Molecular content of nascent soot: Family characterization using two-step laser desorption laser ionization mass spectrometry

Molecules constituting nascent soot particles have been analyzed by two-step laser desorption laser ionization mass spectrometry. Three samples have been collected from a slightly sooting ethylene/air premixed flame with the aim to investigate soot composition in the transition from nucleated to just-grown soot particles. Sampling locations have been selected based on the evolution of the particle size distribution along the flame axis. The mass spectrometric results point to a strong evolution of the molecular composition. Just-nucleated soot is rich in polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) dominated by medium sizes from 18 to 40 carbon atoms but containing sizes as large as 90 carbon atoms. Most abundant PAHs are in the form of peri-condensed structures. The presence of a large fraction of odd numbered carbon species shows that pentagonal cycles are a common feature of the detected population. Increasing the distance from the burner outlet, i.e., the particle residence time in flame, leads to an evolution of the chemical composition of this population with a major contribution of carbon clusters including also fullerenes up to about 160 carbon atoms. Our data support a scenario in which large PAHs containing pentagonal rings evolve very efficiently upon thermal processing by a series of dehydrogenation and isomerization processes to form fullerenes. This chemistry happens in the early steps of soot growth showing that carbonization is already active at this stage. (C) 2020 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. on behalf of The Combustion Institute. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license ( http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ )

Automated summary

The molecular composition of nascent soot particles was analyzed using mass spectrometry, showing a significant evolution from nucleation to growth stages. Samples collected from different locations along the flame axis revealed an increase in carbon clusters, including fullerenes, with longer residence time in the flame. This study suggests that large PAHs with pentagonal rings efficiently evolve into fullerenes through dehydrogenation and isomerization processes during early stages of soot growth.