Understanding Combustion-Generated Soot and its Morphology

燃烧提供了全球约85%的能源。国际能源署预测，到2040年，全球能源需求将继续增长25%，其中石油和天然气需求预计将分别增长11%和43%。这表明，在未来几十年内，燃烧仍将是主要的能源供应。燃烧产生的最有害的污染物之一是烟尘气溶胶，在大气科学中也被称为颗粒物或黑碳。煤烟排放导致了人为的气候变化，并导致了几个健康问题。例如，据估计，大气气溶胶造成的死亡占全球所有死亡人数的4.5%。政府间气候变化专门委员会承认，烟尘气溶胶是人为气候变化的第三大贡献者。然而，与二氧化碳不同，大气中的烟尘的寿命只有几周，这使得控制烟尘排放成为缓解全球变暖的一个可行的短期战略。由于更好的工程而减少的烟尘排放可能非常有效，有可能每年防止约170万人过早死亡，并在2030年之前每年产生1.9亿美元的净气候效益和50亿美元的年度健康效益。这项研究计划旨在通过促进我们对烟尘的产生方式、组成和成分的理解，帮助减少/减轻大气烟尘气溶胶。 这项研究计划包括多个精心计划的实验，使用实验室规模的燃烧器以及瑞尔森大学提供的光学和物理测量技术。许多传统燃料和生物燃料的烟尘特性将被研究。对生物燃料中碳烟形成过程的了解仍然不确定，在大规模采用生物燃料之前，需要将生物燃料的燃烧特性与传统燃料进行比较。这项研究计划的结果将帮助行业开发烟尘颗粒模型(从定性到定量预测)，这些模型可以实施到发动机开发计划中，并提高加拿大发动机制造商的竞争力。 该研究计划中概述的项目将为几名研究生提供关于最先进的气溶胶诊断方法的培训。研究生将获得在工业中非常受欢迎的技能，并对加拿大的劳动力有利，包括图像处理、数据分析和非侵入性测试。 这项研究计划将产生关于碳烟形成和氧化过程以及碳烟形态和化学的新的基础知识。除了其他好处外，这些领域的进步将产生减少工业排放、更好的政策制定、改善医疗干预以及减缓全球变暖等好处。拟议中的研究将有利于加拿大保护我们的环境和减缓气候变化的承诺。

Combustion supplies about 85% global energy. The International Energy Agency forecasts that global energy demand will continue to grow by 25% until 2040, with the demand for oil and natural gas expected to increase by 11% and 43%, respectively. This suggests combustion will remain a mainstay supply of energy for decades. One of the most harmful pollutant emissions from combustion is soot aerosol, also known as particulate matter' or black carbon' in atmospheric sciences. Soot emission contributes to human-made climate change and leads to several health problems. For example, atmospheric aerosol is estimated to cause 4.5% of all deaths worldwide. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change recognizes soot aerosol as the third largest contributor to human-made climate change. Unlike CO2, however, atmospheric soot has a life span in the order of only weeks, making soot emission control a viable short-term strategy to mitigate global warming. Soot emission reductions due to better engineering can be very effective, with the potential to prevent an estimated 1.7 million premature deaths annually and accrue a net annual climate benefit of $190 million and annual health benefit of $5 billion by 2030. This research program aims to help reduce/mitigate atmospheric soot aerosol by advancing our understanding of how soot is generated, its composition and what its constituents are. This research program consists of multiple carefully planned experiments using laboratory-scale burners and optical and physical measurement techniques available at Ryerson University. Sooting characteristics of many traditional- and bio-fuels will be studied. Knowledge of soot formation processes in bio-fuels remains uncertain, and there is a need for comparison of the combustion characteristics of bio-fuels with those of traditional fuels, before large-scale adoption of bio-fuels can take place. Findings of this research program will help industry develop soot particle models (from qualitative to quantitative prediction) that can be implemented into engine development programs and enhance the competitiveness of Canadian engine manufacturers. Projects outlined in this research program will provide training for several graduate students on state-of-the-art aerosol diagnostic methods. Research students will acquire skills highly sought-after in industry and of benefit to Canada's workforce including image processing, data analysis, and non-intrusive testing. This research program will generate new fundamental knowledge on soot formation and oxidation processes and soot morphology and chemistry. Advances in these areas will yield, among other benefits, reduced emissions from industry, better-policy making, improved medical interventions, and a slowdown of global warming. The proposed research will benefit Canada's commitment to preserve our environment and mitigate climate change.