Characterization of inorganic particulate matter from residential combustion of pelletized biomass fuels

The increased focus on potential adverse health effects associated with exposure to ambient particulate matter (PM) motivates a careful characterization of particle emissions from different sources. Combustion is a major anthropogenic source of fine PM, and, in urban areas, traditional residential wood combustion can be a major contributor. New and upgraded biomass fuels have become more common, and fuel pellets are especially well-suited for the residential market. The objective of the present work was to determine the mass size distributions, elemental distributions, and inorganic-phase distributions of PM from different residential combustion appliances and pelletized biomass fuels. In addition, chemical equilibrium model calculations of the combustion process were used to interpret the experimental findings. Six different typical pellet fuels were combusted in three different commercial pellet burners (10-15 kW). The experiments were performed in a newly designed experimental setup that enables constant-volume sampling. Total-PM mass concentrations were measured using conventional filters, and the fractions of products of incomplete combustion and inorganic material were thermally determined. Particle mass size distributions were determined using a 13-step low-pressure cascade impactor with a precyclone. The PM was analyzed for morphology (using environmental scanning electron microscopy, ESEM), elemental composition (using energy-dispersive spectroscopy, EDS), and crystalline phases (using X-ray diffractometry, XRD). For complementary chemical structural characterization, time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (TOF-SIMS), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and X-ray absorption fine structure (XAFS) spectroscopy were also used. The emitted particles were mainly found in the fine (< 1 mum) mode with mass median aerodynamic diameters of 0.20-0.39 mum and an average PM, of 89.5% +/- 7.4% of total PM. Minor coarse-mode fractions (> mum) were present primarily in the experiments with bark and logging residues. Relatively large and varying amounts (28%-92%) were determined to be products of incomplete combustion. The inorganic elemental compositions of the fine particles were dominated by potassium, chlorine, and sulfur, with minor amounts of sodium and zinc. The dominating alkali phase was KCI, with minor but varying amounts of K3Na(SO4)(2) and, in some cases, also K2SO4. The results showed that zinc is almost fully volatilized, subsequently and presumably forming a more complex solid phase than that previously suggested (ZnO). However, the formation mechanism and exact phase identification remain to be elucidated. With some constrains, the results also showed that the amounts and speciation of the inorganic PM seemed to be quite similar to that predicted by chemical equilibrium calculations.