Characterization of Oil Fly Ash Particles by Electron Probe Microanalysis

Abstract

An automated electron microprobe was used to characterize more than 25000 fly ash particles with diameters between 1μm and 200μm, which were collected in two fractions from the stack of an oil fired power plant under two different burning conditions. Sample preparation procedures were developed to insure a quantitative particle transfer from the collection container to a Nuclepore filter and the automated localization of the carbonaceous particles in the backscattered electron image was optimized. Size distributions were measured and the results were interpreted in terms of the burning conditions of the power plant.