Uptake Coefficients of Some Volatile Organic Compounds by Soot and Their Application in Understanding Particulate Matter Evolution in Aircraft Engine Exhaust Plumes

Abstract

To assist microphysical modeling on particulate matter (PM) evolution emitted from aircraft engines, uptake coefficients of some volatile organic compounds on soot were experimentally determined in this study. The determined values vary from (1.0 ± 0.1) × 10−6 for water-miscible propylene glycol to (2.5 ± 0.1) × 10−5 for 2,6-dimethylnaphthalene, a polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon. An inverse power-law correlation between uptake coefficient on soot and solubility in water was observed. Using the correlation, microphysical simulations were performed for the exhaust plume evolution from an idling aircraft, and we found that the model-predicted volatile PM composition on soot is comparable with those results from past field measurements.