Drone Methane Detection & Survey

Although drone methane detection & survey is a very important aspect of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions mitigation, it is also true to say that methane sits alongside a few other critical gases that pose a serious risk to our future health.

Carbon dioxide (CO₂)

Carbon dioxide enters the atmosphere through burning fossil fuels (coal, natural gas, and oil), solid waste, trees, and other biological materials, and because of certain chemical reactions (e.g., the manufacture of cement).

Nitrous oxide (N₂O)

Agricultural land use and industrial activities emit nitrous oxide, as well as during the combustion of fossil fuels and solid waste and during the treatment of wastewater.

Fluorinated gases

Industrial processes emit hydrofluorocarbons, perfluorocarbons, sulphur hexafluoride, and nitrogen trifluoride, all of which are powerful synthetic greenhouse gases. Industry sometimes uses fluorinated gases as substitutes for stratospheric ozone-depleting substances (e.g., chlorofluorocarbons, hydrochlorofluorocarbons, and halons). These gases are typically emitted in smaller quantities, but because they are potent greenhouse gases, they are sometimes referred to as “high global warming potential” gases (“high GWP gases”).

Methane (CH₄)

Coal, natural gas, and oil production release methane. Additionally, methane emissions also result from livestock and other agricultural practices, land use and the decay of organic waste in municipal solid waste landfills.

A way of comparing these gases is to use a metric called Global Warming Potential (GWP). GWP allows us to compare how much warming a newly emitted gas will cause, relative to the same mass for carbon dioxide or CO₂. The following data comes from an IPCC support paper authored in 2018, and it gives a good indication of the effects of the gases over time. Over a 20-year period, methane gas is 84x more effective at warming our climate.

Methane emissions chart showing GWP and atmospheric lifetime.

Focus on Methane

Importantly, methane can be characterised as a “super-pollutant”. While it stays in the atmosphere only for 12 years, it is up to 86 times more powerful in warming the climate in the short term than the most discussed greenhouse gas (GHG), carbon dioxide. Methane is also a major precursor for tropospheric ozone, which is harmful for human health and plant growth. Furthermore, while some 40% of methane is natural, about 60% of it originates from anthropogenic sources, mostly in the energy, agriculture, and waste sectors.

Drone Methane Detection & Survey System

Paris Agreement 2015

How Does the Paris Agreement Impact UK Methane Regulation?

Under the Paris Agreement and subsequent global agreements, all countries have committed to updating their climate action plans – nationally determined contributions, or NDCs – at five-year intervals. Although the deadline for new or updated NDCs is at the end of this year, the postponement of the UN climate conference in Glasgow to November 2021 due to the COVID-19 crisis has given countries some leeway. However, the UK government is aware that they must be instrumental in supporting industry to reduce GHG emissions, of which methane release plays a huge part.

To enable this reduction, the UK regulator, the Environment Agency (EA), is keen to see new quantification methods commercialised and regulated. Furthermore, of the new methods the EA are keen to regulate, drone methane survey is top of their list of ‘must haves’, and therefore, drone companies are likely to see significant growth in the methane detection and measurement market over the next decade.

What Is Needed to Commercialise Drone Methane Quantification

Before quantification by drone can be fully regulated, the EA realises that commercial capacity needs to exist. This commercial capacity will need to have the technology and experience to progress from non-quantification techniques that can support ISO 14064 just now to quantification techniques that can be regulated to support the UK government’s budget requirements as set down in the Paris Accord 2015.

ISO 14064: Part 1 (2018), Part 2 (2019), Part 3 (2019)

Part 1

The first section specifies principles and requirements at the organisation level for quantification and reporting of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and removals. It includes requirements for the design, development, management, reporting and verification of an organisation’s GHG inventory.

Part 2

Part 2 covers guidance at the project level for quantification, monitoring and reporting of activities intended to cause greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reductions or removal enhancements. It includes requirements for planning a GHG project, identifying and selecting GHG sources, sinks and reservoirs relevant to the project. Furthermore, it includes baseline scenario, monitoring, quantifying, documenting, and reporting GHG project performance and managing data quality.

Part 3

Lastly, Part 3 provides guidance for those conducting or managing the validation and/or verification of greenhouse gas (GHG) assertions. It can be applied to organisational or GHG project quantification, including GHG quantification, monitoring and reporting carried out in accordance with ISO 14064-1 or ISO 14064-2.

UK Climate Change Committee (CCC)

For information on the UK’s pathway to zero emissions, please follow the link right here. This will take you directly to the website of the CCC, which acts as an independent advisor to the UK government.

Of particular interest will be the Seventh Carbon Budget advice report, which was required under the Climate Change Act. This document provides ministers with advice on the volume of greenhouse gases the UK can emit during the period 2033-2037. It sets the pathway to Net Zero and is based on an extensive programme of analysis, consultation and consideration by the Committee and its staff, building on the evidence published last year for our Net Zero advice.

A DJI Matrice drone equipped with the UGC-SkyHub, a radar altimeter and a Laser Falcon sensor.

Drone Methane Detection & Survey

JBUAS, in partnership with SPH Engineering (UgCS), can provide a UAV methane detection & survey solution to support ISO16064 today, with the same technology being utilised for regulated quantification. As a result, this means that one set of technology bought today will enable a drone survey company to perform surveys well into the future post EA regulation. Make an enquiry to find out more.

The system kit uses the UgCS SkyHub and TTF System that is tried and tested with the DJI M400, the DJI M300RTK, and the DJI M350 RTK.

Applications

  • Chemical Facilities
  • Oil Refineries
  • Gas Terminals/Processing plants
  • Petrochemical Facilities
  • Gas Pipelines/Networks
  • Compressor stations
  • Underground Gas Storage Facilities
  • Landfill Sites
  • Biofuel Generation Facilities
  • Gas Power Stations (SCPP/CCPP)
  • Anaerobic Digestion Generation Plants
Methane Plume Mapping

Case Studies

To gain access to any of these UAV methane detection and mapper system case studies, please get in touch:

  • Identifying Landfill Hotspots and Methane Emissions with Drones
  • Test & evaluation of the Falcon Methane sensor to assess the effectiveness of UAV emissions detection
  • Laser Falcon sensor used to detect methane leaks in the landfills in the Netherlands
  • Identifying Landfill Hotspots and Methane Emissions with Drones

Make an Enquiry

For further information on anything on this page including access to case studies, contact us at: info@jbuas.co.uk. Or, simply follow this link: Get in touch.

Read more from JBUAS about drone methane detection here.