirs: Estimated Contributions from Biomass Burning

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wang, Mo; Xu, B.; Kaspari, Susan D.; Gleixner, Gerd; Schwab, Valerie; Zhao, Huabiao; Wang, Hailong; Yao, Ping

2015-08-01

We analyzed refractory black carbon (rBC) in an ice core spanning 1875-2000 AD from Mt. Muztagh Ata, the Eastern Pamirs, using a Single Particle Soot Photometer (SP2). Additionally a pre-existing levoglucosan record from the same ice core was used to differentiate rBC that originated from open fires, energy-related combustion of biomass, and fossil fuel combustion. Mean rBC concentrations increased four-fold since the mid-1970s and reached maximum values at the end of 1980s. The observed decrease of the rBC concentrations during the 1990s was likely driven by the economic recession of former USSR countries in Central Asia. Levoglucosan concentrations showed a similar temporal trend to rBC concentrations, exhibiting a large increase around 1980 AD followed by a decrease in the 1990s that was likely due to a decrease in energy-related biomass combustion. The time evolution of levoglucosan/rBC ratios indicated stronger emissions from open fires during the 1940s-1950s, while the increase in rBC during the 1980s-1990s was caused from an increase in energy-related combustion of biomass and fossil fuels.

Study of black carbon levels in city centers and industrial centers in Jordan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hamasha, K.M.; Almomani, M.S.; Abu-Allaban, M.; Arnott, W. P.

2010-01-01

Light absorption coefficients of black carbon (B abc ) were measured at serveral urban and industrial locations in Jordan during summer of 2007 and winter of 2008 using the photoacoustic instrument at a wavelength of 870 nm. Black carbon mass concentration (BC) was calculated using B abc .Black carbon levels at urban locations in the summer of 2007 were higher than those obtained at industrial centers.Zarqa had the highest value of BC in summer (29.24μg/m 3 ) and in winter (13.27μg/m 3 ). Ibbeen and Irbid city center had relatively high values of BC in winter: 11.75μg/m 3 and 12.48μg/m 3 , respectively. (authors).

Sonoelectrochemical one-pot synthesis of Pt - Carbon black nanocomposite PEMFC electrocatalyst.

Science.gov (United States)

Karousos, Dionysios S; Desdenakis, Kostantinos I; Sakkas, Petros M; Sourkouni, Georgia; Pollet, Bruno G; Argirusis, Christos

2017-03-01

Simultaneous electrocatalytic Pt-nanoparticle synthesis and decoration of Vulcan XC-72 carbon black substrate was achieved in a novel one-step-process, combining galvanostatic pulsed electrodeposition and pulsed ultrasonication with high power, low-frequency (20kHz) ultrasound. Aqueous chloroplatinic acid precursor baths, as well as carbon black suspensions in the former, were examined and decoration was proven by a combination of characterization methods, namely: dynamic light scattering, transmission electron microscopy, scanning electron microscopy with EDX-analysis and cyclic voltammetry. In particular, PVP was shown to have a beneficial stabilizing effect against free nanoparticle aggregation, ensuring narrow size distributions of the nanoparticles synthesized, but is also postulated to prevent the establishment of a strong metal-substrate interaction. Current pulse amplitude was identified as the most critical nanoparticle size-determining parameters, while only small size particles, under 10nm, appeared to be attached to carbon black. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Investigating Soot Morphology in Counterflow Flames at Elevated Pressures

KAUST Repository

Amin, Hafiz Muhammad Fahid

2018-01-01

Practical combustion devices such as gas turbines and diesel engines operate at high pressures to increase their efficiency. Pressure significantly increases the overall soot yield. Morphology of these ultra-fine particles determines their airborne lifetime and their interaction with the human respiratory system. Therefore, investigating soot morphology at high pressure is of practical relevance. In this work, a novel experimental setup has been designed and built to study the soot morphology at elevated pressures. The experimental setup consists of a pressure vessel, which can provide optical access from 10° to 165° for multi-angle light scattering, and a counterflow burner which produces laminar flames at elevated pressures. In the first part of the study, N2-diluted ethylene/air and ethane air counterflow flames are stabilized from 2 to 5 atm. Two-angle light scattering and extinction technique have been used to study the effects of pressure on soot parameters. Path averaged soot volume fraction is found to be very sensitive to pressure and increased significantly from 2 to 5 atm. Primary particle size and aggregate size also increased with pressure. Multi-angle light scattering is also performed and flames are investigated from 3 to 5 atm. Scattering to absorption ratio is calculated from multi-angle light scattering and extinction data. Scattering to absorption ratio increased with pressure whereas the number of primary particles in an aggregate decreased with increasing pressure. In the next part of the study, Thermophoretic Sampling of soot is performed, in counterflow flames from 3 to 10 atm, followed by transmission electron microscopy. Mean primary particle size increased with pressure and these trends are consistent withour light scattering measurements. Fractal properties of soot aggregates are found to be insensitive to pressure. 2D diffused light line of sight attenuation (LOSA) and Laser Induced Incandescence (LII) are used to measure local soot

Black carbon aerosol mixing state, organic aerosols and aerosol optical properties over the UK

Science.gov (United States)

McMeeking, G. R.; Morgan, W. T.; Flynn, M.; Highwood, E. J.; Turnbull, K.; Haywood, J.; Coe, H.

2011-05-01

Black carbon (BC) aerosols absorb sunlight thereby leading to a positive radiative forcing and a warming of climate and can also impact human health through their impact on the respiratory system. The state of mixing of BC with other aerosol species, particularly the degree of internal/external mixing, has been highlighted as a major uncertainty in assessing its radiative forcing and hence its climate impact, but few in situ observations of mixing state exist. We present airborne single particle soot photometer (SP2) measurements of refractory BC (rBC) mass concentrations and mixing state coupled with aerosol composition and optical properties measured in urban plumes and regional pollution over the UK. All data were obtained using instrumentation flown on the UK's BAe-146-301 large Atmospheric Research Aircraft (ARA) operated by the Facility for Airborne Atmospheric Measurements (FAAM). We measured sub-micron aerosol composition using an aerosol mass spectrometer (AMS) and used positive matrix factorization to separate hydrocarbon-like (HOA) and oxygenated organic aerosols (OOA). We found a higher number fraction of thickly coated rBC particles in air masses with large OOA relative to HOA, higher ozone-to-nitrogen oxides (NOx) ratios and large concentrations of total sub-micron aerosol mass relative to rBC mass concentrations. The more ozone- and OOA-rich air masses were associated with transport from continental Europe, while plumes from UK cities had higher HOA and NOx and fewer thickly coated rBC particles. We did not observe any significant change in the rBC mass absorption efficiency calculated from rBC mass and light absorption coefficients measured by a particle soot absorption photometer despite observing significant changes in aerosol composition and rBC mixing state. The contributions of light scattering and absorption to total extinction (quantified by the single scattering albedo; SSA) did change for different air masses, with lower SSA observed in

Effect of Coatings on the Uptake Rate and HONO Yield in Heterogeneous Reaction of Soot with NO2

Science.gov (United States)

Cruz-Quiñones, M.; Khalizov, A. F.; Zhang, R.

2009-12-01

Heterogeneous reaction of nitrogen dioxide on carbon soot aerosols has been suggested as a possible source of nighttime nitrous acid (HONO) in atmosphere boundary layer. Available laboratory data show significant variability in the measured reaction probabilities and HONO yields, making it difficult to asses the atmospheric significance of this process. Moreover, little is known of how aging of soot aerosol through internal mixing with other atmospheric trace constituents will affect the heterogeneous reactivity and HONO production. In this work, the heterogeneous reaction of NO2 on fresh and aged soot films leading to HONO formation was studied through a series of kinetic uptake experiments and HONO yield measurements. Soot samples were prepared by incomplete combustion of propane and kerosene fuels under lean and rich flame conditions. Experiments were performed in a low-pressure, fast-flow reactor coupled to a chemical ionization mass spectrometer (CIMS), using atmospheric-level NO2 concentrations. Heterogeneous uptake coefficients, γ(geom) and γ(BET), were calculated using geometric and internal BET soot surface areas, respectively. The uptake coefficient and the HONO yield depend on the type of fuel and combustion regime and are the highest for soot samples prepared using rich kerosene flame. Although, the internal surface area of soot measured by BET method is a factor of 50 to 500 larger than the geometric surface area, only the top soot layers are involved in heterogeneous reaction with NO2 as follows from the observed weak dependence of γ(geom) and decrease in γ(BET) with increasing sample mass. Heating the soot samples before exposure to NO2 increases the BET surface area, the HONO yield, and the NO2 uptake coefficient due to the removal of the organic fraction from the soot backbone that unblocks active sites and makes them accessible for physical adsorption and chemical reactions. Our results support the oxidation-reduction mechanism involving

Black carbon's contribution to aerosol absorption optical depth over S. Korea

Science.gov (United States)

Lamb, K.; Perring, A. E.; Beyersdorf, A. J.; Anderson, B. E.; Segal-Rosenhaimer, M.; Redemann, J.; Holben, B. N.; Schwarz, J. P.

2017-12-01

Aerosol absorption optical depth (AAOD) monitored by ground-based sites (AERONET, SKYNET, etc.) is used to constrain climate radiative forcing from black carbon (BC) and other absorbing aerosols in global models, but few validation studies between in situ aerosol measurements and ground-based AAOD exist. AAOD is affected by aerosol size distributions, composition, mixing state, and morphology. Megacities provide appealing test cases for this type of study due to their association with very high concentrations of anthropogenic aerosols. During the KORUS-AQ campaign in S. Korea, which took place in late spring and early summer of 2016, in situ aircraft measurements over the Seoul Metropolitan Area and Taehwa Research Forest (downwind of Seoul) were repeated three times per flight over a 6 week period, providing significant temporal coverage of vertically resolved aerosol properties influenced by different meteorological conditions and sources. Measurements aboard the NASA DC-8 by the NOAA Humidified Dual Single Particle Soot Photometers (HD-SP2) quantified BC mass, size distributions, mixing state, and the hygroscopicity of BC containing aerosols. The in situ BC mass vertical profiles are combined with estimated absorption enhancement calculated from observed optical size and hygroscopicity using Mie theory, and then integrated over the depth of the profile to calculate BC's contribution to AAOD. Along with bulk aerosol size distributions and hygroscopicity, bulk absorbing aerosol optical properties, and on-board sky radiance measurements, these measurements are compared with ground-based AERONET site measurements of AAOD to evaluate closure between in situ vertical profiles of BC and AAOD measurements. This study will provide constraints on the relative importance of BC (including lensing and hygroscopicity effects) and non-BC components to AAOD over S. Korea.

On the Response of Nascent Soot Nanostructure and Oxidative Reactivity to Photoflash Exposure

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Wei Wang

2017-07-01

Full Text Available Soot particles are a kind of major pollutant from fuel combustion. To enrich the understanding of soot, this work focuses on investigating detailed influences of instantaneous external irradiation (conventional photoflash exposure on nanostructure as well as oxidation reactivity of nascent soot particles. By detailed soot characterizations flash can reduce the mass of soot and soot nanostructure can be reconstructed substantially without burning. After flash, the degree of soot crystallization increases while the soot reactive rate decreases and the activation energy increases. In addition, nanostructure and oxidative reactivity of soot in air and Ar after flash are different due to their different thermal conductivities.

On the formation and early evolution of soot in turbulent nonpremixed flames

KAUST Repository

Bisetti, Fabrizio

2012-01-01

A Direct Numerical Simulation (DNS) of soot formation in an n-heptane/air turbulent nonpremixed flame has been performed to investigate unsteady strain effects on soot growth and transport. For the first time in a DNS of turbulent combustion, Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAH) are included via a validated, reduced chemical mechanism. A novel statistical representation of soot aggregates based on the Hybrid Method of Moments is used [M.E. Mueller, G. Blanquart, H. Pitsch, Combust. Flame 156 (2009) 1143-1155], which allows for an accurate state-of-the-art description of soot number density, volume fraction, and morphology of the aggregates. In agreement with previous experimental studies in laminar flames, Damköhler number effects are found to be significant for PAH. Soot nucleation and growth from PAH are locally inhibited by high scalar dissipation rate, thus providing a possible explanation for the experimentally observed reduction of soot yields at increasing levels of mixing in turbulent sooting flames. Furthermore, our data indicate that soot growth models that rely on smaller hydrocarbon species such as acetylene as a proxy for large PAH molecules ignore or misrepresent the effects of turbulent mixing and hydrodynamic strain on soot formation due to differences in the species Damköhler number. Upon formation on the rich side of the flame, soot is displaced relative to curved mixture fraction iso-surfaces due to differential diffusion effects between soot and the gas-phase. Soot traveling towards the flame is oxidized, and aggregates displaced away from the flame grow primarily by condensation of PAH on the particle surface. In contrast to previous DNS studies based on simplified soot and chemistry models, surface reactions are found to contribute barely to the growth of soot, for nucleation and condensation processes occurring in the fuel stream are responsible for the most of soot mass generation. Furthermore, the morphology of the soot aggregates is

Morphology and Chemical Composition of soot particles emitted by Wood-burning Cook-Stoves: a HRTEM, XPS and Elastic backscattering Studies.

Science.gov (United States)

Carabali-Sandoval, G. A., Sr.; Castro, T.; Peralta, O.; De la Cruz, W.; Días, J.; Amelines, O.; Rivera-Hernández, M.; Varela, A.; Muñoz-Muñoz, F.; Policroniades, R.; Murillo, G.; Moreno, E.

2014-12-01

The morphology, microstructure and the chemical composition on surface of soot particles were studied by using high resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and elastic backscattering spectrometry. In order to obtain freshly soot particles emitted by home-made wood-burning cook stoves, copper grids for Transmission Electron Microscope (TEM) were placed on the last two of an 8-stages MOUDI cascade impactor. The analysis of HRTEM micrographs revealed the nanostructure and the particle size of soot particles. The XPS survey spectra show a large carbon peak around 285 eV and the oxygen signal at 533 eV. Some differences observed in the carbon/oxygen (C/O) ratio of the particles probably depend on the combustion process efficiency of each cook-stove analyzed. The C-1s XPS spectra show an asymmetric broad peak and other with low intensity that corresponds to sp2 and sp3hybridization, which were fitted with a convolution using Gaussian functions. Elastic backscattering technique allows a chemical elemental analysis of samples and confirms the presence of C, O and Si observed by XPS. Additionally, the morphological properties of soot aggregates were analyzed calculating the border-based fractal dimension (Df). Particles exhibit complex shapes with high values of Df. Also, real-time absorption (σabs) and scattering (σsct) coefficients of fine (with aerodynamic diameter < 2.5 µm) soot particles were measured. The trend in σabs and σsct indicate that the cooking process has two important combustion stages which varied in its flaming strength, being vigorous in the first stage and soft in the second one.

Characteristics of black carbon in snow from Laohugou No. 12 glacier on the northern Tibetan Plateau.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Yulan; Kang, Shichang; Li, Chaoliu; Gao, Tanguang; Cong, Zhiyuan; Sprenger, Michael; Liu, Yajun; Li, Xiaofei; Guo, Junming; Sillanpää, Mika; Wang, Kun; Chen, Jizu; Li, Yang; Sun, Shiwei

2017-12-31

Black carbon (BC) emitted from the incomplete combustion of biomass and fossil fuel impacts the climate system, cryospheric change, and human health. This study documents black carbon deposition in snow from a benchmark glacier on the northern Tibetan Plateau. Significant seasonality of BC concentrations indicates different input or post-depositional processes. BC particles deposited in snow had a mass volume median diameter slightly larger than that of black carbon particles typically found in the atmosphere. Also, unlike black carbon particles in the atmosphere, the particles deposited in snow did not exhibit highly fractal morphology by Scanning Transmission Electron Microscope. Footprint analysis indicated BC deposited on the glacier in summer originated mainly from Central Asia; in winter, the depositing air masses generally originated from Central Asia and Pakistan. Anthropogenic emissions play an important role on black carbon deposition in glacial snow, especially in winter. The mass absorption efficiency of BC in snow at 632nm exhibited significantly seasonality, with higher values in summer and lower values in winter. The information on black carbon deposition in glacial snow provided in this study could be used to help mitigate the impacts of BC on glacier melting on the northern Tibetan Plateau. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Effect of Morphology and Composition on the Hygroscopicity of Soot Aerosols

Science.gov (United States)

Williams, L.; Slowik, J.; Davidovits, P.; Jayne, J.; Kolb, C.; Worsnop, D.; Rudich, Y.

2003-12-01

Freshly generated soot aerosols are initially hydrophobic and unlikely to act as cloud condensation nuclei (CCN). However, during combustion many low vapor pressure gas products are formed that may then condense on existing soot aerosols. Additionally, soot particles may acquire coatings as they age, such as acids, salts, and oxygenated organics. An understanding of this aging process and its effect on soot hygroscopicity is necessary to address the potential of soot to act as a CCN. The transformation of soot from hydrophobic to hydrophilic is the focus of this work. An aim here is to determine the minimum coating required for hygroscopic growth. Soot particles produced by combustion of mixtures of fuel and air are size selected by a Differential Mobility Analyzer (DMA) and entrained in a laminar flow passing through a flow tube. The size selected soot particles are mixed with a controlled amount of the gas phase precursors to produce the coatings to be studied. Initial studies are focused on coatings of H2SO4, NH4NO3, and selected organics. The number of particles per unit volume of air is counted by a Condensation Particle Counter (CPC) and the particles are isokinetically sampled into an Aerosol Mass Spectrometer (AMS). Two distinct types of soot aerosols have been observed depending on the type of fuel and air mixture. With soot produced by the combustion of propane and air, the AMS shows a polydisperse particle size distribution with aerodynamic diameters ranging from 100 nm to 400 nm. The aerodynamic diameter is linearly related to the DMA-determined mobility diameter with the product density x shape factor = 1.2. The organic molecules in this soot are mostly PAH compounds. However, when kerosene is added to the propane flame, the soot particle morphology and composition is strikingly altered. While the DMA shows an essentially unchanged mobility diameter distribution, in the range 100 nm to 400, aerodynamic particle diameter is constant at about 100 nm

Soot modeling of counterflow diffusion flames of ethylene-based binary mixture fuels

KAUST Repository

Wang, Yu

2015-03-01

A soot model was developed based on the recently proposed PAH growth mechanism for C1-C4 gaseous fuels (KAUST PAH Mechanism 2, KM2) that included molecular growth up to coronene (A7) to simulate soot formation in counterflow diffusion flames of ethylene and its binary mixtures with methane, ethane and propane based on the method of moments. The soot model has 36 soot nucleation reactions from 8 PAH molecules including pyrene and larger PAHs. Soot surface growth reactions were based on a modified hydrogen-abstraction-acetylene-addition (HACA) mechanism in which CH3, C3H3 and C2H radicals were included in the hydrogen abstraction reactions in addition to H atoms. PAH condensation on soot particles was also considered. The experimentally measured profiles of soot volume fraction, number density, and particle size were well captured by the model for the baseline case of ethylene along with the cases involving mixtures of fuels. The simulation results, which were in qualitative agreement with the experimental data in the effects of binary fuel mixing on the sooting structures of the measured flames, showed in particular that 5% addition of propane (ethane) led to an increase in the soot volume fraction of the ethylene flame by 32% (6%), despite the fact that propane and ethane are less sooting fuels than is ethylene, which is in reasonable agreement with experiments of 37% (14%). The model revealed that with 5% addition of methane, there was an increase of 6% in the soot volume fraction. The average soot particle sizes were only minimally influenced while the soot number densities were increased by the fuel mixing. Further analysis of the numerical data indicated that the chemical cross-linking effect between ethylene and the dopant fuels resulted in an increase in PAH formation, which led to higher soot nucleation rates and therefore higher soot number densities. On the other hand, the rates of soot surface growth per unit surface area through the HACA mechanism were

Quantifying the variability of potential black carbon transport from cropland burning in Russia driven by atmospheric blocking events.

Science.gov (United States)

Hall, J.; Loboda, T. V.

2017-12-01

Short lived aerosols and pollutants transported from northern mid-latitudes have amplified the short term warming in the Arctic region. Specifically, black carbon is recognized as the second most important human emission in regards to climate forcing, behind carbon dioxide with a total climate forcing of +1.1Wm-2. Studies have suggested that cropland burning may be a large contributor to the black carbon emissions which are directly deposited on the snow in the Arctic region. However, accurate monitoring of cropland burning from existing active fire and burned area products is limited, thereby leading to an underestimation in black carbon emissions from cropland burning. This research focuses on 1) assessing the potential for the deposition of hypothetical black carbon emissions from known cropland burning in Russia through low-level transport, and 2) identifying a possible atmospheric pattern that may enhance the transport of black carbon emissions to the Arctic. Specifically, atmospheric blocking events present a potential mechanism that could act to enhance the likelihood of transport or accelerate the transport of pollutants to the snow-covered Arctic from Russian cropland burning based on their persistent wind patterns. This research study confirmed the importance of Russian cropland burning as a potential source of black carbon deposition on the Arctic snow in the spring despite the low injection heights associated with cropland burning. Based on the successful transport pathways, this study identified the potential transport of black carbon from Russian cropland burning beyond 80°N which has important implications for permanent sea ice cover. Further, based on the persistent wind patterns of blocking events, this study identified that blocking events are able to accelerate potential transport and increase the success of transport of black carbon emissions to the snow-covered Arctic during spring when the impact on the snow/ice albedo is at its highest. The

The structure of carbon black-elastomer composites by small-angle neutron scattering and the method of contrast variation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hjelm, R.P.; Wampler, W.; Gerspacher, M.

1996-01-01

We have been exploring the use of small-angle neutron scattering and the method of contrast variation to give a new look at a very old problem: reinforcement of elastomers by carbon black in durable rubber products. Carbon black has a hierarchy of structures consisting of particles covalently bound into aggregates, which in turn associate by weak interactions into agglomerates. We found that in one carbon black, HSA, the aggregates are rodlike, containing an average of 4-6 particles. The aggregates have an outer graphitic shell and an inner core of lower density carbon. The core is continuous throughout the carbon black aggregate. Contrast variation of swollen HSA-polyisoprene gels shows that the HSA is completely embedded in polyisoprene and that the agglomerates are formed predominantly by end on associations of the rodlike aggregates. The surface structure of the carbon black appears smooth over length scales above about 10 angstrom. Further studies using production carbon blacks suggest that these structural characteristics are generally present in commercial rubber composites

Characterization and reactivity of soot from fast pyrolysis of lignocellulosic compounds and monolignols

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Trubetskaya, Anna; Brown, Avery; Tompsett, Geoffrey

2018-01-01

spectroscopy. The CO2 reactivity of soot was investigated by thermogravimetric analysis. Soot from cellulose was more reactive than soot produced from extractives, lignin and monolignols. Soot reactivity was correlated with the separation distances between adjacent graphene layers, as measured using...... transmission electron microscopy. Particle size, free radical concentration, differences in a degree of curvature and multi-core structures influenced the soot reactivity less than the interlayer separation distances. Soot yield was correlated with the lignin content of the feedstock. The selection...... of the extraction solvent had a strong influence on the soot reactivity. The Soxhlet extraction of softwood and wheat straw lignin soot using methanol decreased the soot reactivity, whereas acetone extraction had only a modest effect....

Contribution of Black Carbon Aerosol to Drying of the Mediterranean

Science.gov (United States)

Tang, T.; Shindell, D. T.; Samset, B. H.; Boucher, O.; Forster, P.; Hodnebrog, Ø.; Myhre, G.; Sillmann, J.; Voulgarakis, A.; Andrews, T.; Faluvegi, G.; Fläschner, D.; Iverson, T.; Kasoar, M.; Kharin, V. V.; Kirkevag, A.; Lamarque, J. F.; Olivié, D.; Richardson, T.; Stjern, C.; Takemura, T.; Zwiers, F. W.

2017-12-01

Atmospheric aerosols affect cloud properties, radiative balance and thus, the hydrological cycle. Many studies have reported that precipitation has decreased in the Mediterranean since the mid-20th century, and investigated possible mechanisms. So far, however, the effects of aerosol forcing on Mediterranean precipitation remain largely unknown. Here we compare observed Mediterranean precipitation trends during 1951-2010 with responses to individual forcing in a set of state-of-the-art global climate models. Our analyses suggest that nearly one-third (30%) of the observed precipitation decrease may be attributable to black carbon forcing. The remainder is most strongly linked to forcing of well-mixed greenhouse gases (WMGHGs), with scattering sulfate aerosols having negligible impacts. Black carbon caused an enhanced positive North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO)/Arctic Oscillation (AO)-like sea level pressure (SLP) pattern, characterized by higher SLP at mid-latitudes and lower SLP at high-latitudes. This SLP change diverted the jet stream and storm tracks further northward, reducing precipitation in the Mediterranean while increasing precipitation in Northern Europe. The results from this study suggest that future black carbon emissions may significantly affect regional water resources, agricultural practices, ecosystems, and economy in the Mediterranean region.

Electric anisotropy in high density polyethylene + carbon black composites induced by mechanical deformation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Vigueras-Santiago, E; Hernandez-Lopez, S; Camacho-Lopez, M A; Lara-Sanjuan, O, E-mail: eviguerass@uaemex.m [Laboratorio de Investigacion y Desarrollo de Materiales Avanzados (LIDMA), Facultad de Quimica, UAEM. Paseo Colon esq. con Paseo Tollocan, s/n. C.P. 50000, Toluca (Mexico)

2009-05-01

High density polyethylene + carbon black composites with electrical anisotropy was studied. Electrical anisotropy was induced by uniaxial mechanical deformation and injection moulding. We show that anisotropy depends on the carbon black concentration and percentage deformation. Resistivity had the highest anisotropy resistivity around the percolation threshold. Perpendicular resistivity showed two magnitude orders higher than parallel resistivity for injected samples, whereas resistivity showed an inverse behaviour for 100% tensile samples. Both directions were set respect to the deformation axe. Anisotropy could be explained in terms of the molecular deformation (alignment) of the polymer chains as a response of the deformation process originating a redistribution of the carbon black particles in both directions. Alignment of the polymer chains was evidenced by polarized Raman spectroscopy.

Reductions of PAH and Soot by Center Air Injection

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kazuhiro Yamamoto

2014-07-01

Full Text Available In this study, to reduce the amount of pollutant PAH and soot in the flame, we examined the burner system equipped with a center air injection. For this purpose, by using PAH-LIF and soot LII, we evaluated relative PAH and soot amounts in both the triple port burner and the conventional co-axial burner (double port burner to discuss effects of center air injection on the formation of PAH and soot. The fuel was propane. In the triple port burner, two different blue flames are observed near the burner rim, followed by bright luminous flames with soot. The flame length is longer when the fuel flow velocity is increased. On the other hand, the flame length is shorter with an increase in internal air flow velocity. As for PAH and soot, these amounts of the triple port burner are much smaller than those of the double port burner. For the triple port burner, due to the center air injection, the fuel consumption occurs in both inner and outer flames. On the other hand, for the double port burner, the oxygen is supplied from one side air, and as a result, the fuel consumption rate is relatively lower. Hence, by the center air injection, the fuel consumption is largely accelerated, resulting in the reduction of PAH and soot.

Understanding and predicting soot generation in turbulent non-premixed jet flames.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wang, Hai (University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA); Kook, Sanghoon; Doom, Jeffrey; Oefelein, Joseph Charles; Zhang, Jiayao; Shaddix, Christopher R.; Schefer, Robert W.; Pickett, Lyle M.

2010-10-01

This report documents the results of a project funded by DoD's Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program (SERDP) on the science behind development of predictive models for soot emission from gas turbine engines. Measurements of soot formation were performed in laminar flat premixed flames and turbulent non-premixed jet flames at 1 atm pressure and in turbulent liquid spray flames under representative conditions for takeoff in a gas turbine engine. The laminar flames and open jet flames used both ethylene and a prevaporized JP-8 surrogate fuel composed of n-dodecane and m-xylene. The pressurized turbulent jet flame measurements used the JP-8 surrogate fuel and compared its combustion and sooting characteristics to a world-average JP-8 fuel sample. The pressurized jet flame measurements demonstrated that the surrogate was representative of JP-8, with a somewhat higher tendency to soot formation. The premixed flame measurements revealed that flame temperature has a strong impact on the rate of soot nucleation and particle coagulation, but little sensitivity in the overall trends was found with different fuels. An extensive array of non-intrusive optical and laser-based measurements was performed in turbulent non-premixed jet flames established on specially designed piloted burners. Soot concentration data was collected throughout the flames, together with instantaneous images showing the relationship between soot and the OH radical and soot and PAH. A detailed chemical kinetic mechanism for ethylene combustion, including fuel-rich chemistry and benzene formation steps, was compiled, validated, and reduced. The reduced ethylene mechanism was incorporated into a high-fidelity LES code, together with a moment-based soot model and models for thermal radiation, to evaluate the ability of the chemistry and soot models to predict soot formation in the jet diffusion flame. The LES results highlight the importance of including an optically-thick radiation

Synthesis and luminescence of nanodiamonds from carbon black

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hu Shengliang; Tian Fei; Bai Peikang; Cao Shirui; Sun Jing; Yang Jing

2009-01-01

Dispersed nanodiamonds just several nanometers in diameter have been successfully synthesized using carbon black as the carbon source by a long-pulse-width laser irradiation in water at room temperature and normal pressure. The produced nanodiamonds can emit strong visible light after simple surface passivation. The light emission is attributed to the surface states related to linkage groups formed on nanodiamond surface. The surface-passivated nanodiamonds with stable photoluminescence have high potential application in bioimaging and medicine

Effect of carbon black on electrical and rheological properties of graphite nanoplatelets/poly(ethylene-butyl acrylate composites

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

H. Oxfall

2015-01-01

Full Text Available The effect of adding carbon black on the electrical and rheological properties of graphite nanoplatelets/poly(ethylene-butyl acrylate copolymer composites produced via melt or solution mixing was studied. By adding a small amount of low- or high-structured carbon black to the nanocomposite, the electrical percolation threshold decreased and the final conductivity (at higher filler contents increased. The effect on the percolation threshold was significantly stronger in case of the high-structured carbon black where replacing 10 wt% of the total filler content with carbon black instead of graphite nanoplatelets reduced the electrical percolation threshold from 6.9 to 4.6 vol%. Finally, the solution mixing process was found to be more efficient leading to a lower percolation threshold. For the composites containing high-structured carbon black, graphite nanoplatelets and their hybrids there was a quite reasonable correlation between the electrical and rheological percolation thresholds.

Personal exposure to Black Carbon in transport microenvironments

Science.gov (United States)

Dons, Evi; Int Panis, Luc; Van Poppel, Martine; Theunis, Jan; Wets, Geert

2012-08-01

We evaluated personal exposure of 62 individuals to the air pollutant Black Carbon, using 13 portable aethalometers while keeping detailed records of their time-activity pattern and whereabouts. Concentrations encountered in transport are studied in depth and related to trip motives. The evaluation comprises more than 1500 trips with different transport modes. Measurements were spread over two seasons. Results show that 6% of the time is spent in transport, but it accounts for 21% of personal exposure to Black Carbon and approximately 30% of inhaled dose. Concentrations in transport were 2-5 times higher compared to concentrations encountered at home. Exposure was highest for car drivers, and car and bus passengers. Concentrations of Black Carbon were only half as much when traveling by bike or on foot; when incorporating breathing rates, dose was found to be twice as high for active modes. Lowest 'in transport' concentrations were measured in trains, but nevertheless these concentrations are double the concentrations measured at home. Two thirds of the trips are car trips, and those trips showed a large spread in concentrations. In-car concentrations are higher during peak hours compared to off-peak, and are elevated on weekdays compared to Saturdays and even more so on Sundays. These findings result in significantly higher exposure during car commute trips (motive 'Work'), and lower concentrations for trips with motive 'Social and leisure'. Because of the many factors influencing exposure in transport, travel time is not a good predictor of integrated personal exposure or inhaled dose.

Soot emissions from turbulent diffusion flames burning simple alkane fuels

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Canteenwalla, P.M.; Johnson, M.R. [Carleton Univ., Ottawa, ON (Canada). Dept. of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering; Thomson, K.A.; Smallwood, G.J. [National Research Council of Canada, Ottawa, ON (Canada). Inst. for Chemical Process and Environmental Technology

2007-07-01

A classic problem in combustion involves measurement and prediction of soot emissions from turbulent diffusion flames. Very high-sensitivity measurements of particulate matter (PM) from very low-sooting diffusion flames burning methane and other simple alkane fuels have been enabled from recent advances in laser-induced incandescence (LII). In order to quantify soot emissions from a lab-scale turbulent diffusion flame burner, this paper presented a study that used LII to develop a sampling protocol. The purpose of the study was to develop an experimentally based model to predict PM emissions from flares used in industry using soot emissions from lab-scale flares. Quantitative results of mass of soot emitted per mass of fuel burned were presented across a range of flow conditions and fuels. The experiment used digital imaging to measure flame lengths and estimate flame residence times. Comparisons were also made between current measurements and results of previous researchers for soot in the overfire region. The study also considered the validity applicability of buoyancy based models for predicting and scaling soot emissions. The paper described the experimental setup including sampling system and flame length imaging. Background information on soot yield and a comparison of flame residence time definitions were provided. The results and discussion of results were also presented. It was concluded that the results highlighted the subjective nature of flame length measurements. 10 refs., 4 figs.

Thickness effect on electric resistivity on polystyrene and carbon black- based composites

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hernandez-Lopez, S; Vigueras-Santiago, E [Laboratorio de Investigacion y Desarrollo de Materiales Avanzados (LIDMA) Facultad de Quimica, Paseo Colon Esquina con Paseo Tollocan, s/n, CP 50000, Toluca (Mexico); Mayorga-Rojas, M; Reyes-Contreras, D, E-mail: eviguerass@uaemex.m [Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Autonoma del Estado de Mexico. Av. Instituto Literario 100 Ote. C. P. 50000, Toluca (Mexico)

2009-05-01

Changes on electrical resistivity were experimentally studied for polystyrene and carbon black-based composites respect to the temperature. 22% w/w carbon black composite films at 30{mu}m, 2mm y 1cm thick were submitted to thermal heating-cooling cycles from room temperature to 100 deg. C, slightly up to T{sub g} of the composite. For each cycle changes on electrical resistivity constituent a hysteresis loop that depends on the sample thickness. The changes during the heating stage could be explained as a consequence of the thermal expansion and mobility of the polymer chains at T{sub g}, producing a disconnecting of the electrical contacts among carbon black particles and an important increasing (200%) of the electrical resistivity. For each cycle, the hysteresis loop was observed in thicker samples, whereas for 30 mu m thickness sample the hysteresis loop was lost after four cycles.

High-throughput approach to the catalytic combustion of diesel soot

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Iojoiu, Eduard Emil; Bassou, Badr; Guilhaume, Nolven; Farrusseng, David; Desmartin-Chomel, Arnold; Bianchi, Daniel; Mirodatos, Claude [Institut de recherches sur la catalyse et l' environnement de Lyon IRCELYON, UMR5256 CNRS Universite Lyon 1, 2 avenue Albert Einstein, F-69626 Villeurbanne Cedex (France); Lombaert, Karine [Renault, Diesel Innovative Catalytic Materials, Direction de l' Ingenierie Materiaux, 1 Allee Cornuel, 91510 Lardy (France)

2008-08-30

A methodology for the evaluation of diesel soot oxidation catalysts by high-throughput (HT) screening was developed. The optimal experimental conditions (soot amount, catalyst/soot ratio, type of contact, composition and flow rate of gas reactants) ensuring a reliable and reproducible detection of light-off temperatures in a 16 parallel channels reactor were set up. The temperature profile measured in the catalyst/soot bed under TPO conditions when the exothermic combustion of soot takes place was shown to provide an accurate measurement of the ignition. Its reproducibility and relevance were checked. The results obtained with a reference noble metal free catalyst (La{sub 0.8}Cr{sub 0.8}Li{sub 0.2}O{sub 3} perovskite) agree very well with literature data. Qualitative mechanistic features could be derived from these experiments, stressing the likely limiting step of oxygen transfer from catalyst surface to soot particulates to ignite the soot combustion. Ceria material was shown to be more appropriate than perovskite one. From an HT screening of a large diverse library (over 100 mixed oxides catalysts) under optimized conditions, about 10 new formulations were found to perform better than selected noble metal free reference materials. (author)

Comparing black carbon types in sequestering polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) in sediments

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jia, Fang; Gan, Jay

2014-01-01

Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) are widely found in sediments, especially congeners from the penta-BDE formula. Due to their strong affinity for black carbon (BC), bioavailability of PBDEs may be decreased in BC-amended sediments. In this study, we used a matrix-SPME method to measure the freely dissolved concentration (C free ) of PBDEs as a parameter of their potential bioavailability and evaluated the differences among biochar, charcoal, and activated carbon. Activated carbon displayed a substantially greater sequestration capacity than biochar or charcoal. At 1% amendment rate in sediment with low organic carbon (OC) content (0.12%), C free of six PBDEs was reduced by 47.5–78.0%, 47.3–77.5%, and 94.1–98.3% with biochar, charcoal, and activated carbon, respectively, while the sequestration was more limited in sediment with high OC content (0.87%). Therefore, it is important to consider the type and properties of the BC and the sediment in BC-based remediation or mitigation. -- Highlights: • A matrix-SPME method was developed for measuring C free of PBDEs in sediment porewater. • Different black carbon types differed greatly in their ability to decrease C free of PBDEs in sediments. • Activated carbon was much more efficient in sequestering PBDEs than biochar or charcoal. • The effect of black carbon was more pronounced in sediment with lower indigenous OC content. -- Biochar, charcoal, and activated carbon have been compared for their efficacy in sequestering PBDEs in sediments by using a matrix-SPME method

Isothermal Kinetics of Catalyzed Air Oxidation of Diesel Soot

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

R. Prasad

2011-01-01

Full Text Available To comply with the stringent emission regulations on soot, diesel vehicles manufacturers more and more commonly use diesel particulate filters (DPF. These systems need to be regenerated periodically by burning soot that has been accumulated during the loading of the DPF. Design of the DPF requires rate of soot oxidation. This paper describes the kinetics of catalytic oxidation of diesel soot with air under isothermal conditions. Kinetics data were collected in a specially designed mini-semi-batch reactor. Under the high air flow rate assuming pseudo first order reaction the activation energy of soot oxidation was found to be, Ea = 160 kJ/ mol. ©2010 BCREC UNDIP. All rights reserved(Received: 14th June 2010, Revised: 18th July 2010, Accepted: 9th August 2010[How to Cite: R. Prasad, V.R. Bella. (2010. Isothermal Kinetics of Catalyzed Air Oxidation of Diesel Soot. Bulletin of Chemical Reaction Engineering and Catalysis, 5(2: 95-101. doi:10.9767/bcrec.5.2.796.95-101][DOI:http://dx.doi.org/10.9767/bcrec.5.2.796.95-101 || or local:  http://ejournal.undip.ac.id/index.php/bcrec/article/view/796]Cited by in: ACS 1 |

Commuter exposure to black carbon, carbon monoxide, and noise in the mass transport khlong boats of Bangkok, Thailand

Science.gov (United States)

Ziegler, A. D.; Velasco, E.; Ho, K. J.

2013-12-01

Khlong (canal) boats are a unique mass transport alternative in the congested city of Bangkok. Canals and rivers provide exclusive transit-ways for reducing the commuting time of thousands of city residents daily. However, as a consequence of the service characteristics and boats design and state of repair, they can represent a potential public health risk and an important source of black carbon and greenhouse gases. This work quantifies commuter exposure to black carbon, CO and noise when waiting for and travelling in these diesel fueled boats. Exposure to toxic pollutants and acute noise is similar or worse than for other transportation modes. Mean black carbon concentrations observed at one busy pier and along the main canal were much higher than ambient concentrations at sites impacted by vehicular traffic. Concentrations of CO were similar to those reported for roadside areas of Bangkok. The equivalent continuous sound levels registered at the landing pier were similar to those reported for roadsides, but values recorded inside the boats were significantly higher. We believe that the boat service is a viable alternative mode of mass transport, but public safety could be improved to provide a high quality service, comparable to modern rail systems or emerging bus rapid transit systems. These investments would also contribute to reduce the emission of black carbon and other greenhouse and toxic pollutants.

Investigations of Sooting Laminar Coflow Diffusion Flames at Elevated Pressures

KAUST Repository

Steinmetz, Scott A.

2016-12-01

Soot is a common byproduct of hydrocarbon based combustion systems. It poses a risk to human and environmental health, and can negatively or positively affect combustor performance. As a result, there is significant interest in understanding soot formation in order to better control it. More recently, the need to study soot formation in engine relevant conditions has become apparent. One engine relevant parameter that has had little focus is the ambient pressure. This body of work focuses on the formation of soot in elevated pressure environments, and a number of investigations are carried out with this purpose. Laminar coflow diffusion flames are used as steady, simple soot producers. First, a commonly studied flame configuration is further characterized. Coflow flames are frequently used for fundamental flame studies, particularly at elevated pressures. However, they are more susceptible to buoyancy induced instabilities at elevated pressures. The velocity of the coflow is known to have an effect on flame stability and soot formation, though these have not been characterized at elevated pressures. A series of flames are investigated covering a range of flowrates, pressures, and nozzle diameters. The stability limits of coflow flames in this range is investigated. Additionally, an alternative strategy for scaling these flames to elevated pressures is proposed. Finally, the effect of coflow rate on soot formation is evaluated. Identification of fundamental flames for coordinated research can facilitate our understanding of soot formation. The next study of this work focuses on adding soot concentration and particle size information to an existing fundamental flame dataset for the purpose of numerical model validation. Soot volume fraction and average particle diameters are successfully measured in nitrogen-diluted ethylene-air laminar coflow flames at pressures of 4, 8, 12, and 16 atm. An increase in particle size with pressure is found up to 12 atm, where particle

Low-temperature atmospheric oxidation of mixtures of titanium and carbon black or brown

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Elizarova, V.A.; Babaitsev, I.V.; Barzykin, V.V.; Gerusova, V.P.; Rozenband, V.I.

1984-01-01

This article reports on the thermogravimetric investigation of mixtures of titanium no. 2 and carbon black with various mass carbon contents. Adding carbon black (as opposed to boron) to titanium leads to an increase in the rate of heat release of the oxidation reaction. An attempt is made to clarify the low-temperature oxidation mechanism of titanium mixtures in air. An x-ray phase and chemical (for bound carbon) analysis of specimens of a stoichiometric Ti + C mixture after heating in air to a temperature of 650 0 C at the rate of 10 0 /min was conducted. The results indicate that the oxidation of the titanium-carbon mixture probably proceeds according to a more complex mechanism associated with the transport of the gaseous carbon oxidation products and their participation in the titanium oxidation

Soot formation characteristics of gasoline surrogate fuels in counterflow diffusion flames

KAUST Repository

Choi, Byungchul

2011-01-01

The characteristics of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) and soot for gasoline surrogate fuels have been investigated in counterflow diffusion flames by adopting laser-induced fluorescence (LIF) and laser-induced incandescence (LII) techniques for both soot formation and soot formation/oxidation flames. Tested fuels were three binary mixtures from the primary reference fuels of n-heptane, iso-octane, and toluene. The result showed that PAH and soot maintained near zero level for all mixtures of n-heptane/iso-octane case under present experimental conditions. For n-heptane/toluene and iso-octane/toluene mixtures, PAH initially increased and then decreased with the toluene ratio, exhibiting a synergistic effect. The soot formation increased monotonically with the toluene ratio, however the effect of toluene on soot formation was minimal for relatively small toluene ratios. These results implied that even though toluene had a dominant role in soot and PAH formations, small amount of toluene had a minimal effect on soot formation. Numerical simulations have also been conducted by adopting recently proposed two kinetic mechanisms. The synergistic behavior of aromatic rings was predicted similar to the experimental PAH measurement, however, the degree of the synergistic effect was over-predicted for the soot formation flame, indicating the need for refinements in the kinetic mechanisms. © 2010 Published by Elsevier Inc. on behalf of The Combustion Institute. All rights reserved.

Comparison of manufactured and black carbon nanoparticle concentrations in aquatic sediments

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Koelmans, A.A.; Nowack, B.; Wiesner, M.

2009-01-01

In this paper, we show that concentrations of manufactured carbon-based nanoparticles (MCNPs) in aquatic sediments will be negligible compared to levels of black carbon nanoparticles (BCNPs). This is concluded from model calculations accounting for MCNP sedimentation fluxes, removal rates due to

Black carbon aerosol mixing state, organic aerosols and aerosol optical properties over the United Kingdom

Science.gov (United States)

McMeeking, G. R.; Morgan, W. T.; Flynn, M.; Highwood, E. J.; Turnbull, K.; Haywood, J.; Coe, H.

2011-09-01

Black carbon (BC) aerosols absorb sunlight thereby leading to a positive radiative forcing and a warming of climate and can also impact human health through their impact on the respiratory system. The state of mixing of BC with other aerosol species, particularly the degree of internal/external mixing, has been highlighted as a major uncertainty in assessing its radiative forcing and hence its climate impact, but few in situ observations of mixing state exist. We present airborne single particle soot photometer (SP2) measurements of refractory BC (rBC) mass concentrations and mixing state coupled with aerosol composition and optical properties measured in urban plumes and regional pollution over the United Kingdom. All data were obtained using instrumentation flown on the UK's BAe-146-301 large Atmospheric Research Aircraft (ARA) operated by the Facility for Airborne Atmospheric Measurements (FAAM). We measured sub-micron aerosol composition using an aerosol mass spectrometer (AMS) and used positive matrix factorization to separate hydrocarbon-like (HOA) and oxygenated organic aerosols (OOA). We found a higher number fraction of thickly coated rBC particles in air masses with large OOA relative to HOA, higher ozone-to-nitrogen oxides (NOx) ratios and large concentrations of total sub-micron aerosol mass relative to rBC mass concentrations. The more ozone- and OOA-rich air masses were associated with transport from continental Europe, while plumes from UK cities had higher HOA and NOx and fewer thickly coated rBC particles. We did not observe any significant change in the rBC mass absorption efficiency calculated from rBC mass and light absorption coefficients measured by a particle soot absorption photometer despite observing significant changes in aerosol composition and rBC mixing state. The contributions of light scattering and absorption to total extinction (quantified by the single scattering albedo; SSA) did change for different air masses, with lower SSA

Black carbon aerosol mixing state, organic aerosols and aerosol optical properties over the United Kingdom

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

G. R. McMeeking

2011-09-01

Full Text Available Black carbon (BC aerosols absorb sunlight thereby leading to a positive radiative forcing and a warming of climate and can also impact human health through their impact on the respiratory system. The state of mixing of BC with other aerosol species, particularly the degree of internal/external mixing, has been highlighted as a major uncertainty in assessing its radiative forcing and hence its climate impact, but few in situ observations of mixing state exist. We present airborne single particle soot photometer (SP2 measurements of refractory BC (rBC mass concentrations and mixing state coupled with aerosol composition and optical properties measured in urban plumes and regional pollution over the United Kingdom. All data were obtained using instrumentation flown on the UK's BAe-146-301 large Atmospheric Research Aircraft (ARA operated by the Facility for Airborne Atmospheric Measurements (FAAM. We measured sub-micron aerosol composition using an aerosol mass spectrometer (AMS and used positive matrix factorization to separate hydrocarbon-like (HOA and oxygenated organic aerosols (OOA. We found a higher number fraction of thickly coated rBC particles in air masses with large OOA relative to HOA, higher ozone-to-nitrogen oxides (NO_x ratios and large concentrations of total sub-micron aerosol mass relative to rBC mass concentrations. The more ozone- and OOA-rich air masses were associated with transport from continental Europe, while plumes from UK cities had higher HOA and NO_x and fewer thickly coated rBC particles. We did not observe any significant change in the rBC mass absorption efficiency calculated from rBC mass and light absorption coefficients measured by a particle soot absorption photometer despite observing significant changes in aerosol composition and rBC mixing state. The contributions of light scattering and absorption to total extinction (quantified by the single scattering albedo; SSA did change for

Ice Nucleation Activity of Black Carbon and Organic Aerosol Emitted from Biomass Burning

Science.gov (United States)

Rauker, A. M.; Schill, G. P.; Hill, T. C. J.; Levin, E. J.; DeMott, P. J.; Kreidenweis, S. M.

2017-12-01

Ice-nucleating particles (INPs) must be present in clouds warmer than approximately -36 °C for initial ice crystal formation to occur. Although rare, they modify the lifetime, albedo and precipitation rates of clouds. Black carbon (BC) particles are present in the upper troposphere, and have been implicated as possible INPs, but recent research has not led to a consensus on their importance as INPs. Biomass burning is known to be a source of INPs as well as a major contributor to BC concentrations. Preliminary research from both prescribed burns (Manhattan, Kanas) and wildfires (Boise, Idaho and Weldon, Colorado), using the Colorado State University Continuous Flow Diffusion Chamber (CSU-CFDC) coupled to a Single Particle Soot Photometer (SP2), suggest that BC contributed ≤ 10% to INP concentrations in biomass burning conditions. To evaluate the identity of non-BC as an INP, filters were collected downwind from the same prescribed burns and wildfires, and particles re-suspended in water were subjected to the immersion freezing method to quantify INP concentrations. The contributions of biological and total organic species to INP concentrations were determined through heat and hydrogen peroxide pre-treatments. Total INPs ranged from 0.88 - 31 L-1 air at -20 °C with 82 - 99 % of the INPs at that temperature being organic (i.e., deactivated by H2O2 digestion). Results are consistent with CSU-CFDC-SP2 derived rBC INP contributions from the same fires. The results from the study also support previous findings that prescribed burns and wildfires produce plumes enriched in INPs.

Strain rate effect on sooting characteristics in laminar counterflow diffusion flames

KAUST Repository

Wang, Yu; Chung, Suk-Ho

2016-01-01

The effects of strain rate, oxygen enrichment and fuel type on the sooting characteristics of counterflow diffusion flames were studied. The sooting structures and relative PAH concentrations were measured with laser diagnostics. Detailed soot

Black carbon exposure more strongly associated with census tract poverty compared to household income among US black, white, and Latino working class adults in Boston, MA (2003–2010)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Krieger, Nancy; Waterman, Pamela D.; Gryparis, Alexandros; Coull, Brent A.

2014-01-01

We investigated the association of individual-level ambient exposure to black carbon (spatiotemporal model-based estimate for latitude and longitude of residential address) with individual, household, and census tract socioeconomic measures among a study sample comprised of 1757 US urban working class white, black and Latino adults (age 25–64) recruited for two studies conducted in Boston, MA (2003–2004; 2008–2010). Controlling for age, study, and exam date, the estimated average annual black carbon exposure for the year prior to study enrollment at the participants' residential address was directly associated with census tract poverty (beta = 0.373; 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.322, 0.423) but not with annual household income or education; null associations with race/ethnicity became significant only after controlling for socioeconomic position. - Highlights: • The study included 1757 black, Latino, and white working class adults in Boston, MA. • Census tract poverty was associated with annual average black carbon exposure. • Annual household income was not associated with black carbon exposure. • Individual-level education was not associated with black carbon exposure. • The observed socioeconomic patterns varied by race/ethnicity. - In a US multiethnic urban working adult population, exposure to black carbon was more strongly associated with census tract as compared to household- or individual-level socioeconomic measures

Characterizing the Vertical and Spatial Distribution of Black Carbon on the North Slope of Alaska

Science.gov (United States)

Sedlacek, A. J., III; Feng, Y.; Biraud, S.; Springston, S. R.

2016-12-01

The Polar Regions are recognized for their pronounced sensitivity to changes in radiative forcing. Indeed, the Cryosphere is often referred to as the `canary in the coalmine' for climate change in the popular literature. It is this sensitivity that provides both motivation and need for targeted measurement campaigns to test the behavior and predictive capabilities of current climate models to so as to improve our understanding of which factors are most important in Arctic climate change. One class of under measured radiative forcing agents in the Polar Region is the absorbing aerosol - black carbon and brown carbon. In particular, the paucity of vertical profile information of BC is partly responsible for the difficulty of reducing uncertainty in model assessment of aerosol radiative impact at high latitudes. During the summer of 2015, a Single-Particle Soot Photometer (SP2) was deployed aboard the DOE Gultstream-1 (G-1) aircraft to measure refractory BC (rBC) concentrations as part of the DOE-sponsored ACME-V (ARM Airborne Carbon Measurements) campaign. This campaign was conducted from June through to mid-September along the North Slope of Alaska and was punctuated by vertical profiling over 5 sites (Atquasuk, Barrow, Ivotuk, Oliktok, and Toolik). In addition, measurement of CO, CO2 and CH4 were also taken to provide information on the spatial and seasonal differences in GHG sources and how these sources correlate with BC. Comparisons between observations and a global climate model (CAM5) simulations will be shown along with a discussion on the ability of the model to capture observed monthly mean profiles of BC and stratified aerosol layers. Additionally, the capability of the SP2 to partition rBC-containing particles into nascent or aged allows an evaluation of how well the CAM5 model captures long distant transported aged carbonaceous aerosols. Finally model sensitivity studies will be presented that investigated the relative importance of the different

A small porous-plug burner for studies of combustion chemistry and soot formation

Science.gov (United States)

Campbell, M. F.; Schrader, P. E.; Catalano, A. L.; Johansson, K. O.; Bohlin, G. A.; Richards-Henderson, N. K.; Kliewer, C. J.; Michelsen, H. A.

2017-12-01

We have developed and built a small porous-plug burner based on the original McKenna burner design. The new burner generates a laminar premixed flat flame for use in studies of combustion chemistry and soot formation. The size is particularly relevant for space-constrained, synchrotron-based X-ray diagnostics. In this paper, we present details of the design, construction, operation, and supporting infrastructure for this burner, including engineering attributes that enable its small size. We also present data for charactering the flames produced by this burner. These data include temperature profiles for three premixed sooting ethylene/air flames (equivalence ratios of 1.5, 1.8, and 2.1); temperatures were recorded using direct one-dimensional coherent Raman imaging. We include calculated temperature profiles, and, for one of these ethylene/air flames, we show the carbon and hydrogen content of heavy hydrocarbon species measured using an aerosol mass spectrometer coupled with vacuum ultraviolet photoionization (VUV-AMS) and soot-volume-fraction measurements obtained using laser-induced incandescence. In addition, we provide calculated mole-fraction profiles of selected gas-phase species and characteristic profiles for seven mass peaks from AMS measurements. Using these experimental and calculated results, we discuss the differences between standard McKenna burners and the new miniature porous-plug burner introduced here.

Electrochemical properties of Super P carbon black as an anode active material for lithium-ion batteries

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gnanamuthu, RM.; Lee, Chang Woo

2011-01-01

Highlights: → A novel attempt of Super P carbon black as an anode active material for lithium-ion batteries. → The first discharge capacity was approximately 1256 mAh g -1 and at the end of 20th cycling the capacity was 610 mAh g -1 at 0.1 C rate. → Coulombic efficiency of Super P carbon black electrode was maintained about 84% at the end of cycling. - Abstract: A new approach to investigate upon the electrochemical properties of Super P carbon black anode material is attempted and compared with conventional mesophase pitch-based carbon fibers (MPCFs) anode material for lithium-ion batteries. The prepared Super P carbon black electrodes are characterized using transmission electron microscope (TEM). The assembled 2032-type coin cells are electrochemically characterized by ac impedance spectroscopic and cyclic voltammetric methods. The electrochemical performance of charge and discharge was analyzed using a battery cycler at 0.1 C rate and cut-off potentials of 1.20 and 0.01 V vs. Li/Li + . The electrochemical test illustrates that the discharge capacity corresponding to Li intercalation into the Super P carbon black electrode is higher and coulombic efficiency is maintained approximately 84% at the end of the 20th cycling at room temperature.

Carbon distribution in char residue from gasification of kraft black liquor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sricharoenchaikul, Viboon; Frederick, W.J.; Agrawal, Pradeep

2003-01-01

The char residue yields and the total carbon and carbonate content were measured for dry black liquor solids after pyrolysis or gasification in a laminar entrained-flow reactor. The experimental conditions were 700-1000 deg. C in N 2 ,CO 2 /N 2 or water vapor/N 2 at 1 bar total pressure, for residence times from 0.3 to 1.7 s. Fixed carbon yields, when measured at the same particle residence time, decreased with increasing reactor temperature. CO 2 and water vapor diminished the char carbon significantly at temperatures above 800 deg. C, compared with pyrolysis in N 2 . Water vapor oxidized the char carbon more rapidly than did CO 2 . At 1000 deg. C, the reactions of carbon with sulfate and carbonate became faster, resulting in a smaller difference between carbon conversion rates in the different gas environments. By the end of devolatilization, the amount of carbonate in the char had changed very little at 700-800 deg. C. After devolatilization, carbonate was formed more rapidly at higher temperatures. The presence of CO 2 or water vapor increased the formation of carbonate. In the presence of these gases, more carbonate was measured at all temperatures and residence times. The maximum carbonate measured in the char was 16% of the carbon in the black liquor solids, as compared to 4.4% in the original dry liquor solids. Under most conditions, the carbonate, as a fraction of carbon input, first increased to a constant, temperature-independent value and then decreased

Effect of carbon black on thermal properties of charcoal and salacca leafstalk briquettes

Science.gov (United States)

Thassana, Chewa; Nuleg, Witoon

2017-08-01

In this work, the effect of a carbon black (CB) on the thermal properties of briquettes produced from the charcoal and the salacca leafstalk with and without CB have been investigated. Four thermal properties of a briquettes compose of the burning time, the calorific value, the percentage moisture (PMC) and an percentage ash content (PAC) were analyzed using standard laboratory methods. Our results were indicated that the sallacca leafstalk mix a carbon black is the long burning times, high heating but a few ash content. Results shown that the burning time and the calorific value of a charcoal, a charcoal with CB, the salacca leafstalk and the salacca leafstalk with carbon black particles is about 58, 63, 76, 81 minutes, and 10.33, 12.96, 13.12, 14.63 MJ/kg, respectively. In addition, the PMC and PAC were in range of 11.6 - 8.14% and 9.33 - 5.42%. So, we can conclude that a cabon black affect on the thermal properties of a briquettes and salacca leaftstalk mixed CB has been most suited for briquetting.

The effect of aerosol on closure of the regionale short-wave radiation balance

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Henzing JS; Knap WH; Stammes P; ten Brink HM; Kos GPA; Even A; Swart DPJ; Bergwerff JP; Apituley A; NOP

2001-01-01

IPPC reports the aerosol radiative forcing per major aerosol category, like sulphate and fossil fuel derived carbon. Part of this carbon is reflective and part of the material (black carbon "soot") absorbs radiation. We find that in the Netherlands sulphate contributes some 30% to the

Experimental determination of soot refractive index in the infrared

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ouf, F.X.; Vendel, J.; Ouf, F.X.; Coppalle, A.; Weil, M.E.; Yon, J.

2007-01-01

The study of physical properties of soot particles produced during combustion is a complex subject but of a great interest within the framework of the study of the safety of an installation, with respect to the fire hazard. These characteristics are, in this case, particularly useful in order to predict the behaviour of containment barriers in situation of fire, but also in order to estimate the contribution of these particles to radiative transfers. The aim of this study is to determine the radiative properties of soot particles produced during combustion. A specific device, which establishes extinction and vertical-vertical scattering coefficients, has been developed and has allowed to determine the refractive index of soot particles in the infrared. This determination also needed the establishment of size distribution and morphological properties of soot aggregates. We present in this document the experimental device developed, and the validation of this device on latex spheres which optical properties are well known. First results of extinction coefficients will be presented and will underline the similar optical behaviour of different soot aggregates. Values of refractive index will be detailed and discussed, and a direct application of these values will be carried out in order to determine the soot volume fraction. A comparison with reference method will underline the efficiency of our method. We will conclude on the validity of the information brought by this device and on the prospects of this study. A discussion is included, on the utility of mean values of refractive index and on the determination of total emissivity of soot particles. (authors)

Black carbon emission reduction strategies in healthcare industry for effective global climate change management.

Science.gov (United States)

Raila, Emilia Mmbando; Anderson, David O

2017-04-01

Climate change remains one of the biggest threats to life on earth to date with black carbon (BC) emissions or smoke being the strongest cause after carbon dioxide (CO 2 ). Surprisingly, scientific evidence about black carbon emissions reduction in healthcare settings is sparse. This paper presents new research findings on the reduction of black carbon emissions from an observational study conducted at the UN Peacekeeping Operations (MINUSTAH) in Haiti in 2014. Researchers observed 20 incineration cycles, 30 minutes for each cycle of plastic and cardboard sharps healthcare waste (HCW) containers ranged from 3 to 14.6 kg. The primary aim was to determine if black carbon emissions from healthcare waste incineration can be lowered by mainstreaming the use of cardboard sharps healthcare waste containers instead of plastic sharps healthcare waste containers. Similarly, the study looks into whether burning temperature was associated with the smoke levels for each case or not. Independent samples t-tests demonstrated significantly lower black carbon emissions during the incineration of cardboard sharps containers (6.81 ± 4.79% smoke) than in plastic containers (17.77 ± 8.38% smoke); a statistically significant increase of 10.96% smoke (95% Confidence Interval ( CI) [4.4 to 17.5% smoke], p = 0.003). Correspondingly, lower bottom burner temperatures occurred during the incineration of cardboard sharps containers than in plastic (95% Cl [16 to 126°C], p = 0.014). Finally, we expect the application of the new quantitative evidence to form the basis for policy formulation, mainstream the use of cardboard sharps containers and opt for non-incineration disposal technologies as urgent steps for going green in healthcare waste management.

Regional Responses to Black Carbon Aerosols: The Importance of Air-Sea Interaction

Science.gov (United States)

Gnanadesikan, A.; Scott, A. A.; Pradal, M.-A.; Seviour, W. J. M.; Waugh, D. W.

2017-12-01

The impact of modern black carbon aerosols on climate via their changes in radiative balance is studied using a coupled model where sea surface temperatures (SSTs) are allowed to vary and an atmosphere-only version of the same model where SSTs are held fixed. Allowing the ocean to respond is shown to have a profound impact on the pattern of temperature change. Particularly, large impacts are found in the North Pacific (which cools by up to 1 K in the coupled model) and in north central Asia (which warms in the coupled simulation and cools in the fixed SST simulation). Neither set of experiments shows large changes in surface temperatures in the Southeast Asian region where the atmospheric burden of black carbon is highest. These results are related to the stabilization of the atmosphere and changes in oceanic heat transport. Over the North Pacific, atmospheric stabilization results in an increase in stratiform clouds. The resulting shading reduces evaporation, freshening the surface layer of the ocean and reducing the inflow of warm subtropical waters. Over the land, a delicate balance between greater atmospheric absorption, shading of the surface and changes in latent cooling of the surface helps to determine whether warming or cooling is seen. Our results emphasize the importance of coupling in determining the response of the climate system to black carbon and suggest that black carbon may play an important role in modulating climate change over the North Pacific.

Diesel soot oxidation under controlled conditions

OpenAIRE

Song, Haiwen

2003-01-01

This thesis was submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy and awarded by Brunel University, 11/12/2003. In order to improve understanding of diesel soot oxidation, an experimental rig was designed and set up, in which the soot oxidation conditions, such as temperature, oxygen partial pressure, and CO2 partial pressure, could be varied independently of each other. The oxidizing gas flow in the oxidizer was under laminar condition. This test rig comprised a naturally-aspirated single ...

Time-resolved analysis of particle emissions from residential biomass combustion - Emissions of refractory black carbon, PAHs and organic tracers

Science.gov (United States)

Nielsen, Ingeborg E.; Eriksson, Axel C.; Lindgren, Robert; Martinsson, Johan; Nyström, Robin; Nordin, Erik Z.; Sadiktsis, Ioannis; Boman, Christoffer; Nøjgaard, Jacob K.; Pagels, Joakim

2017-09-01

Time-resolved particle emissions from a conventional wood stove were investigated with aerosol mass spectrometry to provide links between combustion conditions, emission factors, mixing state of refractory black carbon and implications for organic tracer methods. The addition of a new batch of fuel results in low temperature pyrolysis as the fuel heats up, resulting in strong, short-lived, variable emission peaks of organic aerosol-containing markers of anhydrous sugars, such as levoglucosan (fragment at m/z 60). Flaming combustion results in emissions dominated by refractory black carbon co-emitted with minor fractions of organic aerosol and markers of anhydrous sugars. Full cycle emissions are an external mixture of larger organic aerosol-dominated and smaller thinly coated refractory black carbon particles. A very high burn rate results in increased full cycle mass emission factors of 66, 2.7, 2.8 and 1.3 for particulate polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, refractory black carbon, total organic aerosol and m/z 60, respectively, compared to nominal burn rate. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons are primarily associated with refractory black carbon-containing particles. We hypothesize that at very high burn rates, the central parts of the combustion zone become air starved, leading to a locally reduced combustion temperature that reduces the conversion rates from polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons to refractory black carbon. This facilitates a strong increase of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons emissions. At nominal burn rates, full cycle emissions based on m/z 60 correlate well with organic aerosol, refractory black carbon and particulate matter. However, at higher burn rates, m/z 60 does not correlate with increased emissions of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, refractory black carbon and organic aerosol in the flaming phase. The new knowledge can be used to advance source apportionment studies, reduce emissions of genotoxic compounds and model the climate impacts of

Reduction of nitric oxide by arc vaporized carbons (AVC)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tsang, S C; Chen, Y K; Green, M L.H. [The Catalysis Centre, Inorganic Chemistry Laboratory, University of Oxford, Oxford (United Kingdom)

1996-07-04

The reduction of nitric oxide by arc vaporized carbons (AVC) including the compound C{sub 6}0, fullerene soot and carbon nanotubes, giving dinitrogen and carbon oxides has been studied. It is found that the AVC carbons are more active towards oxidation by NO than by oxygen gas at low temperatures (300-400C). In contrast, conventional carbons such as graphite and microporous carbons are more readily oxidised by oxygen than by NO. The addition of copper salts and to a lesser extent, cobalt salts, to fullerene soot substantially promote NO reduction. The high intrinsic activity for NO reduction by AVC carbons compared to graphitic carbons is attributed to the presence of five membered carbon rings in the AVC carbons

Development of a photoacoustic sensor system for the measurement of atmospheric soot aerosols. Final report; Weiterentwicklung und Charakterisierung des photoakustischen Russsensors. Schlussbericht

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kraemer, L.; Bozoki, Z.; Niessner, R.

2001-03-01

The photoacoustic soot sensor (PASS) has been optimised and characterised in this work to enable online atmospheric black carbon (BC) monitoring. The mobility of the sensor suited for outdoor measurements was already achieved by a former setup. The major technical modifications include the use of a new diode laser with an emission wavelength of 680 nm and an output power of 250 mW and the redesign of the photoacoustic resonance cell and all optical components. Additionally, most of the electronic compounds have been exchanged, e.g. function generator, microphone preamplifier, lock-in amplifier. Due to these modifications, the increase in the sensitivity of the system led to a detection limit in the order of 100 ng per m{sup 3}. The selectivity has been enhanced by the use of a magnetic valve, which enables the independent determination of particular and gaseous compounds of the sample. Cross-sensitivities to water vapor or nitrogen dioxide can be excluded by differential measurement. Any influence by other airborne atmospheric particles like scattering salt aerosols, desert dust or humic acid is negligable under atmospheric conditions as has been shown in laboratory experiments. For the determination of low atmospheric BC concentrations, the time resolution of the entire setup by employing a software controlled, automated measurement cycle equals {proportional_to}5 minutes. The PASS was tested in various field campaigns at different measurement sites to determine atmospheric BC (Munich-Grosshadern, Kleiner Feldberg) and diesel soot (AIDA, FZ Karlsruhe; diesel engine, DaimlerChrysler). (orig.)

Nanoparticle-specific changes in Arabidopsis thaliana gene expression after exposure to ZnO, TiO{sub 2}, and fullerene soot

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Landa, Premysl [Laboratory of Plant Biotechnologies, Institute of Experimental Botany AS CR, v.v.i., 165 02 Prague 6 - Lysolaje (Czech Republic); Vankova, Radomira [Laboratory of Hormonal Regulations in Plants, Institute of Experimental Botany AS CR, v.v.i., 165 02 Prague 6 - Lysolaje (Czech Republic); Andrlova, Jana [Laboratory of Plant Biotechnologies, Institute of Experimental Botany AS CR, v.v.i., 165 02 Prague 6 - Lysolaje (Czech Republic); Department of Crop Sciences and Agroforestry, Institute of Tropics and Subtropics, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, 165 21 Prague 6 - Suchdol (Czech Republic); Hodek, Jan [Department of Molecular Biology, Crop Research Institute, v.v.i., 161 06 Praha 6 - Ruzyne (Czech Republic); Marsik, Petr [Laboratory of Plant Biotechnologies, Institute of Experimental Botany AS CR, v.v.i., 165 02 Prague 6 - Lysolaje (Czech Republic); Storchova, Helena [Plant Reproduction Laboratory, Institute of Experimental Botany AS CR, v.v.i., 165 02 Prague 6 - Lysolaje (Czech Republic); White, Jason C. [Department of Analytical Chemistry, Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station, 123 Huntington Street, New Haven, CT 06512 (United States); Vanek, Tomas, E-mail: vanek@ueb.cas.cz [Laboratory of Plant Biotechnologies, Institute of Experimental Botany AS CR, v.v.i., 165 02 Prague 6 - Lysolaje (Czech Republic)

2012-11-30

Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Exposure to different nanoparticles resulted in specific changes in gene transcription. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Nano ZnO caused most dramatic changes in Arabidopsis gene expression. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Nano ZnO was the most toxic and up-regulated most stress-related genes. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Fullerene soot caused significant gene expression response - mainly stress-related. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Nano TiO{sub 2} had weak impact on Arabidopsis gene expression indicating minimal toxicity. - Abstract: The effect of exposure to 100 mg/L zinc oxide (nZnO), fullerene soot (FS) or titanium dioxide (nTiO{sub 2}) nanoparticles on gene expression in Arabidopsis thaliana roots was studied using microarrays. After 7 d, nZnO, FS, or nTiO{sub 2} exposure resulted in 660 up- and 826 down-regulated genes, 232 up- and 189 down-regulated genes, and 80 up- and 74 down-regulated genes, respectively (expression difference > 2-fold; p[t test] < 0.05). The genes induced by nZnO and FS include mainly ontology groups annotated as stress responsive, including both abiotic (oxidative, salt, water deprivation) and biotic (wounding and defense to pathogens) stimuli. The down-regulated genes upon nZnO exposure were involved in cell organization and biogenesis, including translation, nucleosome assembly and microtubule based process. FS largely repressed the transcription of genes involved in electron transport and energy pathways. Only mild changes in gene expression were observed upon nTiO{sub 2} exposure, which resulted in up- and down-regulation of genes involved mainly in responses to biotic and abiotic stimuli. The data clearly indicate that the mechanisms of phytotoxicity are highly nanoparticle dependent despite of a limited overlap in gene expression response.

The vacuum pyrolysis of used tires. End-uses for oil and carbon black products

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Roy, C.; Chaala, A.; Darmstadt, H. [Institut Pyrovac Inc., Parc Technologique du Quebec Metropolitain, rue Franquet, Sainte-Foy (Canada)

1999-07-01

By vacuum pyrolysis, the rubber portion of used tires is transformed into oil and gas and the carbon black filler is recovered as pyrolytic carbon black (CB{sub P}). Several commercial applications for the different products have been investigated and are reported in this article. CB{sub P} surface chemistry and activity are similar to those of commercial carbon blacks. Therefore, CB{sub P} has the potential to replace commercial carbon black grades in certain rubber applications. CB{sub P} was successfully tested as a filler in road pavement. The total pyrolytic oil can be used as a liquid fuel. The oil can also be distilled into different fractions: a light, a middle distillate and a heavy fraction. The light fraction was positively tested as a gasoline additive. Furthermore, this fraction contains valuable chemicals such as d,l-limonene. The middle fraction was successfully tested as a plasticizer in rubbers. The heavy fraction represents a good-quality feedstock for the production of coke and can also be used in road pavements. The pyrolytic gas can be used as a make-up heat source for the pyrolysis process

A new mechanism for selective adsorption of rubber on carbon black surface caused by nano-confinement in SBR/NBR solution

Science.gov (United States)

Kawazoe, Masayuki

A novel mechanism of selective adsorption of rubber molecules onto carbon black surface in a binary immiscible rubber blend solution has been proposed in this dissertation. The phenomenon leads to uneven distribution of carbon black to the specific polymer in the blend and the obtained electrically conductive composite showed drastic reduction of percolation threshold concentration (PTC). The mechanism and the feature of conductive network formation have much potential concerning both fundamental understanding and industrial application to improve conductive polymer composites. In chapter I, carbon black filled conductive polymer composites are briefly reviewed. Then, in chapter II, a mechanism of rubber molecular confinement into carbon black aggregate structure is introduced to explain the selective adsorption of a specific rubber onto carbon black surface in an immiscible rubber solution blend (styrene butadiene rubber (SBR) and acrylonitrile butadiene rubber (NBR) with toluene or chloroform). Next, in chapters III and IV, polymers with various radius of gyration (Rg) and carbon blacks with various aggregate structure are examined to verify the selective adsorption mechanism. Finally, in chapter V, the novel mechanism was applied to create unique meso-/micro-unit conductive network in carbon black dispersed SBR/NBR composites.

Accounting for black carbon lowers estimates of blue carbon storage services.

Science.gov (United States)

Chew, Swee Theng; Gallagher, John B

2018-02-07

The canopies and roots of seagrass, mangrove, and saltmarsh protect a legacy of buried sedimentary organic carbon from resuspension and remineralisation. This legacy's value, in terms of mitigating anthropogenic emissions of CO 2 , is based on total organic carbon (TOC) inventories to a depth likely to be disturbed. However, failure to subtract allochthonous recalcitrant carbon overvalues the storage service. Simply put, burial of oxidation-resistant organics formed outside of the ecosystem provides no additional protection from remineralisation. Here, we assess whether black carbon (BC), an allochthonous and recalcitrant form of organic carbon, is contributing to a significant overestimation of blue carbon stocks. To test this supposition, BC and TOC contents were measured in different types of seagrass and mangrove sediment cores across tropical and temperate regimes, with different histories of air pollution and fire together with a reanalysis of published data from a subtropical system. The results suggest current carbon stock estimates are positively biased, particularly for low-organic-content sandy seagrass environs, by 18 ± 3% (±95% confidence interval) and 43 ± 21% (±95% CI) for the temperate and tropical regions respectively. The higher BC fractions appear to originate from atmospheric deposition and substantially enrich the relatively low TOC fraction within these environs.

Temporal and seasonal variations of black carbon in a highly polluted European city: Apportionment of potential sources and the effect of meteorological conditions.

Science.gov (United States)

Kucbel, Marek; Corsaro, Agnieszka; Švédová, Barbora; Raclavská, Helena; Raclavský, Konstantin; Juchelková, Dagmar

2017-12-01

Black carbon - a primary component of particulate matter emitted from an incomplete combustion of fossil fuels, biomass, and biofuels - has been found to have a detrimental effect on human health and the environment. Since black carbon emissions data are not readily available, no measures are implemented to reduce black carbon emissions. The temporal and seasonal variations of black carbon concentrations were evaluated during 2012-2014. The data were collected in the highly polluted European city - Ostrava, Czech Republic, surrounded by major highways and large industries. Significantly higher black carbon concentrations were obtained in Ostrava, relative to other European cities and the magnitude was equivalent to the magnitude of black carbon concentrations measured in Poland and China. The data were categorized to heating and non-heating seasons based on the periodic pattern of daily and monthly average concentrations of black carbon. A higher black carbon concentration was obtained during heating season than non-heating season and was primarily associated with an increase in residential coal burning and meteorological parameters. The concentration of black carbon was found to be negatively correlated with temperature and wind speed, and positively correlated with the relative humidity. Other black carbon sources potentially included emissions from vehicle exhaust and the local steel-producing industry. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Estimation of black carbon content for biomass burning aerosols from multi-channel Raman lidar data

Science.gov (United States)

Talianu, Camelia; Marmureanu, Luminita; Nicolae, Doina

2015-04-01

Biomass burning due to natural processes (forest fires) or anthropical activities (agriculture, thermal power stations, domestic heating) is an important source of aerosols with a high content of carbon components (black carbon and organic carbon). Multi-channel Raman lidars provide information on the spectral dependence of the backscatter and extinction coefficients, embedding information on the black carbon content. Aerosols with a high content of black carbon have large extinction coefficients and small backscatter coefficients (strong absorption), while aerosols with high content of organic carbon have large backscatter coefficients (weak absorption). This paper presents a method based on radiative calculations to estimate the black carbon content of biomass burning aerosols from 3b+2a+1d lidar signals. Data is collected at Magurele, Romania, at the cross-road of air masses coming from Ukraine, Russia and Greece, where burning events are frequent during both cold and hot seasons. Aerosols are transported in the free troposphere, generally in the 2-4 km altitude range, and reaches the lidar location after 2-3 days. Optical data are collected between 2011-2012 by a multi-channel Raman lidar and follows the quality assurance program of EARLINET. Radiative calculations are made with libRadTran, an open source radiative model developed by ESA. Validation of the retrievals is made by comparison to a co-located C-ToF Aerosol Mass Spectrometer. Keywords: Lidar, aerosols, biomass burning, radiative model, black carbon Acknowledgment: This work has been supported by grants of the Romanian National Authority for Scientific Research, Programme for Research- Space Technology and Advanced Research - STAR, project no. 39/2012 - SIAFIM, and by Romanian Partnerships in priority areas PNII implemented with MEN-UEFISCDI support, project no. 309/2014 - MOBBE

Quantifying the variability of potential black carbon transport from cropland burning in Russia driven by atmospheric blocking events

Science.gov (United States)

Hall, Joanne; Loboda, Tatiana

2018-05-01

The deposition of short-lived aerosols and pollutants on snow above the Arctic Circle transported from northern mid-latitudes have amplified the short term warming in the Arctic region. Specifically, black carbon has received a great deal of attention due to its absorptive efficiency and its fairly complex influence on the climate. Cropland burning in Russia is a large contributor to the black carbon emissions deposited directly onto the snow in the Arctic region during the spring when the impact on the snow/ice albedo is at its highest. In this study, our focus is on identifying a possible atmospheric pattern that may enhance the transport of black carbon emissions from cropland burning in Russia to the snow-covered Arctic. Specifically, atmospheric blocking events are large-scale patterns in the atmospheric pressure field that are nearly stationary and act to block migratory cyclones. The persistent low-level wind patterns associated with these mid-latitude weather patterns are likely to accelerate potential transport and increase the success of transport of black carbon emissions to the snow-covered Arctic during the spring. Our results revealed that overall, in March, the transport time of hypothetical black carbon emissions from Russian cropland burning to the Arctic snow is shorter (in some areas over 50 hours less at higher injection heights) and the success rate is also much higher (in some areas up to 100% more successful) during atmospheric blocking conditions as compared to conditions without an atmospheric blocking event. The enhanced transport of black carbon has important implications for the efficacy of deposited black carbon. Therefore, understanding these relationships could lead to possible mitigation strategies for reducing the impact of deposition of black carbon from crop residue burning in the Arctic.

The Properties of SBR/ENR50 Blend Containing Nanoclay/Carbon Black Dual Filler System Cured by Electron Beam

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sima Ahmadi-Shooli

2017-05-01

Full Text Available Nanocomposites based on an SBR/ENR50 rubber blend with the blend ratio of 50/50 using Cloisite 15A nanoclay (5 and 10 phr and carbon black (20 phr were prepared by melt mixing process. The rubber compounds were crosslinked by electron beam irradiation process at 50 and 100 kGy doses. A reference sample containing carbon black at 35 phr was prepared using a conventional sulphur curing system. The gel content of the samples was specified using gel fraction measurement. The results showed the maximum gel content for the sample having 5 phr nanoclay and 20 phr carbon black. The dynamic mechanical properties, including the storage modulus, loss modulus, and loss factor, of the nanocomposites were evaluated using dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA tests. The results indicated that, in spite of a well dispersed nanoclay in samples containing 10 phr nanoclay and 20 phr carbon black, a minimum loss factor was observed in the sample containing 5 phr nanoclay and 20 phr carbon black at 100 kGy. On the other hand, the storage modulus of the reference sample was found to be higher than that of the sample with 5 phr nanoclay and 20 phr carbon black. The mechanical properties, including the tensile strength, stress at 100%, 200%, and 300% elongation and the percentage of elongation were measured by a tensile machine. The results showed an increase in tensile strength and the stress at different elongations for a sample with 5 phr nanoclay and 20 phr carbon black compared to the reference sample. In the corresponding SEM images of the samples having nanoclay and carbon black irradiated at 100 kGy a significantly higher surface roughness was observed.

Persistent free radicals, heavy metals and PAHs generated in particulate soot emissions and residue ash from controlled combustion of common types of plastic

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Valavanidis, Athanasios; Iliopoulos, Nikiforos; Gotsis, George; Fiotakis, Konstantinos

2008-01-01

The production and use of polymeric materials worldwide has reached levels of 150 million tonnes per year, and the majority of plastic materials are discarded in waste landfills where are burned generating toxic emissions. In the present study we conducted laboratory experiments for batch combustion/burning of commercial polymeric materials, simulating conditions of open fire combustion, with the purpose to analyze their emissions for chemical characteristics of toxicological importance. We used common types of plastic materials: poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC), low and high density poly(ethylene) (LDPE, HDPE), poly(styrene) (PS), poly(propylene) (PP) and poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET). Samples of particulate smoke (soot) collected on filters and residue solid ash produced by controlled burning conditions at 600-750 deg. C are used for analysis. Emissions of particulate matter, persistent free radicals embedded in the carbonaceous polymeric matrix, heavy metals, other elements and PAHs were determined in both types of samples. Results showed that all plastics burned easily generating charred residue solid ash and black airborne particulate smoke. Persistent carbon- and oxygen-centered radicals, known for their toxic effects in inhalable airborne particles, were detected in both particulate smoke emissions and residue solid ash. Concentrations of heavy metals and other elements (determined by Inductively Coupled Plasma Emission Spectrometry, ICP, method) were measured in the airborne soot and residue ash. Toxic heavy metals, such as Pb, Zn, Cr, Ni, and Cd were relatively at were found at low concentrations. High concentrations were found for some lithophilic elements, such as Na, Ca, Mg, Si and Al in particulate soot and residue solid ash. Measurements of PAHs showed that low molecular weight PAHs were at higher concentrations in the airborne particulate soot than in the residue solid ash for all types of plastic. Higher-ringed PAHs were detected at higher

Persistent free radicals, heavy metals and PAHs generated in particulate soot emissions and residue ash from controlled combustion of common types of plastic.

Science.gov (United States)

Valavanidis, Athanasios; Iliopoulos, Nikiforos; Gotsis, George; Fiotakis, Konstantinos

2008-08-15

The production and use of polymeric materials worldwide has reached levels of 150 million tonnes per year, and the majority of plastic materials are discarded in waste landfills where are burned generating toxic emissions. In the present study we conducted laboratory experiments for batch combustion/burning of commercial polymeric materials, simulating conditions of open fire combustion, with the purpose to analyze their emissions for chemical characteristics of toxicological importance. We used common types of plastic materials: poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC), low and high density poly(ethylene) (LDPE, HDPE), poly(styrene) (PS), poly(propylene) (PP) and poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET). Samples of particulate smoke (soot) collected on filters and residue solid ash produced by controlled burning conditions at 600-750 degrees C are used for analysis. Emissions of particulate matter, persistent free radicals embedded in the carbonaceous polymeric matrix, heavy metals, other elements and PAHs were determined in both types of samples. Results showed that all plastics burned easily generating charred residue solid ash and black airborne particulate smoke. Persistent carbon- and oxygen-centered radicals, known for their toxic effects in inhalable airborne particles, were detected in both particulate smoke emissions and residue solid ash. Concentrations of heavy metals and other elements (determined by Inductively Coupled Plasma Emission Spectrometry, ICP, method) were measured in the airborne soot and residue ash. Toxic heavy metals, such as Pb, Zn, Cr, Ni, and Cd were relatively at were found at low concentrations. High concentrations were found for some lithophilic elements, such as Na, Ca, Mg, Si and Al in particulate soot and residue solid ash. Measurements of PAHs showed that low molecular weight PAHs were at higher concentrations in the airborne particulate soot than in the residue solid ash for all types of plastic. Higher-ringed PAHs were detected at higher

Estimates of increased black carbon emissions from electrostatic precipitators during powdered activated carbon injection for mercury emissions control.

Science.gov (United States)

Clack, Herek L

2012-07-03

The behavior of mercury sorbents within electrostatic precipitators (ESPs) is not well-understood, despite a decade or more of full-scale testing. Recent laboratory results suggest that powdered activated carbon exhibits somewhat different collection behavior than fly ash in an ESP and particulate filters located at the outlet of ESPs have shown evidence of powdered activated carbon penetration during full-scale tests of sorbent injection for mercury emissions control. The present analysis considers a range of assumed differential ESP collection efficiencies for powdered activated carbon as compared to fly ash. Estimated emission rates of submicrometer powdered activated carbon are compared to estimated emission rates of particulate carbon on submicrometer fly ash, each corresponding to its respective collection efficiency. To the extent that any emitted powdered activated carbon exhibits size and optical characteristics similar to black carbon, such emissions could effectively constitute an increase in black carbon emissions from coal-based stationary power generation. The results reveal that even for the low injection rates associated with chemically impregnated carbons, submicrometer particulate carbon emissions can easily double if the submicrometer fraction of the native fly ash has a low carbon content. Increasing sorbent injection rates, larger collection efficiency differentials as compared to fly ash, and decreasing sorbent particle size all lead to increases in the estimated submicrometer particulate carbon emissions.

Phototransformation rate constants of PAHs associated with soot particles

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Daekyun; Young, Thomas M.; Anastasio, Cort

2013-01-01

Photodegradation is a key process governing the residence time and fate of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in particles, both in the atmosphere and after deposition. We have measured photodegradation rate constants of PAHs in bulk deposits of soot particles illuminated with simulated sunlight. The photodegradation rate constants at the surface (k p 0 ), the effective diffusion coefficients (D eff ), and the light penetration depths (z 0.5 ) for PAHs on soot layers of variable thickness were determined by fitting experimental data with a model of coupled photolysis and diffusion. The overall disappearance rates of irradiated low molecular weight PAHs (with 2–3 rings) on soot particles were influenced by fast photodegradation and fast diffusion kinetics, while those of high molecular weight PAHs (with 4 or more rings) were apparently controlled by either the combination of slow photodegradation and slow diffusion kinetics or by very slow diffusion kinetics alone. The value of z 0.5 is more sensitive to the soot layer thickness than the k p 0 value. As the thickness of the soot layer increases, the z 0.5 values increase, but the k p 0 values are almost constant. The effective diffusion coefficients calculated from dark experiments are generally higher than those from the model fitting method for illumination experiments. Due to the correlation between k p 0 and z 0.5 in thinner layers, D eff should be estimated by an independent method for better accuracy. Despite some limitations of the model used in this study, the fitted parameters were useful for describing empirical results of photodegradation of soot-associated PAHs. - Highlights: ► PAHs on soot were evaluated by a model of coupled photolysis and diffusion. ► Photodegradation rate at the surface, diffusion coefficient, and light penetration path were determined. ► Low MW PAHs were influenced by fast photodegradation and fast diffusion. ► High MW PAHs were controlled either by slow

The impact of black wattle encroachment of indigenous grasslands on soil carbon, Eastern Cape, South Africa

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Oelofse, Myles; Birch-Thomsen, Torben; Magid, Jakob

2016-01-01

adverse environmental impacts in South Africa. Little is known about the effects of black wattle encroachment on soil carbon, therefore the aim of this study was to investigate the impact of black wattle encroachment of natural grassland on soil carbon stocks and dynamics. Focussing on two sites...... in the Eastern Cape, South Africa, the study analysed carbon stocks in soil and litter on a chronosequence of black wattle stands of varying ages (up to >50 years) and compared these with adjacent native grassland. The study found that woody encroachment of grassland at one site had an insignificant effect...... on soil and litter carbon stocks. The second site showed a clear decline in combined soil and litter carbon stocks following wattle encroachment. The lowest stock was in the oldest wattle stand, meaning that carbon stocks are still declining after 50 years of encroachment. The results from the two sites...

Experimental study of the interaction of HO2 radicals with soot surface.

Science.gov (United States)

Bedjanian, Yuri; Lelièvre, Stéphane; Le Bras, Georges

2005-01-21

The reaction of HO2 with toluene and kerosene flame soot was studied over the temperature range 240-350 K and at P = 0.5-5 Torr of helium using a discharge flow reactor coupled to a modulated molecular beam mass spectrometer. A flat-flame burner was used for the preparation and deposition of soot samples from premixed flames of liquid fuels under well controlled and adjustable combustion conditions. The independent of temperature in the range 240-350 K value of gamma = (7.5 +/- 1.5) x 10(-2) (calculated with geometric surface area) was found for the uptake coefficient of HO2 on kerosene and toluene soot. No significant deactivation of soot surface during its reaction with HO2 was observed. Experiments on soot ageing under ambient conditions showed that the reactivity of aged soot is similar to that of freshly prepared soot samples. The results show that the HO2 + soot reaction could be a significant loss process for HOx in the urban atmosphere with a potential impact on photochemical ozone formation. In contrast this process will be negligible in the upper troposphere even in flight corridors.

Barrow Black Carbon Source and Impact Study Final Campaign Report

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Barrett, Tate [Baylor Univ., Waco, TX (United States)

2014-07-01

The goal of the Barrow Black Carbon Source and Impact (BBCSI) Study was to characterize the concentration and isotopic composition of carbonaceous atmospheric particulate matter (PM) at the Atmospheric Radiation Measurement site in Barrow, AK. The carbonaceous component was characterized via measurement of the organic and black carbon (OC and BC) components of the total PM. To facilitate complete characterization of the particulate matter, filter-based collections were used, including a medium volume PM2.5 sampler and a high volume PM10 sampler. Thirty-eight fine (PM2.5) and 49 coarse (PM10) particulate matter fractions were collected at weekly and bi-monthly intervals. The PM2.5 sampler operated with minimal maintenance during the 12 month campaign. The PM10 sampler used for the BBCSI used standard Tisch hi-vol motors which have a known lifetime of ~1 month under constant use; this necessitated monthly maintenance and it is suggested that the motors be upgraded to industrial blowers for future deployment in the Arctic. The BBCSI sampling campaign successfully collected and archived 87 ambient atmospheric particulate matter samples from Barrow, AK from July 2012 to June 2013. Preliminary analysis of the organic and black carbon concentrations has been completed. This campaign confirmed known trends of high BC lasting from the winter through to spring haze periods and low BC concentrations in the summer.

Fractal-like dimension of nanometer Diesel soot particles

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Skillas, G.; Baltensperger, U. [Paul Scherrer Inst. (PSI), Villigen (Switzerland); Siegmann, K. [Eidgenoessische Technische Hochschule, Zurich (Switzerland)

1997-11-01

Measurements with a low-pressure impactor and a differential mobility analyser were conducted for Diesel soot at various engine loads. By means of these measurements a fractal-like dimension of Diesel soot particles, with diameters ranging from 55 up to 260 nm, was established. (author) 2 figs., 7 refs.

Assessment of the surface chemistry of carbon blacks by TGA-MS, XPS and inverse gas chromatography using statistical chemometric analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Strzemiecka, Beata; Voelkel, Adam; Donate-Robles, Jessica; Martín-Martínez, José Miguel

2014-01-01

Highlights: • Carbon blacks with lower specific surface area had basic character (electron donor) due to C=O and C-O groups. • Carbon blacks with higher specific surface area had acidic character (acceptor electron) due to OH groups. • Total surface energy and its dispersive component of carbon blacks increased by increasing their specific surface area. (table) - Abstract: Four carbon blacks with different specific surface areas and surface chemistries (C32, C71, C159 and C178) were analyzed by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and nitrogen adsorption isotherms at 77 K. Their surface chemistries were analyzed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), thermal gravimetric analysis coupled with mass spectrometry (TGA-MS) and inverse gas chromatography (IGC). The carbon blacks contained 2.7–5.8 wt% volatiles corresponding to -OH, C-O, C=O and COO groups. The surface chemistry parameters obtained with the different experimental techniques were inter-related by using chemometric statistical analysis tools. The application of this methodology showed that the carbon blacks with lower specific surface area (C32 and C71) had basic character (electron donor) mainly due to C=O and C-O groups, whereas the carbon black with the highest specific surface area (C178) showed acidic character (acceptor electron) due to its high content of OH groups. Moreover, the total surface energy and the dispersive component of the surface energy of the carbon blacks increased with the increase of their specific surface area. In general the specific interactions of the carbon blacks also increased with the increase of their specific surface area although C71 is exceptional due to higher oxygen content corresponding to C-O groups

Use of carbon filaments in place of carbon black as the current collector of a lithium cell with a thionyl chloride bromine chloride catholyte

Science.gov (United States)

Frysz, Christine A.; Shui, Xiaoping; Chung, D. D. L.

Submicron carbon filaments (ADNH, Applied Sciences Inc.) used in place of carbon black as porous reduction electrodes (i.e., current collectors) in plate and jellyroll configurations in carbon limited lithium batteries with the BCX (bromine chloride in thionyl chloride) catholyte gave a specific capacity (at 2 V cut-off) of up to 8700 mAh/g of carbon, compared with a value of up to 2900 mAh/g of carbon for carbon black. The high specific capacity for the filament electrode is partly due to the filaments' processability into sheets as thin as 0.2 mm with good porosity, acceptable mechanical properties and without binder, and partly due to the high catholyte absorptivity and high rate of catholyte absorption of the filament electrode. Use of solvent-cleansed filaments in place of as-received filaments in making electrodes increased the packing density, thus decreasing capacity per g of carbon. The BCX catholyte acted as a cleanser anyway, due to the thionyl chloride in it. The specific capacity per cm 3 of carbon and that per unit density of carbon were also increased by using carbon filaments in place of carbon black, provided that the filament electrode was not pressed after forming by slurry filtration. Though no binder was needed for the filament plate electrode, it was needed for the filament jellyroll electrode. The Teflon™ binder increased the tensile strength and modulus, but decreased the catholyte absorption and rate of absorption. The filament electrode exhibited 405 less volume electrical resistivity than the carbon black electrode, both without a binder.

Use of carbon filaments in place of carbon black as the current collector of a lithium cell with a thionyl chloride bromine chloride catholyte

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Frysz, C.A. [Technology Div., Wilson Greatbatch Ltd., Clarence, NY (United States); Shui Xiaoping [Composite Materials Research Lab., State Univ. of New York, Buffalo, NY (United States); Chung, D.D.L. [Composite Materials Research Lab., State Univ. of New York, Buffalo, NY (United States)

1996-01-01

Submicron carbon filaments (ADNH, Applied Sciences Inc.) used in place of carbon black as porous reduction electrodes (i.e., current collectors) in plate and jellyroll configurations in carbon limited lithium batteries with the BCX (bromine chloride in thionyl chloride) catholyte gave a specific capacity (at 2 V cut-off) of up to 8700 mAh/g of carbon, compared with a value of up to 2900 mAh/g of carbon for carbon black. The high specific capacity for the filament electrode is partly due to the filaments` processability into sheets as thin as 0.2 mm with good porosity, acceptable mechanical properties and without binder, and partly due to the high catholyte absorptivity and high rate of catholyte absorption of the filament electrode. Use of solvent-cleansed filaments in place of as-received filaments in making electrodes increased the packing density, thus decreasing capacity per g of carbon. The BCX catholyte acted as a cleanser anyway, due to the thionyl chloride in it. The specific capacity per cm{sup 3} of carbon and that per unit density of carbon were also increased by using carbon filaments in place of carbon black, provided that the filament electrode was not pressed after forming by slurry filtration. Though no binder was needed for the filament plate electrode, it was needed for the filament jellyroll electrode. The Teflon{sup TM} binder increased the tensile strength and modulus, but decreased the catholyte absorption and rate of absorption. The filament electrode exhibited 40% less volume electrical resistivity than the carbon black electrode, both without a binder. (orig.)

Self-sensing piezoresistive cement composite loaded with carbon black particles

KAUST Repository

Monteiro, André O.; Cachim, Paulo B.; Da Costa, Pedro M. F. J.

2017-01-01

Strain sensors can be embedded in civil engineering infrastructures to perform real-time service life monitoring. Here, the sensing capability of piezoresistive cement-based composites loaded with carbon black (CB) particles is investigated. Several

Laboratory Measurements of Mass Specific Absorption Spectra for Suites of Black Carbon-like, Biomass Burning and Mineral Dust Aerosols

Science.gov (United States)

Radney, J.; Zangmeister, C.

2017-12-01

Light-absorbing atmospheric aerosols can be grouped into three categories: black carbon (BC), brown carbon (BrC) or mineral dust (MD). In many cases, the absorption of these species is best quantified using a mass-specific absorption cross section (MAC) since the particles are in the Rayleigh regime (BC) or optically thin (BrC and MD); notably, MAC values are both traceable to the SI and transferrable between photoacoustic spectroscopy and filter-based absorption measurements. Here, we present laboratory measurements of MAC for all three light-absorbing aerosol classes. Particles were size- and mass-selected using a differential mobility analyzer and aerosol particle mass analyzer, respectively, with absorption coefficients (αabs) and number concentrations (N) being measured by a broadband photoacoustic spectrometer and condensation particle counter, respectively. This suite of instrumentation allows for direct quantification of MAC from the measured parameters (MAC = αabs/Nmp). Further, the measurements contained > 8 data points spanning λ = 405 nm to 840 nm allowing for spectral curvatures (i.e. the Absorption Angstrom Exponent or AAE) to be fit from many data points versus the more common 2-point interpolations. For the carbonaceous, BC-like aerosols - five samples generated from flames, spark discharge soot (i.e. fullerene soot), graphene, reduced graphene oxide (rGO), and fullerene (C60) - we found: 1) measured MAC ranged between 2.4 m2 g-1 and 8.6 m2 g-1 at λ = 550 nm, 2) most AAEs ranged between 0.5 and 1.3; C60 AAE was 7.5 ± 0.9 and 3) MAC spectra were dependent on fuel type and formation conditions. For BrC particles generated from smoldering combustion of 3 hardwood (Oak, Hickory and Mesquite) and 3 softwood species (Western redcedar, Blue spruce and Baldcypress), we found: 1) median MAC values ranged from 1.4 x 10-2 m2 g-1 to 7.9 x 10-2 m2 g-1 at λ = 550 nm, 2) AAE values ranged between 3.5 and 6.2, and 3) Oak, Western redcedar and Blue spruce

Black Carbon Aging from SOA Coatings and Coagulation with Diesel BC Emissions during SAAS at the PNNL Environmental Chamber

Science.gov (United States)

Aiken, A. C.; Liu, S.; Dubey, M. K.; Zaveri, R. A.; Shilling, J. E.; Gourihar, K.; Pekour, M. S.; Subramanian, R.; Zelenyuk, A.; Wilson, J. M.; Mazzoleni, C.; China, S.; Sharma, N.

2014-12-01

Black carbon (BC) is considered to be potentially the 2nd most important global warming factor behind CO2 (Bond et al., 2013). Uncertainties exist due to BC morphology and mixing state on the extent of the warming that it causes, e.g. Cappa et al., 2012. Core-shell BC is expected to enhance absorption by up to a factor of 2, but has yet to be observed to this extent from ambient data. Experiments were conducted during the Soot Aerosol Aging Study (SAAS) Laboratory Campaign at Pactific Northwest National Laboratory's Environmental Chamber in the winter of 2013-2014 to investigate the relationship between coatings and enhancements from diesel emissions. Direct on-line measurements were made with the single particle soot photometer (SP2) from fresh and aged BC from coating and coagulation experiments with secondary organic aerosol (SOA) formed in the chamber. BC measurements are coupled with photoactoustic measurements spanning the visible region to probe BC enhancements when mixed with SOA. Here we focus on the enhancements at 781 nm, that are tracked throughout SOA growth on BC, as determined from SP2 coating thicknesses. Thermal denuder (TD) experiments are conducted and enhancements are calculated from two different methods that agree well with each other, confirming the observed results. BC measurements are also compared with co-located measurements from SPLAT-II and filter analysis using SEM and TEM. BC coagulated with SOA produces minimal absorption enhancement values, whereas coatings are observed to have significant enhancement values at 300 degrees C, e.g. 1.3 for thickly coated BC. BC particles were coagulated with SOA in the chamber since this morphology has been observed in wildfire emissions (Sedlacek et al., 2012). Since we did not observe appreciable enhancements for the coagulated BC, we expect that ambient emissions dominated by this particle type to have enhancements due to other sources, such as brown carbon (BrC) that is often co-emitted (Saleh et

Effect of part replacement of silica sand with carbon black on composite properties

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Adeosun, B.F.; Olaofe, O.

2003-01-01

We have reported the properties of natural rubber filled with locally available materials (Adu et al 2000). The effect of local clay, limestone, silica sand and charcoal on the properties of natural rubber has been examined. Results have shown detrimental effects of silica sand on the properties of natural rubber compound. It has been reported that when silica is used as a part for part replacement of carbon black, the heat build up the composite decreased whilst tear resistance improved. Results revealed that within the filler content range used in the present work, the hardness, modulus, and tensile strength of composites loaded with silica sand/carbon black showed enhanced magnitude over the composite loaded singly with silica sand. These parameters generally increased with increasing carbon black content in the composite. New area of use requiring moderate level of tensile strength, hardness and modulus (as in soles of shoes and engine mounts) is therefore opened up for silica sand.(author)

Molecular mechanics and quantum mechanical modeling of hexane soot structure and interactions with pyrene

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kubicki JD

2000-09-01

Full Text Available Molecular simulations (energy minimizations and molecular dynamics of an n-hexane soot model developed by Smith and co-workers (M. S. Akhter, A. R. Chughtai and D. M. Smith, Appl. Spectrosc., 1985, 39, 143; ref. 1 were performed. The MM+ (N. L. Allinger, J. Am. Chem. Soc., 1977, 395, 157; ref. 2 and COMPASS (H. Sun, J. Phys. Chem., 1998, 102, 7338; ref. 3 force fields were tested for their ability to produce realistic soot nanoparticle structure. The interaction of pyrene with the model soot was simulated. Quantum mechanical calculations on smaller soot fragments were carried out. Starting from an initial 2D structure, energy minimizations are not able to produce the observed layering within soot with either force field. Results of molecular dynamics simulations indicate that the COMPASS force field does a reasonably accurate job of reproducing observations of soot structure. Increasing the system size from a 683 to a 2732 atom soot model does not have a significant effect on predicted structures. Neither does the addition of water molecules surrounding the soot model. Pyrene fits within the soot structure without disrupting the interlayer spacing. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH, such as pyrene, may strongly partition into soot and have slow desorption kinetics because the PAH-soot bonding is similar to soot–soot interactions. Diffusion of PAH into soot micropores may allow the PAH to be irreversibly adsorbed and sequestered so that they partition slowly back into an aqueous phase causing dis-equilibrium between soil organic matter and porewater.

Particulate Matter and Black Carbon Concentration Levels in Ashaiman, a Semi-Urban Area of Ghana, 2008

OpenAIRE

Sam-Quarcoo Dotse; Joshua Kwame Asane; F.G. Ofosu

2012-01-01

Particulate matter and black carbon concentration levels in Ashaiman, a semi-urban area of Ghana was assessed. Using IVL PM2.5 and PM10 particle samplers, airborne particulate matter was sampled on Teflon filters for a period of three months. In addition to determination of particulate mass in the two fractions by gravimetrical method, aerosol filters were analyzed to determine Black Carbon (BC) concentration levels using the black smoke method. BC fractions in fine and coarse, together with ...

Measurement of Soot Deposition in Automotive Components Using Neutron Radiography

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zekveld, David; Liu, Liaohui [AMEC NSS, 700 University Ave, Toronto, Ontario, M5G 1X6 (Canada); UOIT, 2000 Simcoe Street North, Oshawa, Ontario, L1H 7K4 (Canada); Harrison, Andrew; Gill, Spencer; Harvel, Glenn [UOIT, 2000 Simcoe Street North, Oshawa, Ontario, L1H 7K4 (Canada); Chang, Jen-Shih [McMaster University, 1280 Main Street West, Hamilton, Ontario, L8S 4L8 (Canada)

2008-07-01

About 40% of air pollution is generated by vehicles and transportation. The particulate matter (PM) emission significantly impacts human health. Fine particles below 2.5 {mu}m (PM2.5) can enter the lungs and lead to respiratory problems. These particles not only influence human health, but also reduce the capability of many automobile exhaust heat exchanging devices. Neutron radiography is a non-destructive method of analyzing carbonaceous PM. While neutron radiography has been demonstrated for soot measurement in the past, the application has not considered the presence of unburned hydrocarbons, significant amounts of moisture nor examined complex geometrical configurations. The purpose of this work is to study a reliable non-destructive testing methodology using neutron radiography for measurement of soot distribution in automotive components. A soot standard (aluminium target) was designed and manufactured as a calibration tool. The standard is radiographed and used to measure the differences between various soot thickness and compositions. The radiograph images are analyzed to determine a calibration curve based upon the composition of the materials which can then be used for analysis of the automotive components. Experiments are performed using a diesel engine to produce soot deposits on exhaust piping. Soot distribution on exhaust piping is measured using neutron radiography. (authors)

Measurement of Soot Deposition in Automotive Components Using Neutron Radiography

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zekveld, David; Liu, Liaohui; Harrison, Andrew; Gill, Spencer; Harvel, Glenn; Chang, Jen-Shih

2008-01-01

About 40% of air pollution is generated by vehicles and transportation. The particulate matter (PM) emission significantly impacts human health. Fine particles below 2.5 μm (PM2.5) can enter the lungs and lead to respiratory problems. These particles not only influence human health, but also reduce the capability of many automobile exhaust heat exchanging devices. Neutron radiography is a non-destructive method of analyzing carbonaceous PM. While neutron radiography has been demonstrated for soot measurement in the past, the application has not considered the presence of unburned hydrocarbons, significant amounts of moisture nor examined complex geometrical configurations. The purpose of this work is to study a reliable non-destructive testing methodology using neutron radiography for measurement of soot distribution in automotive components. A soot standard (aluminium target) was designed and manufactured as a calibration tool. The standard is radiographed and used to measure the differences between various soot thickness and compositions. The radiograph images are analyzed to determine a calibration curve based upon the composition of the materials which can then be used for analysis of the automotive components. Experiments are performed using a diesel engine to produce soot deposits on exhaust piping. Soot distribution on exhaust piping is measured using neutron radiography. (authors)

Developing a predictive model for the chemical composition of soot nanoparticles

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Violi, Angela [Univ. of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI (United States); Michelsen, Hope [Sandia National Lab. (SNL-CA), Livermore, CA (United States); Hansen, Nils [Sandia National Lab. (SNL-CA), Livermore, CA (United States); Wilson, Kevin [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)

2017-04-07

In order to provide the scientific foundation to enable technology breakthroughs in transportation fuel, it is important to develop a combustion modeling capability to optimize the operation and design of evolving fuels in advanced engines for transportation applications. The goal of this proposal is to develop a validated predictive model to describe the chemical composition of soot nanoparticles in premixed and diffusion flames. Atomistic studies in conjunction with state-of-the-art experiments are the distinguishing characteristics of this unique interdisciplinary effort. The modeling effort has been conducted at the University of Michigan by Prof. A. Violi. The experimental work has entailed a series of studies using different techniques to analyze gas-phase soot precursor chemistry and soot particle production in premixed and diffusion flames. Measurements have provided spatial distributions of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and other gas-phase species and size and composition of incipient soot nanoparticles for comparison with model results. The experimental team includes Dr. N. Hansen and H. Michelsen at Sandia National Labs' Combustion Research Facility, and Dr. K. Wilson as collaborator at Lawrence Berkeley National Lab's Advanced Light Source. Our results show that the chemical and physical properties of nanoparticles affect the coagulation behavior in soot formation, and our results on an experimentally validated, predictive model for the chemical composition of soot nanoparticles will not only enhance our understanding of soot formation since but will also allow the prediction of particle size distributions under combustion conditions. These results provide a novel description of soot formation based on physical and chemical properties of the particles for use in the next generation of soot models and an enhanced capability for facilitating the design of alternative fuels and the engines they will power.

Potential climate impact of black carbon emitted by rockets

Science.gov (United States)

Ross, Martin; Mills, Michael; Toohey, Darin

2010-12-01

A new type of hydrocarbon rocket engine is expected to power a fleet of suborbital rockets for commercial and scientific purposes in coming decades. A global climate model predicts that emissions from a fleet of 1000 launches per year of suborbital rockets would create a persistent layer of black carbon particles in the northern stratosphere that could cause potentially significant changes in the global atmospheric circulation and distributions of ozone and temperature. Tropical stratospheric ozone abundances are predicted to change as much as 1%, while polar ozone changes by up to 6%. Polar surface temperatures change as much as one degree K regionally with significant impacts on polar sea ice fractions. After one decade of continuous launches, globally averaged radiative forcing from the black carbon would exceed the forcing from the emitted CO2 by a factor of about 105 and would be comparable to the radiative forcing estimated from current subsonic aviation.

Improved technique for measuring the size distribution of black carbon particles in rainwater and snow samples

Science.gov (United States)

Mori, T.; Moteki, N.; Ohata, S.; Koike, M.; Azuma, K. G.; Miyazaki, Y.; Kondo, Y.

2015-12-01

Black carbon (BC) is the strongest contributor to sunlight absorption among atmospheric aerosols. Quantitative understanding of wet deposition of BC, which strongly affects the spatial distribution of BC, is important to improve our understandings on climate change. We have devised a technique for measuring the masses of individual BC particles in rainwater and snow samples, as a combination of a nebulizer and a single-particle soot photometer (SP2) (Ohata et al. 2011, 2013; Schwarz et al. 2012; Mori et al. 2014). We show two important improvements in this technique: 1)We have extended the upper limit of detectable BC particle diameter from 0.9 μm to about 4.0 μm by modifying the photodetector for measuring the laser-induced incandescence signal. 2)We introduced a pneumatic nebulizer Marin-5 (Cetac Technologies Inc., Omaha, NE, USA) and experimentally confirmed its high extraction efficiency (~50%) independent of particle diameter up to 2.0 μm. Using our improved system, we simultaneously measured the size distribution of BC particles in air and rainwater in Tokyo. We observed that the size distribution of BC in rainwater was larger than that in air, indicating that large BC particles were effectively removed by precipitation. We also observed BC particles with diameters larger than 1.0 μm, indicating that further studies of wet deposition of BC will require the use of the modified SP2.

Numerical Modelling of Soot Formation in Laminar Axisymmetric Ethylene-Air Coflow Flames at Atmospheric and Elevated Pressures

KAUST Repository

Abdelgadir, Ahmed

2015-03-30

A set of coflow diffusion flames are simulated to study the formation, growth, and oxidation of soot in flames of diluted hydrocarbon fuels, with focus on the effects of pressure. Firstly, we assess the ability of a high performance CFD solver, coupled with detailed transport and kinetic models, to reproduce experimental measurements of a series of ethylene-air coflow flames. Detailed finite rate chemistry describing the formation of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydro-carbons is used. Soot is modeled with a moment method and the resulting moment transport equations are solved with a Lagrangian numerical scheme. Numerical and experimental results are compared for various pressures. Finally, a sensitivity study is performed assessing the effect of the boundary conditions and kinetic mechanisms on the flame structure and stabilization properties.

Black (pyrogenic carbon: a synthesis of current knowledge and uncertainties with special consideration of boreal regions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

C. M. Preston

2006-01-01

Full Text Available The carbon (C cycle in boreal regions is strongly influenced by fire, which converts biomass and detrital C mainly to gaseous forms (CO2 and smaller proportions of CO and CH4, and some 1–3% of mass to pyrogenic C (PyC. PyC is mainly produced as solid charred residues, including visually-defined charcoal, and a black carbon (BC fraction chemically defined by its resistance to laboratory oxidation, plus much lower proportions of volatile soot and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs. All PyC is characterized by fused aromatic rings, but varying in cluster sizes, and presence of other elements (N, O and functional groups. The range of PyC structures is often described as a continuum from partially charred plant materials, to charcoal, soot and ultimately graphite which is formed by the combination of heat and pressure. There are several reasons for current interest in defining more precisely the role of PyC in the C cycle of boreal regions. First, PyC is largely resistant to decomposition, and therefore contributes to very stable C pools in soils and sediments. Second, it influences soil processes, mainly through its sorption properties and cation exchange capacity, and third, soot aerosols absorb solar radiation and may contribute to global warming. However, there are large gaps in the basic information needed to address these topics. While charcoal is commonly defined by visual criteria, analytical methods for BC are mainly based on various measures of oxidation resistance, or on yield of benzenepolycarboxylic acids. These methods are still being developed, and capture different fractions of the PyC structural continuum. There are few quantitative reports of PyC production and stocks in boreal forests (essentially none for boreal peatlands, and results are difficult to compare due to varying experimental goals and methods, as well as inconsistent terminology. There are almost no direct field measurements of BC aerosol production from boreal

Use of the Single Particle Soot Photometer (SP2) as a pre-filter for ice nucleation measurements: effect of particle mixing state and determination of SP2 conditions to fully vaporize refractory black carbon

Science.gov (United States)

Schill, Gregory P.; DeMott, Paul J.; Levin, Ezra J. T.; Kreidenweis, Sonia M.

2018-05-01

Ice nucleation is a fundamental atmospheric process that impacts precipitation, cloud lifetimes, and climate. Challenges remain to identify and quantify the compositions and sources of ice-nucleating particles (INPs). Assessment of the role of black carbon (BC) as an INP is particularly important due to its anthropogenic sources and abundance at upper-tropospheric cloud levels. The role of BC as an INP, however, is unclear. This is, in part, driven by a lack of techniques that directly determine the contribution of refractory BC (rBC) to INP concentrations. One previously developed technique to measure this contribution uses the Single Particle Soot Photometer (SP2) as a pre-filter to an online ice-nucleating particle counter. In this technique, rBC particles are selectively heated to their vaporization temperature in the SP2 cavity by a 1064 nm laser. From previous work, however, it is unclear under what SP2 conditions, if any, the original rBC particles were fully vaporized. Furthermore, previous work also left questions about the effect of the SP2 laser on the ice-nucleating properties of several INP proxies and their mixtures with rBC.To answer these questions, we sampled the exhaust of an SP2 with a Scanning Mobility Particle Sizer and a Continuous Flow Diffusion Chamber. Using Aquadag® as an rBC proxy, the effect of several SP2 instrument parameters on the size distribution and physical properties of particles in rBC SP2 exhaust were explored. We found that a high SP2 laser power (930 nW/(220 nm PSL)) is required to fully vaporize a ˜ 0.76 fg rBC particle. We also found that the exhaust particle size distribution is minimally affected by the SP2 sheath-to-sample ratio; the size of the original rBC particle, however, greatly influences the size distribution of the SP2 exhaust. The effect of the SP2 laser on the ice nucleation efficiency of Snomax®, NX-illite, and Suwannee River Fulvic Acid was studied; these particles acted as proxies for biological, illite

Filtration of Oil-furnace Carbon Black Dust Particles from the Tail Gases by Filter Bags With PTFE Membrane

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Čuzela, D.

2010-01-01

Full Text Available During the industrial production of oil furnace carbon black, tail gases containing oil-furnace carbon black dust particles are emitted to the atmosphere. In the carbon black plant, Petrokemija d. d., there are six exhaust stacks for tail gases. Each of them has installed process equipment for cleaning tail gases. Efficiency of cleaning mainly depends on equipment construction and cleaning technology. The vicinity of the town, quality of the air in the region of Kutina, regarding floating particles PM10, and corporate responsibility for further enviromental improvement, imposes development of new methods that will decrease the emmision of oil-furnace carbon black dust particles in the air. Combining centrifugal percipitator and filter, special construction of cyclofilter for filtration of oil-furnace carbon black dust particles from tail gases by using PTFE (polytetrafluoroethylene membrane filter bags, was designed. Developed filtration technique provides η = 99.9 % efficiency of filtration. Construction part of the filter contains the newest generation of PTFE membrane filter bags with the ability of jet pulse cleaning. Using the PTFE membrane filter bags technology, filtration efficiency for oil-furnace carbon black dust particles in tail gases of maximum γ=5mgm-3can be achieved. The filtration efficiency was monitored continuously measuring the concentration of the oil-furnace carbon black dust particles in the tail gases with the help of in situ electronic probe. The accomplished filtration technology is the base for the installation of the PTFE membrane filter bags in the main operation filters which will provide better protection of the air in the town of Kutina against floating particles PM10.

Soot modeling of counterflow diffusion flames of ethylene-based binary mixture fuels

KAUST Repository

Wang, Yu; Raj, Abhijeet Dhayal; Chung, Suk-Ho

2015-01-01

of ethylene and its binary mixtures with methane, ethane and propane based on the method of moments. The soot model has 36 soot nucleation reactions from 8 PAH molecules including pyrene and larger PAHs. Soot surface growth reactions were based on a modified

Comparison of structural health assessment capabilities in epoxy – carbon black and epoxy – carbon nanotube nanocomposites

OpenAIRE

F. Inam; B. R. Bhat; N. Luhyna; T. Vo

2014-01-01

A novel method for comparing structural health of different types of brittle epoxy nanocomposites filled with carbon nanostructured fillers is presented. Epoxy – 0.2 vol% carbon black (CB) and epoxy – 0.2 vol% carbon nanotube (CNT) nanocomposite bars were prepared by calendering and thermal curing. Nanocomposite bars were subjected to Vickers diamond indentation to produce sub-surface damage. Electrical conductivities were analysed by 4-point method to estimate the structural damage caused by...

A computational study of soot formation in opposed-flow diffusion flame interacting with vortices

KAUST Repository

Selvaraj, Prabhu

2017-01-05

The flame-vortex interaction enables the study of basic phenomena that control the coupling between combustion and turbulence. Employing a gas phase reaction mechanism considering polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH), a two dimensional counterflow ethylene-air flame is simulated. A reduced mechanism with PAH pathways that includes until coronene and method of moments with interpolative closure (MOMIC) has been employed to calculate the soot characteristics. Interaction of sooting flame with a prescribed decaying random velocity field is being investigated. Counterflow nonpremixed flames at low strain rate sooting conditions are considered. Effects of vortices are studied on the flame structures and its sensitivity on the soot formation characteristics. As the vortex rolls up the flame, integrated soot volume fraction is found to be larger for the air-side vortex. A detailed analysis on the flame structure and its influence on the formation of soot were carried out. The results indicate that the larger PAH species contributes to the soot formation in the airside perturbation regimes, whereas the soot formation is dominated by the soot transport in fuel-side perturbation.

Effect of Dimethyl Ether Mixing on Soot Size Distribution in Premixed Ethylene Flame

KAUST Repository

Li, Zepeng

2016-01-01

As a byproduct of incomplete combustion, soot attracts increasing attentions as extensive researches exploring serious health and environmental effects from soot particles. Soot emission reduction requires a comprehensive understanding

Implementation of two-equation soot flamelet models for laminar diffusion flames

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Carbonell, D.; Oliva, A.; Perez-Segarra, C.D. [Centre Tecnologic de Transferencia de Calor (CTTC), Universitat Politecnica de Catalunya (UPC), ETSEIAT, Colom 11, E-08222, Terrassa (Barcelona) (Spain)

2009-03-15

The two-equation soot model proposed by Leung et al. [K.M. Leung, R.P. Lindstedt, W.P. Jones, Combust. Flame 87 (1991) 289-305] has been derived in the mixture fraction space. The model has been implemented using both Interactive and Non-Interactive flamelet strategies. An Extended Enthalpy Defect Flamelet Model (E-EDFM) which uses a flamelet library obtained neglecting the soot formation is proposed as a Non-Interactive method. The Lagrangian Flamelet Model (LFM) is used to represent the Interactive models. This model uses direct values of soot mass fraction from flamelet calculations. An Extended version (E-LFM) of this model is also suggested in which soot mass fraction reaction rates are used from flamelet calculations. Results presented in this work show that the E-EDFM predict acceptable results. However, it overpredicts the soot volume fraction due to the inability of this model to couple the soot and gas-phase mechanisms. It has been demonstrated that the LFM is not able to predict accurately the soot volume fraction. On the other hand, the extended version proposed here has been shown to be very accurate. The different flamelet mathematical formulations have been tested and compared using well verified reference calculations obtained solving the set of the Full Transport Equations (FTE) in the physical space. (author)

Comparison and implications of PM2.5 carbon fractions in different environments

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhu, Chong-Shu; Cao, Jun-Ji; Tsai, Chuen-Jinn; Shen, Zhen-Xing; Han, Yong-Ming; Liu, Sui-Xin; Zhao, Zhu-Zi

2014-01-01

The concentrations of PM 2.5 carbon fractions in rural, urban, tunnel and remote environments were measured using the IMPROVE thermal optical reflectance (TOR) method. The highest OC1 and EC1 concentrations were found for tunnel samples, while the highest OC2, OC3, and OC4 concentrations were observed for urban winter samples, respectively. The lowest levels of most carbon fractions were found for remote samples. The percentage contributions of carbon fractions to total carbon (TC) were characterized by one peak (at rural and remote sites) and two peaks (at urban and tunnel sites) with different carbon fractions, respectively. The abundance of char in tunnel and urban environments was observed, which might partly be due to traffic-related tire-wear. Various percentages of optically scattering OC and absorbing EC fractions to TC were found in the four different environments. In addition, the contribution of heating carbon fractions (char and soot) indicated various warming effects per unit mass of TC. The ratios of OC/EC and char/soot at the sites were shown to be source indicators. The investigation of carbon fractions at different sites may provide some information for improving model parameters in estimating their radiative effects. - Highlights: •The eight carbon fractions, char and soot at rural, urban, tunnel and remote sites were compared. •OC/EC and char/soot among four sites were elucidated as effective source indicator. •The results might give implications for models in estimating their climate effects

The theory-practice gap of black carbon mitigation technologies in rural China

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Weishi; Li, Aitong; Xu, Yuan; Liu, Junfeng

2018-02-01

Black carbon mitigation has received increasing attention for its potential contribution to both climate change mitigation and air pollution control. Although different bottom-up models concerned with unit mitigation costs of various technologies allow the assessment of alternative policies for optimized cost-effectiveness, the lack of adequate data often forced many reluctant explicit and implicit assumptions that deviate away from actual situations of rural residential energy consumption in developing countries, where most black carbon emissions occur. To gauge the theory-practice gap in black carbon mitigation - the unit cost differences that lie between what is estimated in the theory and what is practically achieved on the ground - this study conducted an extensive field survey and analysis of nine mitigation technologies in rural China, covering both northern and southern regions with different residential energy consumption patterns. With a special focus on two temporal characteristics of those technologies - lifetimes and annual utilization rates, this study quantitatively measured the unit cost gaps and explain the technical as well as sociopolitical mechanisms behind. Structural and behavioral barriers, which have affected the technologies' performance, are discussed together with policy implications to narrow those gaps.

Exploring biomass based carbon black as filler in epoxy composites: Flexural and thermal properties

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Abdul Khalil, H.P.S.; Firoozian, P.; Bakare, I.O.; Akil, Hazizan Md.; Noor, Ahmad Md.

2010-01-01

Carbon blacks (CB), derived from bamboo stem (BS-CB), coconut shells (CNS-CB) and oil palm empty fiber bunch (EFB-CB), were obtained by pyrolysis of fibers at 700 o C, characterized and used as filler in epoxy composites. The results obtained showed that the prepared carbon black possessed well-developed porosities and are predominantly made up of micropores. The BS-CB, CNS-CB and EFB-CB filled composites were prepared and characterized using scanning electron microscope (SEM) and thermogravimetric analyzer (TGA). The SEM showed that the fractured surface of the composite indicates its high resistance to fracture. The CBs-epoxy composites exhibited better flexural properties than the neat epoxy, which was attributed to better adhesion between the CBs and the epoxy resin. TGA showed that there was improvement in thermal stability of the carbon black filled composites compared to the neat epoxy resin.

Methane. A review

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Amstel, van A.R.

2012-01-01

Earth's atmosphere is changing because of emissions of pollutants and greenhouse gases. Carbon dioxide emissions are important and result in half of the warming of the atmosphere. Pollutants from burning like black carbon (soot), nitrogen oxides and sulphur oxides have adverse health effects and

Role of Fluid-Dynamics in Soot Formation and Microstructure in Acetylene-Air Laminar Diffusion Flames

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Praveen Pandey

2015-03-01

Full Text Available Residence time and thermo-chemical environment are important factors in the soot-formation process in flames. Studies have revealed that flow-dynamics plays a dominant role in soot formation process. For understanding the effect of flow dynamics on soot formation and physical structure of the soot formed in different combustion environments two types of laminar diffusion flames of Acetylene and air, a normal diffusion flame (NDF and an inverse diffusion flame (IDF have been investigated. The fuel and air supply in the reaction zone in two flame types were kept constant but the interchange of relative position of fuel and air altered the burner exit Reynolds and Froude numbers of gases, fuel/air velocity ratio and flame shape. Soot samples were collected using thermophoretic sampling on transmission electron microscope (TEM grids at different flame heights and were analyzed off-line in a Transmission Electron Microscope. Soot primary particle size, soot aggregate size and soot volume fraction were measured using an image analysis software. In NDF the maximum flame temperature was about 1525 K and 1230 K for IDF. The soot primary particles are distinctly smaller in size in IDF (between 19 – 26 nm compared to NDF (between 29–34 nm. Both NDF and IDF show chainlike branched structure of soot agglomerate with soot particles of a nearly spherical shape. The average number of soot primary particles per aggregate in NDF was in the range of 24 to 40 and in IDF it varied between 16 to 24. Soot volume fraction was between 0.6 to 1.5 ppm in NDF where as it was less than 0.2 ppm in IDF. The change in sooting characteristics of the two flame types is attributed to changed fuel/air velocity ratio, entrainment of gas molecules and thermophoresis on soot particles.

A New Method to Obtain the Black Carbon Mixing State of Biomass and Combustion Aerosols

Science.gov (United States)

Irwin, M.; Liu, D.; Joshi, R.; Allan, J. D.; Coe, H.; Flynn, M.; Olfert, J. S.; Broda, K.; Fu, P.; Sun, Y.; Ge, X.; Wang, J.

2017-12-01

Black carbon particles (BC) significantly contribute to warming effects in the atmosphere, altering weather systems, and pose significant health risks. These impacts are especially efficient at regional hotspots with high emissions of pollutants, such as in fast-developing megacities. These urban environments have the most population exposure, and improving the understanding of the sources and the processing of pollutants in these environments is critical in guiding policy making. Here we present the results of BC characterization in Beijing during the winter of 2016 (10th Nov-10th Dec), as part of a large joint UK-China field experiment. During this experiment, we successfully gathered 4 weeks of continuous measurements, including several severe pollution events in Beijing. MethodologyThe mixing state of BC, which is how BC is associated with non-BC material (its coating) within a particle, is crucial to determine its lifetime in the atmosphere and also its optical properties. However precisely quantifying the BC mixing state has posed a challenge, in part due to complex particle morphology. We have applied morphology-independent measurements of BC mixing state on a single-particle basis throughout this experiment: mono-dispersed particle mass (MP) is selected using a Centrifugal Particle Mass Analyser (CPMA, Cambustion Ltd) and a single particle soot photometer (SP2, DMT inc.) was used downstream of the CPMA to measure the refractory BC mass (MrBC). The full scan of CPMA masses (21 mass bins covering most of MP) are performed every half hour, following polydispersed particles measured without running CPMA.

Seasonal Progression of the Deposition of Black Carbon by Snowfall at Ny-Ålesund, Spitsbergen

Science.gov (United States)

Sinha, P. R.; Kondo, Y.; Goto-Azuma, K.; Tsukagawa, Y.; Fukuda, K.; Koike, M.; Ohata, S.; Moteki, N.; Mori, T.; Oshima, N.; Førland, E. J.; Irwin, M.; Gallet, J.-C.; Pedersen, C. A.

2018-01-01

Deposition of black carbon (BC) aerosol in the Arctic lowers snow albedo, thus contributing to warming in the region. However, the processes and impacts associated with BC deposition are poorly understood because of the scarcity and uncertainties of measurements of BC in snow with adequate spatiotemporal resolution. We sampled snowpack at two sites (11 m and 300 m above sea level) at Ny-Ålesund, Spitsbergen, in April 2013. We also collected falling snow near the surface with a windsock from September 2012 to April 2013. The size distribution of BC in snowpack and falling snow was measured using a single-particle soot photometer combined with a characterized nebulizer. The BC size distributions did not show significant variations with depth in the snowpack, suggesting stable size distributions in falling snow. The BC number and mass concentrations (CNBC and CMBC) at the two sites agreed to within 19% and 10%, respectively, despite the sites' different snow water equivalent (SWE) loadings. This indicates the small influence of the amount of SWE (or precipitation) on these quantities. Average CNBC and CMBC in snowpack and falling snow at nearly the same locations agreed to within 5% and 16%, after small corrections for artifacts associated with the sampling of the falling snow. This comparison shows that the dry deposition was a small contributor to the total BC deposition. CMBC were highest (2.4 ± 3.0 μg L-1) in December-February and lowest (1.2 ± 1.2 μg L-1) in September-November.

Spectral Signature of Radiative Forcing by East Asian Dust-Soot Mixture

Science.gov (United States)

Zhu, A.; Ramanathan, V.

2007-12-01

The Pacific Dust Experiment (PACDEX) provides the first detailed sampling of dust-soot mixtures from the western Pacific to the eastern Pacific Ocean. The data includes down and up spectral irradiance, mixing state of dust and soot, and other aerosol properties. This study attempts to simulate the radiative forcing by dust-soot mixtures during the experimental period. The MODTRAN band model was employed to investigate the spectral signatures of solar irradiance change induced by aerosols at moderate spectral resolutions. For the short wave band (300-1100nm) used in this study, the reduction of downward irradiance at surface by aerosols greatly enhances with increasing wavelength in the UV band (300-400nm), reaches a maximum in the blue band, then gradually decreases toward the red band. In the near-IR band (700-1100nm), irradiance reduction by aerosols shows great fluctuations in the band with center wavelength at around 940nm, 820nm, 720nm, 760nm, 690nm, where the aerosol effect is overwhelmed by the water vapor and O2 absorptions. The spectral pattern of irradiance reduction varies for different aerosol species. The maximum reduction lies at around 450nm for soot, and shifting to about 490nm for East Asian mineral dust. It's worth noting that although soot aerosols reduce more irradiance than East Asian dust in the UV and blue band, the impact of dust to the irradiance exceeds that by soot at the longer wavelength band (i.e. around 550nm). The reduction of irradiance by East Asian dust (soot) in the UV band, visible band, and near-IR accounts for about 6% (10%), 56% (64%), and 38% (26%) of total irradiance reduction. As large amount of soot aerosols are involved during the long range transport of East Asian dust, the optical properties of dust aerosols are modified with different mixing state with soot, the spectral pattern of the irradiance reduction will be changed. The study of aerosol forcing at moderate spectral resolutions has the potential application for

Development and implementation of Intelligent Soot Blowing Optimization System for TNB Janamanjung

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sundaram Taneshwaren

2017-01-01

Full Text Available With an ever increasing demand for energy, Malaysia has become a nation that thrives on solid power generation sector to meet the energy demand and supply market. In a coal fired power plant, soot blowing operation is commonly used as a cleaning mechanism inside the boiler. There are many types of sequence available for this soot blowing operation. Hence, there is no efficient ways in utilizing the soot blowing operation to enhance the efficiency of boiler. Soot blowing optimization requires specific set of data preparation and simulation in order to achieve the best modal. Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD is used to model a 700MW super-critical boiler, whereby parameters with effect to soot blowing operation is studied. Two different boiler condition is studied to analyze parameters in a clean and faulty boiler. Artificial Neural Network (ANN is used to train neural network modal with back propagation method to determine the best modal that will be used to predict soot blowing operation. Combination of neural network different number of neurons, hidden layers, training algorithm, and training functions is trained to find the modal with lowest error. By improving soot blowing sequence, efficiency of boiler can be improved by providing best parameter and model. This model is then used as a reference for advisory tool whereby a Neural Network Predictive Tool is suggested to the station to predict the soot blowing operation that occurs.

PTCR effect in carbon black/copolymer composites

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Costa, L.C.; Chakki, A.; Achour, M.E.; Graca, M.P.F.

2011-01-01

Some materials show an abrupt increase in resistivity when the temperature changes only over a few degrees. This phenomenon, known as PTCR effect (positive temperature coefficient of resistivity), has been largely studied in the last few years, due to its potential applications in industry. Particularly, it can be used in auto controlled heaters, temperature sensors, protection circuits and in security systems for power electronic circuits. In this work we present the study of the electrical properties of the percolating system carbon black particles filled with ethylene butylacrylate copolymer composite (EBA), in the temperature range from -100 to 100 o C and in frequencies between 10 Hz and 100 kHz. The PTCR effect was observed at temperatures slightly above the room temperature, for concentrations higher than that of the percolation critical concentration. The mechanism responsible for the change in resistivity, at this stage, is predominantly tunnelling, wherein the conductive filler particles are not in physical contact, and the electrons tunnel through the insulating gap between them. At low temperatures, such as below and close to the glass transition temperature, the DC conductivity obeys the Arrhenius law. The calculated activation energy values are independent of carbon black contents inside the copolymer matrix, suggesting that these particles do not interact significantly with the chain segments of the macromolecules in the EBA copolymer.

PTCR effect in carbon black/copolymer composites

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Costa, L.C., E-mail: kady@fis.ua.p [I3N and Physics Department, University of Aveiro, 3810-193 Aveiro (Portugal); Chakki, A.; Achour, M.E. [LASTID, Physics Department, Faculty of Sciences, Ibn Tofail University, BP 133, 14000 Kenitra (Morocco); Graca, M.P.F. [I3N and Physics Department, University of Aveiro, 3810-193 Aveiro (Portugal)

2011-01-15

Some materials show an abrupt increase in resistivity when the temperature changes only over a few degrees. This phenomenon, known as PTCR effect (positive temperature coefficient of resistivity), has been largely studied in the last few years, due to its potential applications in industry. Particularly, it can be used in auto controlled heaters, temperature sensors, protection circuits and in security systems for power electronic circuits. In this work we present the study of the electrical properties of the percolating system carbon black particles filled with ethylene butylacrylate copolymer composite (EBA), in the temperature range from -100 to 100 {sup o}C and in frequencies between 10 Hz and 100 kHz. The PTCR effect was observed at temperatures slightly above the room temperature, for concentrations higher than that of the percolation critical concentration. The mechanism responsible for the change in resistivity, at this stage, is predominantly tunnelling, wherein the conductive filler particles are not in physical contact, and the electrons tunnel through the insulating gap between them. At low temperatures, such as below and close to the glass transition temperature, the DC conductivity obeys the Arrhenius law. The calculated activation energy values are independent of carbon black contents inside the copolymer matrix, suggesting that these particles do not interact significantly with the chain segments of the macromolecules in the EBA copolymer.

Hydrogen and Carbon Black Production from the Degradation of Methane by Thermal Plasma

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Leila Cottet

2014-05-01

Full Text Available Methane gas (CH4 is the main inducer of the so called greenhouse gases effect. Recent scientific research aims to minimize the accumulation of this gas in the atmosphere and to develop processes capable of producing stable materials with added value. Thermal plasma technology is a promising alternative to these applications, since it allows obtaining H2 and solid carbon from CH4, without the parallel formation of byproducts such as CO2 and NOx. In this work, CH4 was degraded by thermal plasma in order to produce hydrogen (H2 and carbon black. The degradation efficiency of CH4, selectivity for H2 production as well as the characterization of carbon black were studied. The best results were obtained in the CH4 flow rate of 5 L min-1 the degradation percentage and the selectivity for H2 production reached 98.8 % and 48.4 %, respectively. At flow rates of less than 5 L min-1 the selectivity for H2 production increases and reaches 91.9 %. The carbon black has obtained amorphous with hydrophobic characteristics and can be marketed to be used in composite material, and can also be activated chemically and/or physically and used as adsorbent material.

Black soiling of an architectural limestone during two-year term exposure to urban air in the city of Granada (S Spain)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Urosevic, Maja, E-mail: maja@ugr.es [Dept. Mineralogy and Petrology, Faculty of Science, University of Granada, Campus Fuentenueva s/n, 18071 Granada (Spain); Yebra-Rodriguez, Africa [Dept. Geology-Associated Unit IACT (CSIC-UGR), Faculty of Experimental Science, University of Jaen, Campus Las Lagunillas s/n, 23071 Jaen (Spain); Sebastian-Pardo, Eduardo; Cardell, Carolina [Dept. Mineralogy and Petrology, Faculty of Science, University of Granada, Campus Fuentenueva s/n, 18071 Granada (Spain)

2012-01-01

A two-year term aging test was carried out on a building limestone under different urban conditions in the city of Granada (Southern Spain) to assess its Cultural Heritage sustainability. For this purpose stone tablets were placed vertically at four sites with contrasting local pollution micro-environments and exposure conditions (rain-sheltered and unsheltered). The back (rain-sheltered) and the front (rain-unsheltered) faces of the stone tablets were studied for each site. The soiling process (surface blackening) was monitored through lightness ({Delta}L*) and chroma changes ({Delta}C*). Additionally atmospheric particles deposited on the stone surfaces and on PM10 filters during the exposure time were studied through a multianalytical approach including scanning electron microscopy (SEM-EDX), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and micro-Raman spectroscopy. The identified atmospheric particles (responsible for stone soiling) were mainly soot and soil dust particles; also fly ash and aged salt particles were found. The soiling process was related to surface texture, exposure conditions and proximity to dense traffic streets. On the front faces of all stones, black soiling and surface roughness promoted by differential erosion between micritic and sparitic calcite were noticed. Moreover, it was found that surface roughness enhanced a feedback process that triggers further black soiling. The calculated effective area coverage (EAC) by light absorbing dust ranged from 10.2 to 20.4%, exceeding by far the established value of 2% EAC (limit perceptible to the human eye). Soiling coefficients (SC) were estimated based on square-root and bounded exponential fittings. Estimated black carbon (BC) concentration resulted in relatively similar SC for all studied sites and thus predicts the soiling process better than using particulate matter (PM10) concentration. - Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer A two-year term aging test was carried out on a building limestone

Effect of NO2 and water on the catalytic oxidation of soot

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Christensen, Jakob Munkholt; Grunwaldt, Jan-Dierk; Jensen, Anker Degn

2017-01-01

The influence of adding NO2 to 10 vol% O2/N2 on non-catalytic soot oxidation and soot oxidation in intimate or loose contact with a catalyst has been investigated. In non-catalytic soot oxidation the oxidation rate is increased significantly at lower temperatures by NO2. For soot oxidation in tig...... exhibited a volcano-curve dependence on the heat of oxygen chemisorption, and among the tested pure metals and oxides Cr2O3 was the most active catalyst. Further improvements were achieved with a FeaCrbOx binary oxide catalyst....

Characterization of Diesel Soot Aggregates by Scattering and Extinction Methods

Science.gov (United States)

Kamimoto, Takeyuki

2006-07-01

Characteristics of diesel soot particles sampled from diesel exhaust of a common-rail turbo-charged diesel engine are quantified by scattering and extinction diagnostics using newly build two laser-based instruments. The radius of gyration representing the aggregates size is measured by the angular distribution of scattering intensity, while the soot mass concentration is measured by a two-wavelength extinction method. An approach to estimate the refractive index of diesel soot by an analysis of the extinction and scattering data using an aggregates scattering theory is proposed.

Characterization of Diesel Soot Aggregates by Scattering and Extinction Methods

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kamimoto, Takeyuki

2006-01-01

Characteristics of diesel soot particles sampled from diesel exhaust of a common-rail turbo-charged diesel engine are quantified by scattering and extinction diagnostics using newly build two laser-based instruments. The radius of gyration representing the aggregates size is measured by the angular distribution of scattering intensity, while the soot mass concentration is measured by a two-wavelength extinction method. An approach to estimate the refractive index of diesel soot by an analysis of the extinction and scattering data using an aggregates scattering theory is proposed

Carbon Black-Modified Electrodes Screen-Printed onto Paper Towel, Waxed Paper and Parafilm M®.

Science.gov (United States)

Cinti, Stefano; Mazzaracchio, Vincenzo; Cacciotti, Ilaria; Moscone, Danila; Arduini, Fabiana

2017-10-03

Herein, we evaluated the use of paper towel, waxed paper, and Parafilm M ® (Heathrow Scientific, Vernon Hills, IL, USA) as alternative substrates for screen-printed sensor manufacturing. Morphological study was performed to evaluate the adhesion of the ink on these uncommon substrates, as well as the morphology of the working electrode. The electrochemical characterization was carried out using ferricyanide/ferrocyanide as redox couple. To enhance the electrochemical properties of the developed sensors, the nanomaterial carbon black was used as nanomodifier. The modification by drop casting of the working electrode surface, using a stable dispersion of carbon black, allows to obtain a sensor with improved electrochemical behavior in terms of peak-to-peak separation, current intensity, and the resistance of charge transfer. The results achieved confirm the possibility of printing the electrode on several cost-effective paper-based materials and the improvement of the electrochemical behavior by using carbon black as sustainable nanomaterial.

Carbon Black-Modified Electrodes Screen-Printed onto Paper Towel, Waxed Paper and Parafilm M®

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Stefano Cinti

2017-10-01

Full Text Available Herein, we evaluated the use of paper towel, waxed paper, and Parafilm M® (Heathrow Scientific, Vernon Hills, IL, USA as alternative substrates for screen-printed sensor manufacturing. Morphological study was performed to evaluate the adhesion of the ink on these uncommon substrates, as well as the morphology of the working electrode. The electrochemical characterization was carried out using ferricyanide/ferrocyanide as redox couple. To enhance the electrochemical properties of the developed sensors, the nanomaterial carbon black was used as nanomodifier. The modification by drop casting of the working electrode surface, using a stable dispersion of carbon black, allows to obtain a sensor with improved electrochemical behavior in terms of peak-to-peak separation, current intensity, and the resistance of charge transfer. The results achieved confirm the possibility of printing the electrode on several cost-effective paper-based materials and the improvement of the electrochemical behavior by using carbon black as sustainable nanomaterial.

Soot reduction under DC electric fields in counterflow non-premixed laminar ethylene flames

KAUST Repository

Park, Daegeun

2014-04-23

The effects of DC electric fields on non-premixed ethylene flames in a counterflow burner were studied experimentally with a focus on the reduction of soot particles. The experiment was conducted by connecting a high voltage terminal and a ground terminal to a lower (fuel) and upper (oxidizer) nozzle, respectively. We applied direct current (DC) potentials in a range of -5 kV < Vdc < 5 kV. Uniform electric fields were then generated in the gap between the two nozzles. The experimental conditions were selected to cover both soot formation (SF) and soot formation oxidation (SFO) flames. The flames subjected to the negative electric fields moved toward the fuel nozzle because of an ionic wind due to the Lorentz force acting on the positive ions in the flames. In addition, the yellow luminosity significantly decreased, indicating changes in the sooting characteristics. To analyze the sooting characteristics under the electric fields, planar laser induced incandescence (PLII) and fluorescence (PLIF) techniques were used to visualize the soot, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), and OH radicals. The sooting limits in terms of the fuel and oxygen mole fractions were measured. No substantial soot formation due to the effects of the DC electric fields for the tested range of voltages and reactant mole fractions could be identified. The detailed flame behaviors and sooting characteristics under the DC electric fields are discussed. Copyright © Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.

Source identification of individual soot agglomerates in Arctic air by transmission electron microscopy

Science.gov (United States)

Weinbruch, S.; Benker, N.; Kandler, K.; Schütze, K.; Kling, K.; Berlinger, B.; Thomassen, Y.; Drotikova, T.; Kallenborn, R.

2018-01-01

Individual soot agglomerates collected at four different locations on the Arctic archipelago Svalbard (Norway) were characterised by transmission electron microscopy and energy-dispersive X-ray microanalysis. For source identification of the ambient soot agglomerates, samples from different local sources (coal burning power plants in Longyearbyen and Barentsburg, diesel and oil burning for power generation in Sveagruva and Ny Ålesund, cruise ship) as well as from other sources which may contribute to Arctic soot concentrations (biomass burning, aircraft emissions, diesel engines) were investigated. Diameter and graphene sheet separation distance of soot primary particles were found to be highly variable within each source and are not suited for source identification. In contrast, concentrations of the minor elements Si, P, K, Ca and Fe showed significant differences which can be used for source attribution. The presence/absence of externally mixed particle groups (fly ashes, tar balls, mercury particles) gives additional hints about the soot sources. Biomass/wood burning, ship emissions and coal burning in Barentsburg can be excluded as major source for ambient soot at Svalbard. The coal power plant in Longyearbyen is most likely a major source of soot in the settlement of Longyearbyen but does not contribute significantly to soot collected at the Global Atmosphere Watch station Zeppelin Mountain near Ny Ålesund. The most probable soot sources at Svalbard are aircraft emissions and diesel exhaust as well as long range transport of coal burning emissions.

Role of soot in the transport of chlorine in hydrocarbon-air diffusion flames

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Venkatesh, S.; Saito, K.; Stencel, J.M.; Majidi, V.; Owens, M.

1991-01-01

Soot is an inevitable product of incomplete combustion in many practical combustion systems such as automobiles, incinerators and furnaces. Recent studies on chlorinated hydrocarbon combustion have shown that soot and other praticulates (eg. fly ash) play an important role in secondary reactions leading to the formation of chlorine substituted polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). In order to attain very high destruction efficiencies the fundamental chemical and physical processes that are associated with combustion, and post-combustion cleanup must be well understood. In order to understand the effect of chlorine on the soot formed in a combustion system, fundamental studies using a coflow laminar hydrocarbon-air diffusion flame have been carried out. Phenomenological studies have revealed the effect of chlorine on the visible structure of the flame. Soot inception activation energies were estimated for methane, ethane and ethylene diffusion flames for the case of with and without chlorine addition. No significant difference in the activation energy was estimated for either case. The effect of chlorine on the soot escape rate of an acetylene diffusion flame was estimated. The soot formed in these diffusion flames was analyzed for chlorine using scanning electron microscopy with energy dispersive spectroscopy (SEM/EDS) and by laser induced plasma spectroscopy (LIPS). REsults from these techniques indicate the presence of chlorine in the soot formed. In this paper a chemical scheme to explain the chlorine found in the soot is proposed based on known theories of soot formation

Lung clearance of inhaled particles after exposure to carbon black generated from a resuspension system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, P.S.; Gorski, R.A.; Hering, W.E.; Chan, T.L.

1987-01-01

A system to resuspend carbon black particles for providing submicron aerosols for inhalation exposure studies has been developed. The effect of continuous exposure to carbonaceous material (as a surrogate for the carbonaceous particles in diesel exhaust) on the pulmonary clearance of inhaled diesel tracer particles was studied in male Fischer 344 rats. Submicron carbon black particles with a mass median aerodynamic diameter (MMAD) of 0.22 micron and a size distribution similar to that of exhaust particles from a GM 5.7-liter diesel engine were successfully generated and administered to test animals at a nominal concentration of 6 mg/m3 for 20 hr/day, 7 days/week, for periods lasting 1 to 11 weeks. Immediately after the carbon black exposure, test animals were administered 14 C-tagged diesel particles for 45 min in a nose-only chamber. The pulmonary retention of inhaled radioactive tracer particles was determined at preselected time intervals. Based upon the data collected up to 1 year postexposure, prolonged exposure to carbon black particles exhibits a similar inhibitory effect on pulmonary clearance as does prolonged exposure to diesel exhaust with a comparable particulate dose. This observation indicates that the excessive accumulation of carbonaceous material may be the predominant factor affecting lung clearance

Relative importance of black carbon, brown carbon, and absorption enhancement from clear coatings in biomass burning emissions

Science.gov (United States)

Pokhrel, Rudra P.; Beamesderfer, Eric R.; Wagner, Nick L.; Langridge, Justin M.; Lack, Daniel A.; Jayarathne, Thilina; Stone, Elizabeth A.; Stockwell, Chelsea E.; Yokelson, Robert J.; Murphy, Shane M.

2017-04-01

A wide range of globally significant biomass fuels were burned during the fourth Fire Lab at Missoula Experiment (FLAME-4). A multi-channel photoacoustic absorption spectrometer (PAS) measured dry absorption at 405, 532, and 660 nm and thermally denuded (250 °C) absorption at 405 and 660 nm. Absorption coefficients were broken into contributions from black carbon (BC), brown carbon (BrC), and lensing following three different methodologies, with one extreme being a method that assumes the thermal denuder effectively removes organics and the other extreme being a method based on the assumption that black carbon (BC) has an Ångström exponent of unity. The methodologies employed provide ranges of potential importance of BrC to absorption but, on average, there was a difference of a factor of 2 in the ratio of the fraction of absorption attributable to BrC estimated by the two methods. BrC absorption at shorter visible wavelengths is of equal or greater importance to that of BC, with maximum contributions of up to 92 % of total aerosol absorption at 405 nm and up to 58 % of total absorption at 532 nm. Lensing is estimated to contribute a maximum of 30 % of total absorption, but typically contributes much less than this. Absorption enhancements and the estimated fraction of absorption from BrC show good correlation with the elemental-carbon-to-organic-carbon ratio (EC / OC) of emitted aerosols and weaker correlation with the modified combustion efficiency (MCE). Previous studies have shown that BrC grows darker (larger imaginary refractive index) as the ratio of black to organic aerosol (OA) mass increases. This study is consistent with those findings but also demonstrates that the fraction of total absorption attributable to BrC shows the opposite trend: increasing as the organic fraction of aerosol emissions increases and the EC / OC ratio decreases.