Chemical composition of emissions from the Kuwait oil fires

Airborne measurements in the smoke from the Kuwait oil fires in May and June 1991 indicate that the combined oil and gas emissions were equivalent to the consumption of about 4.6 million barrels of oil per day. The combusion was relatively efficient, with about 96% of the fuel carbon burned emitted as CO₂. Particulate smoke emissions averaged 2% of the fuel burned, of which about 20% was soot. About two-thirds of the mass of the smoke was accounted for by salt, soot, and sulfate. The salt most likely originated from oil field brines, which were ejected from the wells along with the oil. The salt accounts for the fact that many of the plumes were white. SO₂ and NO_x were removed from the smoke at rates of about 6 and 22% per hour, respectively. The high salt and sulfate contents explain why a large fraction of the particles in the smoke were efficient cloud condensation nuclei. -Authors