Soot Formation in Combustion represents an up-to-date overview. The contributions trace back to the 1991 Heidelberg symposium entitled "Mechanism and Models of Soot Formation" and have all been reedited by Prof. Bockhorn in close contact with the original authors. The book gives an easy introduction to the field for newcomers, and provides detailed treatments for the specialists. The following list of contents illustrates the topics under review:

Arclength continuation methods were incorporated into a code for predicting the structure of sooting, opposed-jet flames. The code includes complex chemistry, detailed particle dynamics, particle chemistry and radiation. The code was used to predict soot production over a wide variation in strain rates for both ethylene/air and methane/air diffusion flames. Predicted values (both peak and spatial distributions) agree well with experimental measurements in ethylene flames. Particle size distributions are also predicted using the aerosol equations from MAEROS, but no data is available for comparison. Also, the soot dynamical equations were imbedded into a separate code to describe soot production in a coflow, laminar, diffusion flame which includes treatment of detailed, gas phase chemistry. Predictions were compared to measurements made in a methane, coflow flame. Reasonable agreement between the predictions and measurements was obtained, although a factor of three underprediction of the soot volume fractions is likely due to uncertainties in inlet conditions and an inability to match closely bulk flame parameters such as temperature. Predicted peak soot production occurred around 1720K and particle oxidation was dominated by superequilibrium concentrations of hydroxyl radicals. Several PAH-forming sequences were examined and compared to the traditional acetylene-addition sequence. A sequence involving benzyl-propargyl combination was found to compete with the traditional mechanism and it should be included in future analyses. The algorithms for treating sectional soot dynamics and growth/oxidation rates were modified to include effects at high pressure. Continuum effects and limitations to gaseous diffusion were included in the opposed jet code. Predicted variations in soot production due to pressure changes from 4 to 10 atmospheres were made for an ethylene-air.

Soot volume fraction (f[subscript sv]) is measured quantitatively in a laminar diffusion flame at elevated pressures up to 25 atmospheres as a function of fuel type in order to gain a better understanding of the effects of pressure on the soot formation process. Methane and ethylene are used as fuels; methane is chosen since it is the simplest hydrocarbon while ethylene represents a larger hydrocarbon with a higher propensity to soot. Soot continues to be of interest because it is a sensitive indicator of the interactions between combustion chemistry and fluid mechanics and a known pollutant. To examine the effects of increased pressure on soot formation, Laser Induced Incandescence (LII) is used to obtain the desired temporally and spatially resolved, instantaneous f[subscript sv] measurements as the pressure is incrementally increased up to 25 atmospheres. The effects of pressure on the physical characteristics of the flame are also observed. A laser light extinction method that accounts for signal trapping and laser attenuation is used for calibration that results in quantitative results. The local peak f[subscript sv] is found to scale with pressure as p[superscript 1.2] for methane and p[superscript 1.7] for ethylene.