Soot is one of the most harmful air pollutants. Produced by incomplete combustion from sources such as transport, biomass burning and waste incineration, it poses risks to both human health and the climate. Yet many aspects of how soot forms and changes throughout its lifetime in the atmosphere remain poorly understood.
Now, Kim Cuong Le, Associate Professor at Lund University, has been awarded a prestigious ERC Starting Grant worth €1.9 million to investigate soot from its formation to its transformation in the atmosphere. The five-year project, AEROSOL: Advanced Laser- and X-ray Diagnostics of Soot: From Formation to Atmospheric Life, aims to develop new tools that will enable researchers to study soot particles in unprecedented detail.
“Soot has a highly complex nanostructure, and many of the processes that govern its formation in flames and ageing in the atmosphere are still not fully understood. By developing and applying advanced optical diagnostics, we hope to gain knowledge that can improve our understanding of soot’s environmental and climate impacts and contribute to more accurate climate models,” says Kim Cuong Le.
Studying soot in real time
One of the biggest challenges in soot research is the lack of instruments capable of measuring and characterising soot particles while they remain suspended in the air. Current methods often lack the sensitivity and resolution needed to capture the rapid changes that occur after the particles are emitted.
To address this challenge, the project will combine advanced laser-based diagnostics, X-ray techniques and data modelling. Researchers will carry out experiments both in laboratories and in the field, following soot particles as they form and evolve under different environmental conditions.
Building on diagnostic methods developed at Lund University, the project brings together expertise in combustion physics, aerosol science and climate modelling. By linking experimental observations with modelling, AEROSOL aims to create a more complete picture of how changes in soot structure and properties influence its behaviour and climate impact.
From local emissions to global climate
Soot is considered one of the largest sources of uncertainty in climate predictions. As particles move through the atmosphere, they are altered by temperature, humidity and interactions with other substances. These changes affect how soot absorbs sunlight, interacts with clouds and influences the Earth's radiation balance.
The project will investigate emissions from a range of sources, including transport, biomass burning, waste incineration and sustainable fuels. The resulting data will help improve models of soot formation, atmospheric ageing and climate impacts.
“The project will not only help us better understand how soot forms and changes in the atmosphere, but also provide valuable data that can improve climate and air quality models. Hopefully, this will reduce some of the uncertainties that exist today,” says Kim Cuong Le.
International collaboration
The project includes field studies at Hyltemossa Research Station in southern Sweden and in Vietnam, carried out in collaboration with local and international research partners. Together, these sites provide contrasting atmospheric environments, from relatively clean background air in southern Sweden to more polluted urban settings in Southeast Asia.
“By studying soot under different real-world conditions, we can bridge the gap between controlled laboratory experiments and observations in the atmosphere,” says Kim Cuong Le.
The project will also involve collaboration with soot-modelling experts in Italy, who will help integrate experimental observations into models of soot formation and atmospheric evolution.
Researchers from the Division of Combustion Physics at Lund University's Department of Physics, the LTH Profile Area Aerosols, MAX IV Laboratory and several universities in Southeast Asia will contribute to the project.
Building a new research direction
Receiving an ERC Starting Grant provides researchers with the freedom and resources to pursue ambitious, high-risk research over an extended period.
“This grant gives me the opportunity to bring together expertise in optical diagnostics, combustion, aerosol science and climate modelling to address questions that would be difficult to tackle within a smaller project. It will also allow me to build a multidisciplinary research team and develop a new research direction connecting fundamental soot science with atmospheric and climate research,” says Kim Cuong Le.
Beyond advancing our understanding of soot, the project could have wider applications. The new diagnostic approaches developed within AEROSOL may also provide new ways to detect, track and characterise other airborne pollutants and engineered nanoparticles, opening opportunities in aerosol, combustion and materials research.
Facts: ERC Starting Grant
Researcher: Kim Cuong Le, Associate Professor, Lund University
Project: AEROSOL: Advanced Laser- and X-ray Diagnostics of Soot: From Formation to Atmospheric Life
Funding: €1,899,218
Duration: 60 months (five years)
Funder: European Research Council (ERC)
Kim Cuong Le's profile in the Lund Univbersity Research Portal.