Eur. Phys. J. Plus (2018) 133: 106
https://doi.org/10.1140/epjp/i2018-11918-y

Regular Article

Fractal and spectroscopic analysis of soot from internal combustion engines

Department of Optoelectronics and Department of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, University of Kerala, 695581, Trivandrum, Kerala, India

^* e-mail: drssraman@gmail.com

Received: 13 December 2017
Accepted: 31 January 2018
Published online: 14 March 2018

Abstract

Today diesel engines are used worldwide for various applications and very importantly in transportation. Hydrocarbons are the most widespread precursors among carbon sources employed in the production of carbon nanotubes (CNTs). The aging of internal combustion engine is an important parameter in deciding the carbon emission and particulate matter due to incomplete combustion of fuel. In the present work, an attempt has been made for the effective utilization of the aged engines for potential applicationapplications in fuel cells and nanoelectronics. To analyze the impact of aging, the particulate matter rich in carbon content areis collected from diesel engines of different ages. The soot with CNTs is purified by the liquid phase oxidation method and analyzed by Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy, High-Resolution Transmission Electron Microscopy, Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy, UV-Visible spectroscopy, Raman spectroscopy and Thermogravimetric analysis. The SEM image contains self-similar patterns probing fractal analysis. The fractal dimensions of the samples are determined by the box counting method. We could find a greater amount of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) in the particulate matter emitted by aged diesel engines and thereby giving information about the combustion efficiency of the engine. The SWCNT rich sample finds a wide range of applicationapplications in nanoelectronics and thereby pointing a potential use of these aged engines.