Diesel Particulate Filters And Their Regeneration

Diesel Particulate Matter Exposure in Mining

In order to increase the efficiency of diesel particulate filter regeneration more knowledge about diesel soot and its reactivity is required. This thesis compares soot created during accelerated filter loading by lowered rail pressure, with soot from normal filter loading. Soot properties and their correlations to oxidation reactivity are also examined through thermogravimetric analysis, scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy, BET nitrogen sorption, and FTIR spectroscopy. The usefulness of these analysis methods was also evaluated. The soot samples consisted of two carbon blacks for reference (Printex U and Vulcan XC 72), four accelerated soot samples and two non-accelerated samples. The results showed that the accelerated samples contained less volatile organic compounds than the non-accelerated soot and required slightly higher temperatures to oxidize in air. Soot with a high oxygen/carbon ratio and high levels of volatile organic compounds was found to be the most reactive. The most useful method for analyzing the soot was the thermogravimetric analysis. The scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy were useful additions but the FTIR spectroscopy provided very little useful information. The usefulness of BET nitrogen sorption was not decisively concluded.

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Henrik Pettersson

Papers

Chemical analysis for mapping of soot reactivity