Water adsorption on aircraft-combustor soot under young plume conditions

Laboratory studies of water adsorption and initial water uptake on aircraft-combustor soot, produced by combustion of sulphur-free hydrocarbon fuel, are presented. Due to the specific microporous structure and surface heterogeneity, the soot particles can acquire a substantial fraction of an water monolayer, even in the youngest plume. This sulphur-independent heterogeneous mode, driven by presence of water on soot surface, may be the cause for a visible contrail formation at low sulphur content in the jet fuel.