Soot load versus aromatic concentration in diesel oil premixed flames

Soot production of diesel oil, characterised by a well-defined aromatic content, was investigated in rich premixed flames by laser extinction technique. By analysing the soot plume, a criterion to assign a ranking in sooting tendency was found, based on the connection between the maximum soot volume fraction detected along the flame axis, fvM, and the equivalence ratio. A relationship between the total soot load and fvM was estabished, which allows to determine a correlation between the soot load and the aromatic composition. The resulting linear dependence is discussed.