Time-Resolved Characterization of Primary Emissions from Residential Wood Combustion Appliances

• Published in: Environmental science & technology Vol. 46; no. 20; pp. 11418 - 11425
• Main Authors: Heringa, M. F, DeCarlo, P. F, Chirico, R, Lauber, A, Doberer, A, Good, J, Nussbaumer, T, Keller, A, Burtscher, H, Richard, A, Miljevic, B, Prevot, A. S. H, Baltensperger, U
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Washington, DC American Chemical Society 16.10.2012
• Subjects: Aerosols; Air Pollutants - analysis; Air Pollution - statistics & numerical data; Appliances; Applied sciences; Atmospheric pollution; Biomass; Carbon; Combustion and energy production; Cooking - instrumentation; Cooking - statistics & numerical data; Emissions; Environmental Monitoring; Environmental science; Exact sciences and technology; Particulate Matter - analysis; Pollution; Pollution sources. Measurement results; Ratios; Soot - analysis; Wood; Combustion residue; Carbonaceous materials; Alternative energy; Combustion; Biomass; Fuelwood; Sustainable development; Pollutant emission; Wood heating; Renewable energy; Aerosols; Air pollution; Emission measure
• ISSN: 0013-936X; 1520-5851
• DOI: 10.1021/es301654w

Primary emissions from a log wood burner and a pellet boiler were characterized by online measurements of the organic aerosol (OA) using a high-resolution time-of-flight aerosol mass spectrometer (HR-TOF-AMS) and of black carbon (BC). The OA and BC concentrations measured during the burning cycle of the log wood burner, batch wise fueled with wood logs, were highly variable and generally dominated by BC. The emissions of the pellet burner had, besides inorganic material, a high fraction of OA and a minor contribution of BC. However, during artificially induced poor burning BC was the dominating species with ∼80% of the measured mass. The elemental O:C ratio of the OA was generally found in the range of 0.2–0.5 during the startup phase or after reloading of the log wood burner. During the burnout or smoldering phase, O:C ratios increased up to 1.6–1.7, which is similar to the ratios found for the pellet boiler during stable burning conditions and higher than the O:C ratios observed for highly aged ambient OA. The organic emissions of both burners have a very similar H:C ratio at a given O:C ratio and therefore fall on the same line in the Van Krevelen diagram.