Evolution of physicochemical characteristics of soot in a single coal combustion flame

Abstract

This study experimentally investigated the evolution of the nanomorphology, graphite crystals, oxidation reactivity, and functional groups of soot in a single coal combustion flame. Nascent (sample #1), young (sample #2), and mature (sample #3) soot were collected from a Shenhua single coal combustion flame. The soot samples were then tested and analyzed using high-resolution transmission electron microscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analysis, and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy to determine their physicochemical characteristics. The results showed that the nascent soot was an individual particle, the mature soot was a highly agglomerated soot aggregate, and the young soot was a transitional particle. The primary particles of sample #1 comprised several randomly orientated individual polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) crystal sheets, whereas the primary particles of samples #2 and #3 were typical core-shell graphite structures. The sp2/sp3 content, volatile organic fraction, and oxidation rate constant of samples #1, #2, and #3 decreased, resulting in successively weakened reactivity. The infrared spectrum absorption of 2800–3000 and 1700–900 cm−1 indicated that the hydrogen in the three coal-derived soot samples was mainly aromatic rather than aliphatic. Furthermore, the proportion of solo and duo aromatic out-of-plane (OPLA) CH bending in samples #1, #2, and #3 increased, whereas the proportion of trio-quatro OPLA CH bending decreased.