2017/11/21 by S. Coburn, Coburn, Sean, Caroline B. Alden +21 · 3 citations
Chemistry · Engineering · Physics and Astronomy · #Advanced Chemical Sensor Technologies #Advanced Fiber Laser Technologies #Atmospheric and Oceanic Physics (physics.ao-ph) #FOS: Physical sciences #Spectroscopy and Laser Applications
paper · pdf · doi:10.48550/arxiv.1711.08067
openalex publication_date 2017/11/21 · openalex created_date 2024/04/11 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28
Identification and quantification of trace gas sources is a major challenge for understanding and regulating air quality and greenhouse gas emissions. Current approaches either provide continuous but localized monitoring, or quasi-instantaneous 'snapshot-in-time' regional monitoring. There is a need for emissions detection that provides both continuous and regional coverage, because sources and sinks can be episodic and spatially variable. We field deploy a dual frequency comb laser spectrometer for the first time, enabling an observing system that provides continuous detection of trace gas sources over multiple-square-kilometer regions. Field tests simulating methane emissions from oil and gas production demonstrate detection and quantification of a 1.6 g min-1 source (approximate emissions from a small pneumatic valve) from a distance of 1 km, and the ability to discern two leaks among a field of many potential sources. The technology achieves the goal of detecting, quantifying, and attributing emissions sources continuously through time, over large areas, and at emissions rates ~1000x lower than current regional approaches. It therefore provides a useful tool for monitoring and mitigating undesirable sources and closes a major information gap in the atmospheric sciences.