Effect of lubricating base oil on the oxidation behavior of diesel exhaust soot

In this study, the oxidation behaviors of soot particles from diesel engine when using neat diesel fuel (DF) and lubricating base oil-blended fuel (BBF) were investigated. The changes in the average particle size and nanostructure parameters during soot oxidation process were analyzed. Exhaust particulate matter (PM) samples were collected from a four-stroke, four-cylinder and turbo0charged diesel engine operated under 1200 rpm and 200 Nm. DF and BBF Soot samples with different oxidation weight losses of 20 %, 40 %, and 60 % were obtained by thermogravimetric isothermal oxidation experiments at 600 °C, and the particle size and nanostructure parameters (fringe length, L_a; fringe tortuosity, T_f) were characterized using high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM). Results show that the DF soot particles exhibited an oxidation mode that was initially dominated by surface oxidation and gradually deviated to internal oxidation. Combustion of the base oil increased the soot internal oxidation tendency. HRTEM results showed that as the soot oxidation progressed, the primary particles showed a shell-core, onion-like and hollow structure gradually. The L_a of the primary particles gradually increased, and the T_f gradually decreased, indicating that the soot layer crystallites were rearranged during the oxidation process, which resulted in a disordered nanostructure that transitioned to a more graphitized nanostructure.