Effect of wood combustion conditions on the morphology of freshly emitted fine particles

Abstract

The physical and chemical properties of biomass combustion-originated particles produced under controlled conditions (efficient, intermediate, and smouldering combustion) were studied. Transmission electron microscopy with energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy was used to study the morphology and chemical composition of the size-classified samples collected from the flue gas. In addition, online-measured particle number size distributions, chemical analyses of the PM samples, and thermodynamic equilibrium calculations were used to interpret the results. The particles were composed of inorganic species and carbonaceous matter. Zinc oxide particles with an average diameter of <13 nm acted as seeds for the condensation of inorganic vapours and organic material, forming ash particles with a nested structure. The outer layer was composed mainly of alkali salts. Soot and gaseous hydrocarbons were formed in high concentrations during the impaired combustion conditions. Two modes of particle size distribution were observed, with each exhibiting distinctive features. The main particle type found in the ultrafine particle size mode (<100 nm) was ash. Impairing the combustion conditions increased the release of soot and condensable organics into the PM, found mainly in the accumulation particle size mode (>100 nm). TEM observations of the size-classified samples revealed that condensed organic matter influenced the ash particle size and appearance. The soot morphology was also found to change, even after short periods of time, due to the presence of OM; changes in the primary particle diameter and the appearance of the agglomerates were observed. As external mixtures, the soot and ash particles were separated into two particle size modes, but both could be found as internally mixed from the accumulation mode. This result extends the current knowledge of particle formation in wood combustion, showing that the particle formation processes of ash and soot particles are largely separate.