Upconversion detector for methane atmospheric sensor

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Meng, Lichun; Fix, Andreas; Høgstedt, Lasse

2017-01-01

We demonstrate an efficient upconversion detector (UCD) for a methane (CH4) atmospheric sensor. The UCD shows comparable performance with a conventional detector when measuring the backscattered signal from the hard target located 2.3 km away.......We demonstrate an efficient upconversion detector (UCD) for a methane (CH4) atmospheric sensor. The UCD shows comparable performance with a conventional detector when measuring the backscattered signal from the hard target located 2.3 km away....

Impact of methane flow through deformable lake sediments on atmospheric release

Science.gov (United States)

Scandella, B.; Juanes, R.

2010-12-01

Methane is a potent greenhouse gas that is generated geothermally and biologically in lake and ocean sediments. Free gas bubbles may escape oxidative traps and contribute more to the atmospheric source than dissolved methane, but the details of the methane release depend on the interactions between the multiple fluid phases and the deformable porous medium. We present a model and supporting laboratory experiments of methane release through “breathing” dynamic flow conduits that open in response to drops in the hydrostatic load on lake sediments, which has been validated against a high-resolution record of free gas flux and hydrostatic pressure in Upper Mystic Lake, MA. In contrast to previous linear elastic fracture mechanics analysis of gassy sediments, the evolution of gas transport in a deformable compliant sediment is presented within the framework of multiphase poroplasticity. Experiments address how strongly the mode and rate of gas flow, captured by our model, impacts the size of bubbles released into the water column. A bubble's size in turn determines how efficiently it transports methane to the atmosphere, and integrating this effect will be critical to improving estimates of the atmospheric methane source from lakes. Cross-sectional schematic of lake sediments showing two venting sites: one open at left and one closed at right. The vertical release of gas bubbles (red) at the open venting site creates a local pressure drop, which drives both bubble formation from the methane-rich pore water (higher concentrations shaded darker red) and lateral advection of dissolved methane (purple arrows). Even as bubbles in the open site escape, those at the closed site remain trapped.

Methane anomalies in seawaters of the Ragay Gulf, Philippines: methane cycling and contributions to atmospheric greenhouse gases

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Heggie, D.T.; Evans, D.; Bishop, J.H.

1999-01-01

The vertical distribution of methane has been measured in the water column of a semi-enclosed basin, the Ragay Gulf, in the Philippines archipelago. The methane distribution is characterised by unusual mid-water and bottom-water plumes, between 80 and 100 m thick. The plumes are confined to water depths between about 100 and 220 m. where the temperature-depth (a proxy for seawater density) gradient is steepest. Plumes of high methane are 'trapped' within the main thermocline; these are local features, persisting over kilometre-scale distances. Geochemical and geological evidence suggests that the elevated methane concentrations are thermogenic in origin (although an oxidised biogenic origin cannot be ruled out for some of the methane anomalies), and have migrated from the sea floor into the overlying water. The mid and bottom-water methane maxima support fluxes of methane from depth into surface waters and, subsequently, from the oceans to the atmosphere. The average supersaturation of methane in the top 5 m of the sea, at nine locations, was 206±16.5%; range 178-237%. The average estimated sea-air flux was 101 nmole.cm -2 .y -1 and probably represents a minimum flux, because of low wind speeds of <10 knots. These fluxes, we suggest, are supported by seepage from the sea floor and represent naturally occurring fluxes of mostly fossil methane (in contrast to anthropogenic fossil methane), from the sea to the atmosphere. The estimated minimum fluxes of naturally occurring fossil methane are comparable to those biogenic fluxes measured elsewhere in the surface oceans, but are less than those naturally occurring methane inputs from sediments of the Barents Sea. Ragay Gulf fluxes are also less than anthropogenic fluxes measured in areas of petroleum exploration and development, such as the Texas and Louisiana, USA shelf areas

Carbon and hydrogen isotope composition and C-14 concentration in methane from sources and from the atmosphere: Implications for a global methane budget. Final report, 1 January-30 June 1991

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wahlen, M.

1994-03-01

The topics covered include the following: biogenic methane studies; forest soil methane uptake; rice field methane sources; atmospheric measurements; stratospheric samples; Antarctica; California; and Germany

Atmospheric Ozone and Methane in a Changing Climate

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ivar S. A. Isaksen

2014-07-01

Full Text Available Ozone and methane are chemically active climate-forcing agents affected by climate–chemistry interactions in the atmosphere. Key chemical reactions and processes affecting ozone and methane are presented. It is shown that climate-chemistry interactions have a significant impact on the two compounds. Ozone, which is a secondary compound in the atmosphere, produced and broken down mainly in the troposphere and stratosphre through chemical reactions involving atomic oxygen (O, NOx compounds (NO, NO2, CO, hydrogen radicals (OH, HO2, volatile organic compounds (VOC and chlorine (Cl, ClO and bromine (Br, BrO. Ozone is broken down through changes in the atmospheric distribution of the afore mentioned compounds. Methane is a primary compound emitted from different sources (wetlands, rice production, livestock, mining, oil and gas production and landfills.Methane is broken down by the hydroxyl radical (OH. OH is significantly affected by methane emissions, defined by the feedback factor, currently estimated to be in the range 1.3 to 1.5, and increasing with increasing methane emission. Ozone and methane changes are affected by NOx emissions. While ozone in general increase with increases in NOx emission, methane is reduced, due to increases in OH. Several processes where current and future changes have implications for climate-chemistry interactions are identified. It is also shown that climatic changes through dynamic processes could have significant impact on the atmospheric chemical distribution of ozone and methane, as we can see through the impact of Quasi Biennial Oscillation (QBO. Modeling studies indicate that increases in ozone could be more pronounced toward the end of this century. Thawing permafrost could lead to important positive feedbacks in the climate system. Large amounts of organic material are stored in the upper layers of the permafrost in the yedoma deposits in Siberia, where 2 to 5% of the deposits could be organic material

Heavy methanes (mass-20 and -21) as atmospheric tracers. A new research initiatives project

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Guthals, P.R.; Fowler, M.M.

1978-07-01

Products from the stable isotope production project (ICONS) at the Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory (LASL) have had applications in a number of practical problems. Fully deuterated methanes, using 12 C and 13 C (mass-20 and -21, respectively), are detectable in the atmosphere at very low concentrations. The detection limits are due to an almost zero background and a distinct mass-spectrometric line. These properties, coupled with long lifetimes in the atmosphere, make the heavy methanes strong candidates for tracers of atmospheric transport and turbulence on regional to global scales. Three field tests have been conducted to assess the feasibility and to demonstrate the desirable properties of heavy methanes as atmospheric tracers. In the first test in May 1974, heavy methane released at the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory (INEL) was sampled and detected in several midwestern cities up to 2500 km downstream. These results agree with trajectories estimated from observed meteorological data. A second experiment, conducted in December 1975 at the Savannah River Plant, compared two heavy methanes with SF 6 and 85 Kr over a transport distance of 100 km. Increased detail in meteorological support data and ground-level sampling offered options of data interpretation unavailable in the first test. Qualitative patterns of tracer concentrations show good agreement among the four tracers and are verified by the meteorological inputs. The third experiment, performed in April 1977 at INEL, built on the experience of the previous two. Detailed ground-level sampling arrays at 3, 50, and 90 km from the release point were supplemented by aircraft and a crude sampling line across the Continental Divide at 300-km distance. Two new perfluorocarbon tracers were included for comparison

Methane emissions from natural wetlands

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Meyer, J.L. [Georgia Univ., Athens, GA (United States); Burke, R.A. Jr. [Environmental Protection Agency, Athens, GA (United States). Environmental Research Lab.

1993-09-01

Analyses of air trapped in polar ice cores in conjunction with recent atmospheric measurements, indicate that the atmospheric methane concentration increased by about 250% during the past two or three hundred years (Rasmussen and Khalil, 1984). Because methane is a potent ``greenhouse`` gas, the increasing concentrations are expected to contribute to global warning (Dickinson and Cicerone, 1986). The timing of the methane increase suggests that it is related to the rapid growth of the human population and associated industrialization and agricultural development. The specific causes of the atmospheric methane concentration increase are not well known, but may relate to either increases in methane sources, decreases in the strengths of the sinks, or both.

Cometary origin of atmospheric methane variations on Mars unlikely

Science.gov (United States)

Roos-Serote, M.; Atreya, S. K.; Webster, C. R.; Mahaffy, P. R.

2016-10-01

The detection of methane in the atmosphere of Mars was first reported in 2004. Since then a number of independent observations of methane have been reported, all showing temporal variability. Up until recently, the origin of methane was attributed to sources either indigenous to Mars or exogenous, where methane is a UV degradation byproduct of organics falling on to the surface. Most recently, a new hypothesis has been proposed that argues that the appearance and variation of methane are correlated with specific meteor events at Mars. Indeed, extraplanetary material can be brought to a planet when it passes through a meteoroid stream left behind by cometary bodies orbiting the Sun. This occurs repeatedly at specific times in a planet's year as streams tend to be fairly stable in space. In this paper, we revisit this latest hypothesis by carrying out a complete analysis of all available data on Mars atmospheric methane, including the very recent data not previously published, together with all published predicted meteor events for Mars. Whether we consider the collection of individual data points and predicted meteor events, whether we apply statistical analysis, or whether we consider different time spans between high methane measurements and the occurrence of meteor events, we find no compelling evidence for any correlation between atmospheric methane and predicted meteor events.

New materials for methane capture from dilute and medium-concentration sources

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, J; Maiti, A; Lin, LC; Stolaroff, JK; Smit, B; Aines, RD

2013-04-16

Methane (CH4) is an important greenhouse gas, second only to CO2, and is emitted into the atmosphere at different concentrations from a variety of sources. However, unlike CO2, which has a quadrupole moment and can be captured both physically and chemically in a variety of solvents and porous solids, methane is completely non-polar and interacts very weakly with most materials. Thus, methane capture poses a challenge that can only be addressed through extensive material screening and ingenious molecular-level designs. Here we report systematic in silico studies on the methane capture effectiveness of two different materials systems, that is, liquid solvents (including ionic liquids) and nanoporous zeolites. Although none of the liquid solvents appears effective as methane sorbents, systematic screening of over 87,000 zeolite structures led to the discovery of a handful of candidates that have sufficient methane sorption capacity as well as appropriate CH4/CO2 and/or CH4/N-2 selectivity to be technologically promising.

Further evaluation of wetland emission estimates from the JULES land surface model using SCIAMACHY and GOSAT atmospheric column methane measurements

Science.gov (United States)

Hayman, Garry; Comyn-Platt, Edward; McNorton, Joey; Chipperfield, Martyn; Gedney, Nicola

2016-04-01

The atmospheric concentration of methane began rising again in 2007 after a period of near-zero growth [1,2], with the largest increases observed over polar northern latitudes and the Southern Hemisphere in 2007 and in the tropics since then. The observed inter-annual variability in atmospheric methane concentrations and the associated changes in growth rates have variously been attributed to changes in different methane sources and sinks [2,3]. Wetlands are generally accepted as being the largest, but least well quantified, single natural source of CH4, with global emission estimates ranging from 142-284 Tg yr-1 [3]. The modelling of wetlands and their associated emissions of CH4 has become the subject of much current interest [4]. We have previously used the HadGEM2 chemistry-climate model to evaluate the wetland emission estimates derived using the UK community land surface model (JULES, the Joint UK Land Earth Simulator) against atmospheric observations of methane, including SCIAMACHY total methane columns [5] up to 2007. We have undertaken a series of new HadGEM2 runs using new JULES emission estimates extended in time to the end of 2012, thereby allowing comparison with both SCIAMACHY and GOSAT atmospheric column methane measurements. We will describe the results of these runs and the implications for methane wetland emissions. References [1] Rigby, M., et al.: Renewed growth of atmospheric methane. Geophys. Res. Lett., 35, L22805, 2008; [2] Nisbet, E.G., et al.: Methane on the Rise-Again, Science 343, 493, 2014; [3] Kirschke, S., et al.,: Three decades of global methane sources and sinks, Nature Geosciences, 6, 813-823, 2013; [4] Melton, J. R., et al.: Present state of global wetland extent and wetland methane modelling: conclusions from a model inter-comparison project (WETCHIMP), Biogeosciences, 10, 753-788, 2013; [5] Hayman, G.D., et al.: Comparison of the HadGEM2 climate-chemistry model against in situ and SCIAMACHY atmospheric methane data, Atmos. Chem

Infrared radiation models for atmospheric methane

Science.gov (United States)

Cess, R. D.; Kratz, D. P.; Caldwell, J.; Kim, S. J.

1986-01-01

Mutually consistent line-by-line, narrow-band and broad-band infrared radiation models are presented for methane, a potentially important anthropogenic trace gas within the atmosphere. Comparisons of the modeled band absorptances with existing laboratory data produce the best agreement when, within the band models, spurious band intensities are used which are consistent with the respective laboratory data sets, but which are not consistent with current knowledge concerning the intensity of the infrared fundamental band of methane. This emphasizes the need for improved laboratory band absorptance measurements. Since, when applied to atmospheric radiation calculations, the line-by-line model does not require the use of scaling approximations, the mutual consistency of the band models provides a means of appraising the accuracy of scaling procedures. It is shown that Curtis-Godson narrow-band and Chan-Tien broad-band scaling provide accurate means of accounting for atmospheric temperature and pressure variations.

Strong atmospheric chemistry feedback to climate warming from Arctic methane emissions

Science.gov (United States)

Isaksen, Ivar S.A.; Gauss, Michael; Myhre, Gunnar; Walter Anthony, Katey M.; Ruppel, Carolyn

2011-01-01

The magnitude and feedbacks of future methane release from the Arctic region are unknown. Despite limited documentation of potential future releases associated with thawing permafrost and degassing methane hydrates, the large potential for future methane releases calls for improved understanding of the interaction of a changing climate with processes in the Arctic and chemical feedbacks in the atmosphere. Here we apply a “state of the art” atmospheric chemistry transport model to show that large emissions of CH4 would likely have an unexpectedly large impact on the chemical composition of the atmosphere and on radiative forcing (RF). The indirect contribution to RF of additional methane emission is particularly important. It is shown that if global methane emissions were to increase by factors of 2.5 and 5.2 above current emissions, the indirect contributions to RF would be about 250% and 400%, respectively, of the RF that can be attributed to directly emitted methane alone. Assuming several hypothetical scenarios of CH4 release associated with permafrost thaw, shallow marine hydrate degassing, and submarine landslides, we find a strong positive feedback on RF through atmospheric chemistry. In particular, the impact of CH4 is enhanced through increase of its lifetime, and of atmospheric abundances of ozone, stratospheric water vapor, and CO2 as a result of atmospheric chemical processes. Despite uncertainties in emission scenarios, our results provide a better understanding of the feedbacks in the atmospheric chemistry that would amplify climate warming.

A 25 kWe low concentration methane catalytic combustion gas turbine prototype unit

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Su, Shi; Yu, Xinxiang

2015-01-01

Low concentration methane, emitted from various industries e.g. coal mines and landfills into atmosphere, is not only an important greenhouse gas, but also a wasted energy resource if not utilized. In the past decade, we have been developing a novel VAMCAT (ventilation air methane catalytic combustion gas turbine) technology. This turbine technology can be used to mitigate methane emissions for greenhouse gas reduction, and also to utilize the low concentration methane as an energy source. This paper presents our latest research results on the development and demonstration of a 25 kWe lean burn catalytic combustion gas turbine prototype unit. Recent experimental results show that the unit can be operated with 0.8 vol% of methane in air, producing about 19–21 kWe of electricity output. - Highlights: • A novel low concentration methane catalytic turbine prototype unit was developed. • The 25 kWe unit can be operated with ∼0.8 vol.% CH 4 in air with 19–21 kWe output. • A new start-up method was developed for the prototype unit

Uncertainty assessment of the breath methane concentration method to determine methane production of dairy cows

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Wu, Liansun; Groot Koerkamp, Peter W.G.; Ogink, Nico

2018-01-01

The breath methane concentration method uses the methane concentrations in the cow's breath during feed bin visits as a proxy for the methane production rate. The objective of this study was to assess the uncertainty of a breath methane concentration method in a feeder and its capability to measure

Multi-year Estimates of Methane Fluxes in Alaska from an Atmospheric Inverse Model

Science.gov (United States)

Miller, S. M.; Commane, R.; Chang, R. Y. W.; Miller, C. E.; Michalak, A. M.; Dinardo, S. J.; Dlugokencky, E. J.; Hartery, S.; Karion, A.; Lindaas, J.; Sweeney, C.; Wofsy, S. C.

2015-12-01

We estimate methane fluxes across Alaska over a multi-year period using observations from a three-year aircraft campaign, the Carbon Arctic Reservoirs Vulnerability Experiment (CARVE). Existing estimates of methane from Alaska and other Arctic regions disagree in both magnitude and distribution, and before the CARVE campaign, atmospheric observations in the region were sparse. We combine these observations with an atmospheric particle trajectory model and a geostatistical inversion to estimate surface fluxes at the model grid scale. We first use this framework to estimate the spatial distribution of methane fluxes across the state. We find the largest fluxes in the south-east and North Slope regions of Alaska. This distribution is consistent with several estimates of wetland extent but contrasts with the distribution in most existing flux models. These flux models concentrate methane in warmer or more southerly regions of Alaska compared to the estimate presented here. This result suggests a discrepancy in how existing bottom-up models translate wetland area into methane fluxes across the state. We next use the inversion framework to explore inter-annual variability in regional-scale methane fluxes for 2012-2014. We examine the extent to which this variability correlates with weather or other environmental conditions. These results indicate the possible sensitivity of wetland fluxes to near-term variability in climate.

Low-Altitude Aerial Methane Concentration Mapping

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bara J. Emran

2017-08-01

Full Text Available Detection of leaks of fugitive greenhouse gases (GHGs from landfills and natural gas infrastructure is critical for not only their safe operation but also for protecting the environment. Current inspection practices involve moving a methane detector within the target area by a person or vehicle. This procedure is dangerous, time consuming, labor intensive and above all unavailable when access to the desired area is limited. Remote sensing by an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV equipped with a methane detector is a cost-effective and fast method for methane detection and monitoring, especially for vast and remote areas. This paper describes the integration of an off-the-shelf laser-based methane detector into a multi-rotor UAV and demonstrates its efficacy in generating an aerial methane concentration map of a landfill. The UAV flies a preset flight path measuring methane concentrations in a vertical air column between the UAV and the ground surface. Measurements were taken at 10 Hz giving a typical distance between measurements of 0.2 m when flying at 2 m/s. The UAV was set to fly at 25 to 30 m above the ground. We conclude that besides its utility in landfill monitoring, the proposed method is ready for other environmental applications as well as the inspection of natural gas infrastructure that can release methane with much higher concentrations.

Remote Sensing and Sea-Truth Measurements of Methane Flux to the Atmosphere (HYFLUX project)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ian MacDonald

2011-05-31

, respectively. Based on the contemporaneous wind speeds at this site, contemporary estimates of the diffusive fluxes from the mixed layer to the atmosphere for methane, ethane, and propane are 26.5, 2.10, and 2.78 {micro}mol/m{sup 2}d, respectively. Continuous measurements of air and sea surface concentrations of methane were made to obtain high spatial and temporal resolution of the diffusive net sea-to-air fluxes. The atmospheric methane fluctuated between 1.70 ppm and 2.40 ppm during the entire cruise except for high concentrations (up to 4.01 ppm) sampled during the end of the occupation of GC600 and the transit between GC600 and GC185. Results from interpolations within the survey areas show the daily methane fluxes to the atmosphere at the three sites range from 0.744 to 300 mol d-1. Considering that the majority of seeps in the GOM are deep (>500 m), elevated CH{sub 4} concentrations in near-surface waters resulting from bubble-mediated CH4 transport in the water column are expected to be widespread in the Gulf of Mexico.

Methane on Mars: Thermodynamic Equilibrium and Photochemical Calculations

Science.gov (United States)

Levine, J. S.; Summers, M. E.; Ewell, M.

2010-01-01

The detection of methane (CH4) in the atmosphere of Mars by Mars Express and Earth-based spectroscopy is very surprising, very puzzling, and very intriguing. On Earth, about 90% of atmospheric ozone is produced by living systems. A major question concerning methane on Mars is its origin - biological or geological. Thermodynamic equilibrium calculations indicated that methane cannot be produced by atmospheric chemical/photochemical reactions. Thermodynamic equilibrium calculations for three gases, methane, ammonia (NH3) and nitrous oxide (N2O) in the Earth s atmosphere are summarized in Table 1. The calculations indicate that these three gases should not exist in the Earth s atmosphere. Yet they do, with methane, ammonia and nitrous oxide enhanced 139, 50 and 12 orders of magnitude above their calculated thermodynamic equilibrium concentration due to the impact of life! Thermodynamic equilibrium calculations have been performed for the same three gases in the atmosphere of Mars based on the assumed composition of the Mars atmosphere shown in Table 2. The calculated thermodynamic equilibrium concentrations of the same three gases in the atmosphere of Mars is shown in Table 3. Clearly, based on thermodynamic equilibrium calculations, methane should not be present in the atmosphere of Mars, but it is in concentrations approaching 30 ppbv from three distinct regions on Mars.

Modeling of methane bubbles released from large sea-floor area: Condition required for methane emission to the atmosphere

OpenAIRE

Yamamoto, A.; Yamanaka, Y.; Tajika, E.

2009-01-01

Massive methane release from sea-floor sediments due to decomposition of methane hydrate, and thermal decomposition of organic matter by volcanic outgassing, is a potential contributor to global warming. However, the degree of global warming has not been estimated due to uncertainty over the proportion of methane flux from the sea-floor to reach the atmosphere. Massive methane release from a large sea-floor area would result in methane-saturated seawater, thus some methane would reach the atm...

Dissolved methane in the Beaufort Sea and the Arctic Ocean, 1992-2009; sources and atmospheric flux

Science.gov (United States)

Lorenson, Thomas D.; Greinert, Jens; Coffin, Richard B.

2016-01-01

Methane concentration and isotopic composition was measured in ice-covered and ice-free waters of the Arctic Ocean during eleven surveys spanning the years of 1992-1995 and 2009. During ice-free periods, methane flux from the Beaufort shelf varies from 0.14 to 0.43 mg CH4 m-2 day-1. Maximum fluxes from localized areas of high methane concentration are up to 1.52 mg CH4 m-2 day-1. Seasonal buildup of methane under ice can produce short-term fluxes of methane from the Beaufort shelf that varies from 0.28 to 1.01 to mg CH4 m-2 day-1. Scaled-up estimates of minimum methane flux from the Beaufort Sea and pan-Arctic shelf for both ice-free and ice-covered periods range from 0.02 Tg CH4 yr-1 and 0.30 Tg CH4 yr-1 respectively to maximum fluxes of 0.18 Tg CH4 yr-1 and 2.2 Tg CH4 yr-1 respectively. A methane flux of 0.36 Tg CH4 yr-1from the deep Arctic Ocean was estimated using data from 1993-94. The flux can be as much as 2.35 Tg CH4 yr-1 estimated from maximum methane concentrations and wind speeds of 12 m/s, representing only 0.42% of the annual atmospheric methane budget of ~560 Tg CH4 yr-1. There were no significant changes in methane fluxes during the time period of this study. Microbial methane sources predominate with minor influxes from thermogenic methane offshore Prudhoe Bay and the Mackenzie River delta and may include methane from gas hydrate. Methane oxidation is locally important on the shelf and is a methane sink in the deep Arctic Ocean.

The Atmospheres of Directly Imaged Planets: Where Has All the Methane Gone?

Science.gov (United States)

Marley, Mark S.; Zahnle, Kevin

2014-01-01

Methane and ammonia both first appear at lower effective temperatures in brown dwarf atmospheres than equilibrium chemistry models would suggest. This has traditionally been understood as a consequence of vertical mixing timescales being shorter than chemical equilibration timescales in brown dwarf photospheres. Indeed the eddy diffusivity, a variable accounting for the vigor of vertical mixing, has become a standard part of the description of brown dwarf atmosphere models, along with Teff and log g. While some models have suggested that methane is less favored at lower gravity, the almost complete absence of methane in the atmospheres of directly imaged planets, such as those orbiting HR 8799, even at effective temperatures where methane is readily apparent in brown dwarf spectra, has been puzzling. To better understand the paucity of methane in low gravity atmospheres we have revisited the problem of methane chemistry and mixing. We employed a 1-D atmospheric chemistry code augmented with an updated and complete network of the chemical reactions that link CO to CH4. We find the methane abundance at altitudes at or above the effective photosphere is a strong function of surface gravity because higher g shifts the p-T structure to higher pressures (i.e., a given optical depth is proportional to p/g, a relation mitigated somewhat by pressure broadening). Thus quenching in more massive brown dwarfs occurs at a lower temperature and higher pressure, both favoring CH4. We predict that in the lowest mass young giant planets, methane will appear very late, at effective temperatures as low as 600 K rather than the 1200 K seen among field brown dwarfs. This methane deficiency has important implications for the interpretation of spectra as well as methane-based planetary companion searches, such as the NICI survey. The GPI and SPHERE surveys will test these ideas and probe atmospheric chemistry and composition in an entire new range of parameter space. A caveat is that

Use of the theory of recognition of patterns in developing methane metering equipment for blow-out-dangerous mines. [Instrument recognizes rate of change of methane concentration and, if dangerous, shuts off electrical equipment

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Medvedev, V N

1978-01-01

In the most general form, the existing methane-metering equipment which issues command signals when the maximum permissible value of methane concentration has been reached can be viewed as a recognition system. The algorithm for operation on the principle of evaluating the degree of blow-out danger of the ore atmosphere stipulates the recognition of two situations: 1) ''not dangerous ''(methane concentration below maximum permissible value); 2) ''dangerous'' (disorders in technological process; methane concentration above maximum permissible value). This approach for constructing means for gas protection is optimal only for mines working beds which are not dangerous for sudden blow-outs. However, if we ''train'' the apparatus to recognize what was the reason for increase in methane concentration, ways are afforded for solving the problem of creating an effective methane-metering equipment for mines with sudden blow-outs. Gas-dynamic processes with sudden blow-outs can be distinguished from standard technological, in particular, according to the rate in increase in methane concentration. On this basis, functional plan is proposed for constructing the automatic gas protection for explosiondangerous mines which includes a primary measurement of methane concentration, block of concentration control, block of process recognition, block of command signals, block of information delay, block of measuring the rate of methane concentration, threshold device for the rate of increase in concentration.

Five pesticides decreased oxidation of atmospheric methane in a forest soil

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Priemé, Anders; Ekelund, Flemming

2001-01-01

We found that five tested pesticides (the insecticide Dimethoat 40 EC, the herbicide Tolkan, and the fungicides Tilt 250 EC, Tilt Top, and Corbel) decreased the oxidation of atmospheric methane in slurries from a Danish forest soil. Dimethoat 40 EC was the most toxic with an EC50 value (i.......e. the concentration which caused a 50% inhibition of the methane oxidation) of 10 mg active ingredient (AI) l-1, followed by Tilt 250 EC (EC50=56 mg AI l-1). EC50 of Tilt Top was 350 AI mg l-1, the value of Tolkan was 410 mg AI l-1, while Corbel had a value of 1600 mg AI l-1. Dimethoat 40 EC and Tolkan inhibited...

Subterranean karst environments as a global sink for atmospheric methane

Science.gov (United States)

Webster, Kevin D.; Drobniak, Agnieszka; Etiope, Giuseppe; Mastalerz, Maria; Sauer, Peter E.; Schimmelmann, Arndt

2018-03-01

The air in subterranean karst cavities is often depleted in methane (CH4) relative to the atmosphere. Karst is considered a potential sink for the atmospheric greenhouse gas CH4 because its subsurface drainage networks and solution-enlarged fractures facilitate atmospheric exchange. Karst landscapes cover about 14% of earth's continental surface, but observations of CH4 concentrations in cave air are limited to localized studies in Gibraltar, Spain, Indiana (USA), Vietnam, Australia, and by incomplete isotopic data. To test if karst is acting as a global CH4 sink, we measured the CH4 concentrations, δ13CCH4, and δ2HCH4 values of cave air from 33 caves in the USA and three caves in New Zealand. We also measured CO2 concentrations, δ13CCO2, and radon (Rn) concentrations to support CH4 data interpretation by assessing cave air residence times and mixing processes. Among these caves, 35 exhibited subatmospheric CH4 concentrations in at least one location compared to their local atmospheric backgrounds. CH4 concentrations, δ13CCH4, and δ2HCH4 values suggest that microbial methanotrophy within caves is the primary CH4 consumption mechanism. Only 5 locations from 3 caves showed elevated CH4 concentrations compared to the atmospheric background and could be ascribed to local CH4 sources from sewage and outgassing swamp water. Several associated δ13CCH4 and δ2HCH4 values point to carbonate reduction and acetate fermentation as biochemical pathways of limited methanogenesis in karst environments and suggest that these pathways occur in the environment over large spatial scales. Our data show that karst environments function as a global CH4 sink.

Exhaled methane concentration profiles during exercise on an ergometer

Science.gov (United States)

Szabó, A; Ruzsanyi, V; Unterkofler, K; Mohácsi, Á; Tuboly, E; Boros, M; Szabó, G; Hinterhuber, H; Amann, A

2016-01-01

Exhaled methane concentration measurements are extensively used in medical investigation of certain gastrointestinal conditions. However, the dynamics of endogenous methane release is largely unknown. Breath methane profiles during ergometer tests were measured by means of a photoacoustic spectroscopy based sensor. Five methane-producing volunteers (with exhaled methane level being at least 1 ppm higher than room air) were measured. The experimental protocol consisted of 5 min rest—15 min pedalling (at a workload of 75 W)—5 min rest. In addition, hemodynamic and respiratory parameters were determined and compared to the estimated alveolar methane concentration. The alveolar breath methane level decreased considerably, by a factor of 3–4 within 1.5 min, while the estimated ventilation-perfusion ratio increased by a factor of 2–3. Mean pre-exercise and exercise methane concentrations were 11.4 ppm (SD:7.3) and 2.8 ppm (SD:1.9), respectively. The changes can be described by the high sensitivity of exhaled methane to ventilationperfusion ratio and are in line with the Farhi equation. PMID:25749807

MERLIN: a Franco-German LIDAR space mission for atmospheric methane

Science.gov (United States)

Bousquet, P.; Ehret, G.; Pierangelo, C.; Marshall, J.; Bacour, C.; Chevallier, F.; Gibert, F.; Armante, R.; Crevoisier, C. D.; Edouart, D.; Esteve, F.; Julien, E.; Kiemle, C.; Alpers, M.; Millet, B.

2017-12-01

The Methane Remote Sensing Lidar Mission (MERLIN), currently in phase C, is a joint cooperation between France and Germany on the development, launch and operation of a space LIDAR dedicated to the retrieval of total weighted methane (CH4) atmospheric columns. Atmospheric methane is the second most potent anthropogenic greenhouse gas, contributing 20% to climate radiative forcing but also plying an important role in atmospheric chemistry as a precursor of tropospheric ozone and low-stratosphere water vapour. Its short lifetime ( 9 years) and the nature and variety of its anthropogenic sources also offer interesting mitigation options in regards to the 2° objective of the Paris agreement. For the first time, measurements of atmospheric composition will be performed from space thanks to an IPDA (Integrated Path Differential Absorption) LIDAR (Light Detecting And Ranging), with a precision (target ±27 ppb for a 50km aggregation along the trace) and accuracy (target recall the MERLIN objectives and mission characteristics. We also propose an end-to-end error analysis, from the causes of random and systematic errors of the instrument, of the platform and of the data treatment, to the error on methane emissions. To do so, we propose an OSSE analysis (observing system simulation experiment) to estimate the uncertainty reduction on methane emissions brought by MERLIN XCH4. The originality of our inversion system is to transfer both random and systematic errors from the observation space to the flux space, thus providing more realistic error reductions than usually provided in OSSE only using the random part of errors. Uncertainty reductions are presented using two different atmospheric transport models, TM3 and LMDZ, and compared with error reduction achieved with the GOSAT passive mission.

Atmospheric methane at Cape Meares - Analysis of a high-resolution data base and its environmental implications

Science.gov (United States)

Khalil, M. A. K.; Rasmussen, R. A.; Moraes, F.

1993-01-01

Between 1979 and 1992 we took some 120,000 measurements of atmospheric methane at Cape Meares on the Oregon coast. The site is representative of methane concentrations in the northern latitudes (from 30 deg N to 90 deg N). The average concentration during the experiment was 1698 parts per billion by volume (ppbv). Methane concentration increased by 190 ppbv (or 11.9 percent) during the 13-year span of the experiment. The rate of increase was about 20 +/- 4 ppbv/yr in the first 2 yr and 10 +/- 2 ppbv/yr in the last 2 yr of the experiment, suggesting a substantial decline in the trend at northern middle and high latitudes. Prominent seasonal cycles were observed. During the year, the concentration stays more or less constant until May and then starts falling, reaching lowest levels in July and August, then rises rapidly to nearly maximum concentrations in October. Interannual variations with small amplitudes of 2-3 ppbv occur with periods of 1.4 and 6.5 yr.

The MIS 11 – MIS 1 analogy, southern European vegetation, atmospheric methane and the

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P. C. Tzedakis

2010-03-01

Full Text Available Marine Isotope Stage (MIS 11 has been considered a potential analogue for the Holocene and its future evolution. However, a dichotomy has emerged over the precise chronological alignment of the two intervals, with one solution favouring a synchronization of the precession signal and another of the obliquity signal. The two schemes lead to different implications over the natural length of the current interglacial and the underlying causes of the evolution of greenhouse gas concentrations. Here, the close coupling observed between changes in southern European tree populations and atmospheric methane concentrations in previous interglacials is used to evaluate the natural vs. anthropogenic contribution to Holocene methane emissions and assess the two alignment schemes. Comparison of the vegetation trends in MIS 1 and MIS 11 favours a precessional alignment, which would suggest that the Holocene is nearing the end of its natural course. This, combined with the divergence between methane concentrations and temperate tree populations after 5 kyr BP, provides some support for the notion that the Holocene methane trend may be anomalous compared to previous interglacials. In contrast, comparison of MIS 1 with MIS 19, which may represent a closer astronomical analogue than MIS 11, leads to substantially different conclusions on the projected natural duration of the current interglacial and the extent of the anthropogenic contribution to the Holocene methane budget. As answers vary with the choice of analogue, resolution of these issues using past interglacials remains elusive.

Methane and Carbon Dioxide Concentrations and Fluxes in Amazon Floodplains

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Melack, J. M.; MacIntyre, S.; Forsberg, B.; Barbosa, P.; Amaral, J. H.

2016-12-01

Field studies on the central Amazon floodplain in representative aquatic habitats (open water, flooded forests, floating macrophytes) combine measurements of methane and carbon dioxide concentrations and fluxes to the atmosphere over diel and seasonal times with deployment of meteorological sensors and high-resolution thermistors and dissolved oxygen sondes. A cavity ringdown spectrometer is used to determine gas concentrations, and floating chambers and bubble collectors are used to measure fluxes. To further understand fluxes, we measured turbulence as rate of dissipation of turbulent kinetic energy based on microstructure profiling. These results allow calculations of vertical mixing within the water column and of air-water exchanges using surface renewal models. Methane and carbon dioxide fluxes varied as a function of season, habitat and water depth. High CO2 fluxes at high water are related to high pCO2; low pCO2 levels at low water result from increased phytoplankton uptake. CO2 fluxes are highest at turbulent open water sites, and pCO2 is highest in macrophyte beds. Fluxes and pCH4 are high in macrophyte beds.

Abiotic Production of Methane in Terrestrial Planets

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Guzmán-Marmolejo, Andrés; Escobar-Briones, Elva

2013-01-01

Abstract On Earth, methane is produced mainly by life, and it has been proposed that, under certain conditions, methane detected in an exoplanetary spectrum may be considered a biosignature. Here, we estimate how much methane may be produced in hydrothermal vent systems by serpentinization, its main geological source, using the kinetic properties of the main reactions involved in methane production by serpentinization. Hydrogen production by serpentinization was calculated as a function of the available FeO in the crust, given the current spreading rates. Carbon dioxide is the limiting reactant for methane formation because it is highly depleted in aqueous form in hydrothermal vent systems. We estimated maximum CH4 surface fluxes of 6.8×108 and 1.3×109 molecules cm−2 s−1 for rocky planets with 1 and 5 M⊕, respectively. Using a 1-D photochemical model, we simulated atmospheres with volume mixing ratios of 0.03 and 0.1 CO2 to calculate atmospheric methane concentrations for the maximum production of this compound by serpentinization. The resulting abundances were 2.5 and 2.1 ppmv for 1 M⊕ planets and 4.1 and 3.7 ppmv for 5 M⊕ planets. Therefore, low atmospheric concentrations of methane may be produced by serpentinization. For habitable planets around Sun-like stars with N2-CO2 atmospheres, methane concentrations larger than 10 ppmv may indicate the presence of life. Key Words: Serpentinization—Exoplanets—Biosignatures—Planetary atmospheres. Astrobiology 13, 550–559. PMID:23742231

Mars atmosphere. Mars methane detection and variability at Gale crater.

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Webster, Christopher R; Mahaffy, Paul R; Atreya, Sushil K; Flesch, Gregory J; Mischna, Michael A; Meslin, Pierre-Yves; Farley, Kenneth A; Conrad, Pamela G; Christensen, Lance E; Pavlov, Alexander A; Martín-Torres, Javier; Zorzano, María-Paz; McConnochie, Timothy H; Owen, Tobias; Eigenbrode, Jennifer L; Glavin, Daniel P; Steele, Andrew; Malespin, Charles A; Archer, P Douglas; Sutter, Brad; Coll, Patrice; Freissinet, Caroline; McKay, Christopher P; Moores, John E; Schwenzer, Susanne P; Bridges, John C; Navarro-Gonzalez, Rafael; Gellert, Ralf; Lemmon, Mark T

2015-01-23

Reports of plumes or patches of methane in the martian atmosphere that vary over monthly time scales have defied explanation to date. From in situ measurements made over a 20-month period by the tunable laser spectrometer of the Sample Analysis at Mars instrument suite on Curiosity at Gale crater, we report detection of background levels of atmospheric methane of mean value 0.69 ± 0.25 parts per billion by volume (ppbv) at the 95% confidence interval (CI). This abundance is lower than model estimates of ultraviolet degradation of accreted interplanetary dust particles or carbonaceous chondrite material. Additionally, in four sequential measurements spanning a 60-sol period (where 1 sol is a martian day), we observed elevated levels of methane of 7.2 ± 2.1 ppbv (95% CI), implying that Mars is episodically producing methane from an additional unknown source. Copyright © 2015, American Association for the Advancement of Science.

Abiotic production of methane in terrestrial planets.

Science.gov (United States)

Guzmán-Marmolejo, Andrés; Segura, Antígona; Escobar-Briones, Elva

2013-06-01

On Earth, methane is produced mainly by life, and it has been proposed that, under certain conditions, methane detected in an exoplanetary spectrum may be considered a biosignature. Here, we estimate how much methane may be produced in hydrothermal vent systems by serpentinization, its main geological source, using the kinetic properties of the main reactions involved in methane production by serpentinization. Hydrogen production by serpentinization was calculated as a function of the available FeO in the crust, given the current spreading rates. Carbon dioxide is the limiting reactant for methane formation because it is highly depleted in aqueous form in hydrothermal vent systems. We estimated maximum CH4 surface fluxes of 6.8×10(8) and 1.3×10(9) molecules cm(-2) s(-1) for rocky planets with 1 and 5 M⊕, respectively. Using a 1-D photochemical model, we simulated atmospheres with volume mixing ratios of 0.03 and 0.1 CO2 to calculate atmospheric methane concentrations for the maximum production of this compound by serpentinization. The resulting abundances were 2.5 and 2.1 ppmv for 1 M⊕ planets and 4.1 and 3.7 ppmv for 5 M⊕ planets. Therefore, low atmospheric concentrations of methane may be produced by serpentinization. For habitable planets around Sun-like stars with N2-CO2 atmospheres, methane concentrations larger than 10 ppmv may indicate the presence of life.

Non-Detection of Methane in the Mars Atmosphere by the Curiosity Rover

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Webster, Chris R.; Mahaffy, Paul R.; Atreya, Sushil K.; Flesch, Gregory J.; Farley, Kenneth A.

2014-01-01

By analogy with Earth, methane in the atmosphere of Mars is a potential signature of ongoing or past biological activity on the planet. During the last decade, Earth-based telescopic and Mars orbit remote sensing instruments have reported significant abundances of methane in the Martian atmosphere ranging from several to tens of parts-per-billion by volume (ppbv). Observations from Earth showed plumes of methane with variations on timescales much faster than expected and inconsistent with localized patches seen from orbit, prompting speculation of sources from sub-surface methanogen bacteria, geological water-rock reactions or infall from comets, micro-meteorites or interplanetary dust. From measurements on NASAs Curiosity Rover that landed near Gale Crater on 5th August 2012, we here report no definitive detection of methane in the near-surface Martian atmosphere. Our in situ measurements were made using the Tunable Laser Spectrometer (TLS) in the Sample Analysis at Mars (SAM) instrument suite6 that made three separate searches on Martian sols 79, 81 and 106 after landing. The measured mean value of 0.39 plus or minus 1.4 ppbv corresponds to an upper limit for methane abundance of 2.7 ppbv at the 95 confidence level. This result is in disagreement with both the remote sensing spacecraft observations taken at lower sensitivity and the telescopic observations that relied on subtraction of a very large contribution from terrestrial methane in the intervening observation path. Since the expected lifetime of methane in the Martian atmosphere is hundreds of years, our results question earlier observations and set a low upper limit on the present day abundance, reducing the probability of significant current methanogenic microbial activity on Mars.

GreenLITE™: a novel approach for quantification of atmospheric methane concentrations, 2-D spatial distribution, and flux

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Dobler, J. T.; Blume, N.; Pernini, T.; Zaccheo, T. S.; Braun, M.

2017-12-01

The Greenhouse Gas Laser Imaging Tomography Experiment (GreenLITE™) was originally developed by Harris and Atmospheric and Environmental Research (AER) under a cooperative agreement with the National Energy Technology Laboratory of the Department of Energy. The system, initially conceived in 2013, used a pair of high-precision intensity modulated continuous wave (IMCW) transceivers and a series of retroreflectors to generate overlapping atmospheric density measurements of carbon dioxide (CO2) for continuous monitoring of ground carbon storage sites. The overlapping measurements provide an estimate of the two-dimensional (2-D) spatial distribution of the gas within the area of interest using sparsely sampled tomography methods. GreenLITE™ is a full end-to-end system that utilizes standard 4G connectivity and an all cloud-based data storage, processing, and dissemination suite to provide autonomous, near-real-time data via a web-based user interface. The system has been demonstrated for measuring and mapping CO2 over areas from approximately 0.04 km2 to 25 km2 ( 200 m X 200 m, up to 5 km X 5 km), including a year-long demonstration over the city of Paris, France. In late 2016, the GreenLITE™ system was converted by Harris and AER to provide similar measurement capabilities for methane (CH4). Recent experiments have shown that GreenLITE™ CH4 retrieved concentrations agree with a Picarro cavity ring-down spectrometer, calibrated with World Meteorological Organization traceable gas, to within approximately 0.5% of background or 10-15 parts per billion. The system has been tested with several controlled releases over the past year, including a weeklong experiment at an industrial oil and gas facility. Recent experiments have been exploring the use of a box model-based approach for estimating flux, and the initial results are very promising. We will present a description of the instrument, share some recent methane experimental results, and describe the flux

Methane as a climate gas

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Karlsdottir, S.

1996-03-01

This paper was read at the workshop ``The Norwegian Climate and Ozone Research Programme`` held on 11-12 March 1996. Methane is a key component in the atmosphere where its concentration has increased rapidly since pre-industrial time. About 2/3 of it is caused by human activities. Changes in methane will affect the concentrations of other gases, and a model is a very important tool to study sensitivity due to changes in concentration of gases. The author used a three-dimensional global chemistry transport model to study the effect of changes in methane concentration on other trace gases. The model includes natural and anthropogenic emissions of NOx, CO, CH{sub 4} and non-methane hydrocarbons. Wet and dry deposition are also included. The chemical scheme in the model includes 49 compounds, 101 reactions, and 16 photolytic reactions. The trace gas concentrations are calculated every 30 min, using a quasi steady state approximation. Model calculations of three cases are reported and compared. Enhanced methane concentration will have strongest effect in remote regions. In polluted areas local chemistry will have remarked effect. The feedback was always positive. Average atmospheric lifetime calculated in the model was 7.6 years, which agrees with recent estimates based on observations. 8 refs.

Effects of elevated atmospheric CO2 concentration and temperature on the soil profile methane distribution and diffusion in rice-wheat rotation system.

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Yang, Bo; Chen, Zhaozhi; Zhang, Man; Zhang, Heng; Zhang, Xuhui; Pan, Genxing; Zou, Jianwen; Xiong, Zhengqin

2015-06-01

The aim of this experiment was to determine the impacts of climate change on soil profile concentrations and diffusion effluxes of methane in a rice-wheat annual rotation ecosystem in Southeastern China. We initiated a field experiment with four treatments: ambient conditions (CKs), CO2 concentration elevated to ~500 μmol/mol (FACE), temperature elevated by ca. 2°C (T) and combined elevation of CO2 concentration and temperature (FACE+T). A multilevel sampling probe was designed to collect the soil gas at four different depths, namely, 7 cm, 15 cm, 30 cm and 50 cm. Methane concentrations were higher during the rice season and decreased with depth, while lower during the wheat season and increased with depth. Compared to CK, mean methane concentration was increased by 42%, 57% and 71% under the FACE, FACE+T and T treatments, respectively, at the 7 cm depth during the rice season (pCO2 concentration and temperature could significantly increase soil profile methane concentrations and their effluxes from a rice-wheat field annual rotation ecosystem (p<0.05). Copyright © 2015. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Reduced biomass burning emissions reconcile conflicting estimates of the post-2006 atmospheric methane budget.

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Worden, John R; Bloom, A Anthony; Pandey, Sudhanshu; Jiang, Zhe; Worden, Helen M; Walker, Thomas W; Houweling, Sander; Röckmann, Thomas

2017-12-20

Several viable but conflicting explanations have been proposed to explain the recent ~8 p.p.b. per year increase in atmospheric methane after 2006, equivalent to net emissions increase of ~25 Tg CH 4 per year. A concurrent increase in atmospheric ethane implicates a fossil source; a concurrent decrease in the heavy isotope content of methane points toward a biogenic source, while other studies propose a decrease in the chemical sink (OH). Here we show that biomass burning emissions of methane decreased by 3.7 (±1.4) Tg CH 4 per year from the 2001-2007 to the 2008-2014 time periods using satellite measurements of CO and CH 4 , nearly twice the decrease expected from prior estimates. After updating both the total and isotopic budgets for atmospheric methane with these revised biomass burning emissions (and assuming no change to the chemical sink), we find that fossil fuels contribute between 12-19 Tg CH 4 per year to the recent atmospheric methane increase, thus reconciling the isotopic- and ethane-based results.

Methane oxidation and methane fluxes in the ocean surface layer and deep anoxic waters

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Ward, B. B.; Kilpatrick, K. A.; Novelli, P. C.; Scranton, M. I.

1987-01-01

Measured biological oxidation rates of methane in near-surface waters of the Cariaco Basin are compared with the diffusional fluxes computed from concentration gradients of methane in the surface layer. Methane fluxes and oxidation rates were investigated in surface waters, at the oxic/anoxic interface, and in deep anoxic waters. It is shown that the surface-waters oxidation of methane is a mechanism which modulates the flux of methane from marine waters to the atmosphere.

Methane-oxidizing seawater microbial communities from an Arctic shelf

Science.gov (United States)

Uhlig, Christiane; Kirkpatrick, John B.; D'Hondt, Steven; Loose, Brice

2018-06-01

Marine microbial communities can consume dissolved methane before it can escape to the atmosphere and contribute to global warming. Seawater over the shallow Arctic shelf is characterized by excess methane compared to atmospheric equilibrium. This methane originates in sediment, permafrost, and hydrate. Particularly high concentrations are found beneath sea ice. We studied the structure and methane oxidation potential of the microbial communities from seawater collected close to Utqiagvik, Alaska, in April 2016. The in situ methane concentrations were 16.3 ± 7.2 nmol L-1, approximately 4.8 times oversaturated relative to atmospheric equilibrium. The group of methane-oxidizing bacteria (MOB) in the natural seawater and incubated seawater was > 97 % dominated by Methylococcales (γ-Proteobacteria). Incubations of seawater under a range of methane concentrations led to loss of diversity in the bacterial community. The abundance of MOB was low with maximal fractions of 2.5 % at 200 times elevated methane concentration, while sequence reads of non-MOB methylotrophs were 4 times more abundant than MOB in most incubations. The abundances of MOB as well as non-MOB methylotroph sequences correlated tightly with the rate constant (kox) for methane oxidation, indicating that non-MOB methylotrophs might be coupled to MOB and involved in community methane oxidation. In sea ice, where methane concentrations of 82 ± 35.8 nmol kg-1 were found, Methylobacterium (α-Proteobacteria) was the dominant MOB with a relative abundance of 80 %. Total MOB abundances were very low in sea ice, with maximal fractions found at the ice-snow interface (0.1 %), while non-MOB methylotrophs were present in abundances similar to natural seawater communities. The dissimilarities in MOB taxa, methane concentrations, and stable isotope ratios between the sea ice and water column point toward different methane dynamics in the two environments.

An Atmosphere-based Method for Detection and Quantification of Methane Emisions from Natural Gas Infrastructure in an Urban Environment

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McKain, K.; Down, A.; Raciti, S. M.; Budney, J.; Hutyra, L.; Floerchinger, C. R.; Herndon, S. C.; Nehrkorn, T.; Zahniser, M. S.; Sargent, M. R.; Jackson, R. B.; Phillips, N. G.; Wofsy, S. C.

2015-12-01

Methane emissions from the natural gas supply-chain are highly uncertain and can vary widely among components and processes. We present an atmosphere-based method for detecting and quantifying the area and time-averaged surface flux of methane from natural gas infrastructure, and its application to the case-study of Boston, Massachusetts. Continuous measurements of atmospheric methane at a network of stations, inside and outside the city, are used to quantify the atmospheric methane gradient due to emissions from the urban area. Simultaneous observations of atmospheric ethane, and data on the ethane and methane content of the pipeline gas flowing through the region, are used to trace the atmospheric methane enhancement to the natural gas source. An atmospheric transport model is used to quantitatively relate the observed methane enhancement to a surface flux from the whole urban region. We find that methane emissions from natural gas in the urban region over one year was equal to 2.7 ± 0.6 % of the natural gas delivered to the region. Our findings for Boston suggest natural-gas-consuming regions, generally, may be larger sources of methane to the atmosphere than is current estimated and represent areas of significant resource loss.

Methane source identification in Boston, Massachusetts using isotopic and ethane measurements

Science.gov (United States)

Down, A.; Jackson, R. B.; Plata, D.; McKain, K.; Wofsy, S. C.; Rella, C.; Crosson, E.; Phillips, N. G.

2012-12-01

Methane has substantial greenhouse warming potential and is the principle component of natural gas. Fugitive natural gas emissions could be a significant source of methane to the atmosphere. However, the cumulative magnitude of natural gas leaks is not yet well constrained. We used a combination of point source measurements and ambient monitoring to characterize the methane sources in the Boston urban area. We developed distinct fingerprints for natural gas and multiple biogenic methane sources based on hydrocarbon concentration and isotopic composition. We combine these data with periodic measurements of atmospheric methane and ethane concentration to estimate the fractional contribution of natural gas and biogenic methane sources to the cumulative urban methane flux in Boston. These results are used to inform an inverse model of urban methane concentration and emissions.

Methane fluxes from tropical coastal lagoons surrounded by mangroves, Yucatán, Mexico

Science.gov (United States)

Chuang, P.-C.; Young, M. B.; Dale, A. W.; Miller, L. G.; Herrera-Silveira, J. A.; Paytan, A.

2017-05-01

Methane concentrations in the water column and emissions to the atmosphere were determined for three tropical coastal lagoons surrounded by mangrove forests on the Yucatán Peninsula, Mexico. Surface water dissolved methane was sampled at different seasons over a period of 2 years in areas representing a wide range of salinities and anthropogenic impacts. The highest surface water methane concentrations (up to 8378 nM) were measured in a polluted canal associated with Terminos Lagoon. In Chelem Lagoon, methane concentrations were typically lower, except in the polluted harbor area (1796 nM). In the relatively pristine Celestún Lagoon, surface water methane concentrations ranged from 41 to 2551 nM. Methane concentrations were negatively correlated with salinity in Celestún, while in Chelem and Terminos high methane concentrations were associated with areas of known pollution inputs, irrespective of salinity. The diffusive methane flux from surface lagoon water to the atmosphere ranged from 0.0023 to 15 mmol CH4 m-2 d-1. Flux chamber measurements revealed that direct methane release as ebullition was up to 3 orders of magnitude greater than measured diffusive flux. Coastal mangrove lagoons may therefore be an important natural source of methane to the atmosphere despite their relatively high salinity. Pollution inputs are likely to substantially enhance this flux. Additional statistically rigorous data collected globally are needed to better consider methane fluxes from mangrove-surrounded coastal areas in response to sea level changes and anthropogenic pollution in order to refine projections of future atmospheric methane budgets.

Towards better error statistics for atmospheric inversions of methane surface fluxes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A. Berchet

2013-07-01

Full Text Available We adapt general statistical methods to estimate the optimal error covariance matrices in a regional inversion system inferring methane surface emissions from atmospheric concentrations. Using a minimal set of physical hypotheses on the patterns of errors, we compute a guess of the error statistics that is optimal in regard to objective statistical criteria for the specific inversion system. With this very general approach applied to a real-data case, we recover sources of errors in the observations and in the prior state of the system that are consistent with expert knowledge while inferred from objective criteria and with affordable computation costs. By not assuming any specific error patterns, our results depict the variability and the inter-dependency of errors induced by complex factors such as the misrepresentation of the observations in the transport model or the inability of the model to reproduce well the situations of steep gradients of concentrations. Situations with probable significant biases (e.g., during the night when vertical mixing is ill-represented by the transport model can also be diagnosed by our methods in order to point at necessary improvement in a model. By additionally analysing the sensitivity of the inversion to each observation, guidelines to enhance data selection in regional inversions are also proposed. We applied our method to a recent significant accidental methane release from an offshore platform in the North Sea and found methane fluxes of the same magnitude than what was officially declared.

Detecting Methane From Leaking Pipelines and as Greenhouse Gas in the Atmosphere

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Riris, Haris; Numata, Kenji; Li, Steven; Wu, Stewart; Ramanathan, Anand; Dawsey, Martha

2012-01-01

Laser remote sensing measurements of trace gases from orbit can provide unprecedented information about important planetary science and answer critical questions about planetary atmospheres. Methane (CH4) is the second most important anthropogenically produced greenhouse gas. Though its atmospheric abundance is much less than that of CO2 (1.78 ppm vs. 380 ppm), it has much larger greenhouse heating potential. CH4 also contributes to pollution in the lower atmosphere through chemical reactions, leading to ozone production. Atmospheric CH4 concentrations have been increasing as a result of increased fossil fuel production, rice farming, livestock, and landfills. Natural sources of CH4 include wetlands, wild fires, and termites, and perhaps other unknown sources. Important sinks for CH4 include non-saturated soils and oxidation by hydroxyl radicals in the atmosphere. Remotely measuring CH4 and other biogenic molecules (such as ethane and formaldehyde) on Mars also has important implications on the existence of life on Mars. Measuring CH4 at very low (ppb) concentrations from orbit will dramatically improve the sensitivity and spatial resolution in the search for CH4 vents and sub-surface life on other planets. A capability has been developed using lasers and spectroscopic detection techniques for the remote measurements of trace gases in open paths. Detection of CH4, CO2, H2O, and CO in absorption cells and in open paths, both in the mid- IR and near-IR region, has been demonstrated using an Optical Parametric Amplifier laser transmitter developed at GSFC. With this transmitter, it would be possible to develop a remote sensing methane instrument. CH4 detection also has very important commercial applications. Pipeline leak detection from an aircraft or a helicopter can significantly reduce cost, response time, and pinpoint the location. The main advantage is the ability to rapidly detect CH4 leaks remotely. This is extremely important for the petrochemical industry

MERLIN: A French-German Space Lidar Mission Dedicated to Atmospheric Methane

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gerhard Ehret

2017-10-01

Full Text Available The MEthane Remote sensing Lidar missioN (MERLIN aims at demonstrating the spaceborne active measurement of atmospheric methane, a potent greenhouse gas, based on an Integrated Path Differential Absorption (IPDA nadir-viewing LIght Detecting and Ranging (Lidar instrument. MERLIN is a joint French and German space mission, with a launch currently scheduled for the timeframe 2021/22. The German Space Agency (DLR is responsible for the payload, while the platform (MYRIADE Evolutions product line is developed by the French Space Agency (CNES. The main scientific objective of MERLIN is the delivery of weighted atmospheric columns of methane dry-air mole fractions for all latitudes throughout the year with systematic errors small enough (<3.7 ppb to significantly improve our knowledge of methane sources from global to regional scales, with emphasis on poorly accessible regions in the tropics and at high latitudes. This paper presents the MERLIN objectives, describes the methodology and the main characteristics of the payload and of the platform, and proposes a first assessment of the error budget and its translation into expected uncertainty reduction of methane surface emissions.

Atmospheric Methane Enhancements Related with Natural Gas Usage in the Greater Houston Area

Science.gov (United States)

Sanchez, N. P.; Zheng, C.; Ye, W.; Czader, B.; Cohan, D. S.; Tittel, F. K.; Griffin, R. J.

2017-12-01

Natural gas (NG) usage as a replacement of oil and coal has increased significantly in the U.S in recent years. Despite the benefits associated with this fuel, leakage from NG distribution systems and in-use uncombusted NG (e.g., compressed natural gas vehicles) can be relevant sources of methane (CH4) emissions in urban centers. Methane, the main constituent of NG, is a potent greenhouse gas impacting the chemistry of the atmosphere, whose emission might outweigh the potential environmental advantages of NG use. Although the Greater Houston area (GHA) is the fifth-largest metropolitan area in the U.S, no studies on the potential impact of NG usage on atmospheric CH4 levels have been published in the scientific literature to date. In this work, a mobile-based study of CH4 and ethane (C2H6) concentration levels in eight residential zones with different expected probability of NG leakage in the GHA was conducted in the summer of 2016. A novel laser-based sensor system for simultaneous detection of CH4 and C2H6 was developed and deployed in a mid-sized vehicle, and monitoring of these gas species was conducted for over 14 days covering 250 road miles. Both linear discriminant and cluster analyses were performed to assess the spatial variability of atmospheric CH4 concentrations in the GHA. These analyses showed clear differences in the CH4 mixing ratios in an inter- and intra-neighborhood level and indicated the presence of high CH4 concentration clusters mainly located in the central and west central parts of the GHA. Source discrimination analyses based on orthogonal regression analysis and a Keeling-like plot method were conducted to establish the predominant origin of CH4 in the identified high concentration clusters and in over 30 CH4 concentration peaks observed during the field campaign. Results of these analyses indicate that thermogenic sources of CH4 (e.g., NG) were predominant in short-duration concentration spikes (lasting less than 10 minutes), while CH4

Methane monitoring from space

Science.gov (United States)

Stephan, C.; Alpers, M.; Millet, B.; Ehret, G.; Flamant, P.

2017-11-01

Methane is one of the strongest anthropogenic greenhouse gases. It contributes by its radiative forcing significantly to the global warming. For a better understanding of climate changes, it is necessary to apply precise space-based measurement techniques in order to obtain a global view on the complex processes that control the methane concentration in the atmosphere. The MERLIN mission is a joint French-German cooperation, on a micro satellite mission for space-based measurement of spatial and temporal gradients of atmospheric methane columns on a global scale. MERLIN will be the first Integrated Path Differential Absorption LIDAR for greenhouse gas monitoring from space. In contrast to passive methane missions, the LIDAR instrument allows measurements at alllatitudes, all-seasons and during night.

Constraining the relationships between anaerobic oxidation of methane and sulfate reduction under in situ methane concentrations

Science.gov (United States)

Zhuang, G.; Wegener, G.; Joye, S. B.

2017-12-01

The anaerobic oxidation of methane (AOM) is an important microbial metabolism in the global carbon cycle. In marine methane seeps sediment, this process is mediated by syntrophic consortium that includes anaerobic methanotrophic archaea (ANME) and sulfate-reducing bacteria (SRB). Stoichiometrically in AOM methane oxidation should be coupled to sulfate reduction (SR) in a 1:1 ratio. However, weak coupling of AOM and SR in seep sediments was frequently observed from the ex situ rate measurements, and the metabolic dynamics of AOM and SR under in situ conditions remain poorly understood. Here we investigated the metabolic activity of AOM and SR with radiotracers by restoring in situ methane concentrations under pressure to constrain the in situ relationships between AOM and SR in the cold seep sediments of Gulf of Mexico as well as the sediment-free AOM enrichments cultivated from cold seep of Italian Island Elba or hydrothermal vent of Guaymas Basin5. Surprisingly, we found that AOM rates strongly exceeded those of SR when high pressures and methane concentrations were applied at seep sites of GC600 and GC767 in Gulf of Mexico. With the addition of molybdate, SR was inhibited but AOM was not affected, suggesting the potential coupling of AOM with other terminal processes. Amendments of nitrate, iron, manganese and AQDS to the SR-inhibited slurries did not stimulate or inhibit the AOM activity, indicating either those electron acceptors were not limiting for AOM in the sediments or AOM was coupled to other process (e.g., organic matter). In the ANME enrichments, higher AOM rates were also observed with the addition of high concentrations of methane (10mM and 50 mM). The tracer transfer of CO2 to methane, i.e., the back reaction of AOM, increased with increasing methane concentrations and accounted for 1%-5% of the AOM rates. AOM rates at 10 mM and 50 mM methane concentration were much higher than the SR rates, suggesting those two processes were not tightly coupled

Advances of study on atmospheric methane oxidation (consumption) in forest soil

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

WANG Chen-rui; SHI Yi; YANG Xiao-ming; WU Jie; YUE Jin

2003-01-01

Next to CO2, methane (CH4) is the second important contributor to global warming in the atmosphere and global atmospheric CH4 budget depends on both CH4 sources and sinks. Unsaturated soil is known as a unique sink for atmospheric CH4 in terrestrial ecosystem. Many comparison studies proved that forest soil had the biggest capacity of oxidizing atmospheric CH4 in various unsaturated soils. However, up to now, there is not an overall review in the aspect of atmospheric CH4 oxidation (consumption) in forest soil. This paper analyzed advances of studies on the mechanism of atmospheric CH4 oxidation, and related natural factors (Soil physical and chemical characters, temperature and moisture, ambient main greenhouse gases concentrations, tree species, and forest fire) and anthropogenic factors (forest clear-cutting and thinning, fertilization, exogenous aluminum salts and atmospheric deposition, adding biocides, and switch of forest land use) in forest soils. It was believed that CH4 consumption rate by forest soil was limited by diffusion and sensitive to changes in water status and temperature of soil. CH4 oxidation was also particularly sensitive to soil C/N, Ambient CO2, CH4 and N2O concentrations, tree species and forest fire. In most cases, anthropogenic disturbances will decrease atmospheric CH4 oxidation, thus resulting in the elevating of atmospheric CH4. Finally, the author pointed out that our knowledge of atmospheric CH4 oxidation (consumption) in forest soil was insufficient. In order to evaluate the contribution of forest soils to atmospheric CH4 oxidation and the role of forest played in the process of global environmental change, and to forecast the trends of global warming exactly, more researchers need to studies further on CH4 oxidation in various forest soils of different areas.

Environmental impacts on the diversity of methane-cycling microbes and their resultant function

OpenAIRE

Emma eAronson; Emma eAronson; Steven eAllison; Steven eAllison; Brent R Helliker

2013-01-01

Methane is an important anthropogenic greenhouse gas that is produced and consumed in soils by microorganisms responding to micro-environmental conditions. Current estimates show that soil consumption accounts for 5-15% of methane removed from the atmosphere on an annual basis. Recent variability in atmospheric methane concentrations has called into question the reliability of estimates of methane consumption and call for novel approaches in order to predict future atmospheric methane trends....

Environmental impacts on the diversity of methane-cycling microbes and their resultant function

OpenAIRE

Aronson, Emma L; Allison, Steven D; Helliker, Brent R

2013-01-01

Methane is an important anthropogenic greenhouse gas that is produced and consumed in soils by microorganisms responding to micro-environmental conditions. Current estimates show that soil consumption accounts for 5?15% of methane removed from the atmosphere on an annual basis. Recent variability in atmospheric methane concentrations has called into question the reliability of estimates of methane consumption and calls for novel approaches in order to predict future atmospheric methane trends...

Methane Production and Transport within the Marsh Biome of Biosphere 2

Science.gov (United States)

Molnar, Jennifer; Goodridge, Kelven

1997-01-01

In recent decades, the concentration of methane in the earth's atmosphere increased 1-2% annually. It's rate of increases, combined with methane's effectiveness as a greenhouse gas, has led to an intensive research effort to determine the sources and sinks of the gas in the environment. Biosphere 2 offers a unique opportunity to contribute to the effort because it lacks a major photochemical sink present in the Earth's atmosphere. Researchers can therefore concentrate on biological processes involved in methane cycles. Wetlands are a large source of atmospheric methane, due to anoxic conditions in the sediments and the abundance of organic materials. In order to determine if these conditions in Biosphere 2 also promote methane production, this study looked for the fluxes of methane and methods of transport of the gas from from the water and sediments to the atmosphere in the Marsh Biome. Fluxes of methane from the sediments and waters were measured using static chambers, peepers, and leaf bags. Fluxes and vertical profiles of methane in the sediments show that substantial amounts of methane are being produced in the marsh and are being transported into the Biosphere 2 environment.

Atmospheric methane isotopic record favors fossil sources flat in 1980s and 1990s with recent increase

Science.gov (United States)

Rice, Andrew L.; Butenhoff, Christopher L.; Teama, Doaa G.; Röger, Florian H.; Khalil, M. Aslam K.; Rasmussen, Reinhold A.

2016-09-01

Observations of atmospheric methane (CH4) since the late 1970s and measurements of CH4 trapped in ice and snow reveal a meteoric rise in concentration during much of the twentieth century. Since 1750, levels of atmospheric CH4 have more than doubled to current globally averaged concentration near 1,800 ppb. During the late 1980s and 1990s, the CH4 growth rate slowed substantially and was near or at zero between 1999 and 2006. There is no scientific consensus on the drivers of this slowdown. Here, we report measurements of the stable isotopic composition of atmospheric CH4 (13C/12C and D/H) from a rare air archive dating from 1977 to 1998. Together with more modern records of isotopic atmospheric CH4, we performed a time-dependent retrieval of methane fluxes spanning 25 y (1984-2009) using a 3D chemical transport model. This inversion results in a 24 [18, 27] Tg y-1 CH4 increase in fugitive fossil fuel emissions since 1984 with most of this growth occurring after year 2000. This result is consistent with some bottom-up emissions inventories but not with recent estimates based on atmospheric ethane. In fact, when forced with decreasing emissions from fossil fuel sources our inversion estimates unreasonably high emissions in other sources. Further, the inversion estimates a decrease in biomass-burning emissions that could explain falling ethane abundance. A range of sensitivity tests suggests that these results are robust.

Centennial evolution of the atmospheric methane budget: what do the carbon isotopes tell us?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

K. R. Lassey

2007-01-01

Full Text Available Little is known about how the methane source inventory and sinks have evolved over recent centuries. New and detailed records of methane mixing ratio and isotopic composition (12CH4, 13CH4 and 14CH4 from analyses of air trapped in polar ice and firn can enhance this knowledge. We use existing bottom-up constructions of the source history, including "EDGAR"-based constructions, as inputs to a model of the evolving global budget for methane and for its carbon isotope composition through the 20th century. By matching such budgets to atmospheric data, we examine the constraints imposed by isotope information on those budget evolutions. Reconciling both 12CH4 and 13CH4 budgets with EDGAR-based source histories requires a combination of: a greater proportion of emissions from biomass burning and/or of fossil methane than EDGAR constructions suggest; a greater contribution from natural such emissions than is commonly supposed; and/or a significant role for active chlorine or other highly-fractionating tropospheric sink as has been independently proposed. Examining a companion budget evolution for 14CH4 exposes uncertainties in inferring the fossil-methane source from atmospheric 14CH4 data. Specifically, methane evolution during the nuclear era is sensitive to the cycling dynamics of "bomb 14C" (originating from atmospheric weapons tests through the biosphere. In addition, since ca. 1970, direct production and release of 14CH4 from nuclear-power facilities is influential but poorly quantified. Atmospheric 14CH4 determinations in the nuclear era have the potential to better characterize both biospheric carbon cycling, from photosynthesis to methane synthesis, and the nuclear-power source.

Martian dust storms as a possible sink of atmospheric methane

Science.gov (United States)

Farrell, W. M.; Delory, G. T.; Atreya, S. K.

2006-11-01

Recent laboratory tests, analog studies and numerical simulations all suggest that Martian dust devils and larger dusty convective storms generate and maintain large-scale electric fields. Such expected E-fields will have the capability to create significant electron drift motion in the collisional gas and to form an extended high energy (u $\\gg$ kT) electron tail in the distribution. We demonstrate herein that these energetic electrons are capable of dissociating any trace CH4 in the ambient atmosphere thereby acting as an atmospheric sink of this important gas. We demonstrate that the methane destruction rate increases by a factor of 1012 as the dust storm E-fields, E, increase from 5 to 25 kV/m, resulting in an apparent decrease in methane stability from ~ 1010 sec to a value of ~1000 seconds. While destruction in dust storms is severe, the overall methane lifetime is expected to decrease only moderately due to recycling of products, heterogeneous effects from localized sinks, etc. We show further evidence that the electrical activity anticipated in Martian dust storms creates a new harsh electro-chemical environment.

Forecasts of methane concentration at the outlet of the longwall with caving area - case study

Science.gov (United States)

Badura, Henryk; Bańka, Piotr; Musioł, Dariusz; Wesołowski, Marek

2017-11-01

This paper presents the characteristics of methane hazard and prevention undertaken in the N-6 longwall of seam 330/2 in “Krupiński" coal mine. On the basis of methane concentration measurements conducted with the use of telemetric system, time series of the average and maximum methane concentration at the outlet of the longwall area were generated. It was ascertained that they exhibit a strong autocorrelation. Based on a series of the average methane concentration, a time series of ventilation methane content was created and a total methane content was calculated with the use of methane flow rate measurements in the demethanization system. It was ascertained that dependence between methane concentration and output on the examined day and on the previous day is weak and also that the dependence between methane concentration and air flow rate is very weak. Dependencies between ventilation methane content, total methane content and demethanization efficiency were also investigated. Based on forecasting models [1] developed earlier by H. Badura, forecasts have been made to predict the average and maximum methane concentrations. The measured values f methane concentration show a high level of accordance with forecasted ones.

Natural gas fugitive emissions rates constrained by global atmospheric methane and ethane.

Science.gov (United States)

Schwietzke, Stefan; Griffin, W Michael; Matthews, H Scott; Bruhwiler, Lori M P

2014-07-15

The amount of methane emissions released by the natural gas (NG) industry is a critical and uncertain value for various industry and policy decisions, such as for determining the climate implications of using NG over coal. Previous studies have estimated fugitive emissions rates (FER)--the fraction of produced NG (mainly methane and ethane) escaped to the atmosphere--between 1 and 9%. Most of these studies rely on few and outdated measurements, and some may represent only temporal/regional NG industry snapshots. This study estimates NG industry representative FER using global atmospheric methane and ethane measurements over three decades, and literature ranges of (i) tracer gas atmospheric lifetimes, (ii) non-NG source estimates, and (iii) fossil fuel fugitive gas hydrocarbon compositions. The modeling suggests an upper bound global average FER of 5% during 2006-2011, and a most likely FER of 2-4% since 2000, trending downward. These results do not account for highly uncertain natural hydrocarbon seepage, which could lower the FER. Further emissions reductions by the NG industry may be needed to ensure climate benefits over coal during the next few decades.

A Compact, Low Resource Instrument to Measure Atmospheric Methane and Carbon Dioxide From Orbit

Science.gov (United States)

Rafkin, Scot; Davis, Michael; Varner, Ruth; Basu, Sourish; Bruhwiler, Lori; Luspay-Kuti, Adrienn; Mandt, Kathy; Roming, Pete; Soto, Alejandro; Tapley, Mark

2017-04-01

Methane is the second most important radiatively active trace gas forcing anthropogenic climate change. Methane has ˜28 times more warming potential than carbon dioxide on a 100-year time horizon, and the background atmospheric concentration of methane has increased by more than 150% compared to pre-industrial levels. The increase in methane abundance is driven by a combination of direct human activity, such as fossil fuel extraction and agriculture, and natural feedback processes that respond to human-induced climate change, such as increased wetland production. Accurate accounting of the exchange between the atmosphere and the natural and anthropogenic methane reservoirs is necessary to predict how methane concentration will increase going forward, how that increase will modulate the natural methane cycle, and how effective policy decisions might be at mitigating methane-induced climate change. Monitoring and quantifying methane source intensity and spatial-temporal variability has proven challenging; there are unresolved and scientifically significant discrepancies between flux estimates based on limited surface measurements (the so-called "bottom-up" method) and the values derived from limited, remotely-sensed estimates from orbit and modeling (the so-called "top-down" method). A major source of the discrepancy between bottom-up and top-down estimates is likely a result of insufficient accuracy and resolution of space-based instrumentation. Methane releases, especially anthropogenic sources, are often at kilometer-scale (or less), whereas past remote sensing instruments have at least an order of magnitude greater footprint areas. Natural sources may be larger in areal extent, but the enhancement over background levels can be just a few percent, which demands high spectral resolution and signal-to-noise ratios from monitoring instrumentation. In response to the need for higher performance space-based methane monitoring, we have developed a novel, compact, low

A modeling study of effective radiative forcing and climate response due to increased methane concentration

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bing Xie

2016-12-01

Full Text Available An atmospheric general circulation model BCC_AGCM2.0 and observation data from ARIS were used to calculate the effective radiative forcing (ERF due to increased methane concentration since pre-industrial times and its impacts on climate. The ERF of methane from 1750 to 2011 was 0.46 W m−2 by taking it as a well-mixed greenhouse gas, and the inhomogeneity of methane increased its ERF by about 0.02 W m−2. The change of methane concentration since pre-industrial led to an increase of 0.31 °C in global mean surface air temperature and 0.02 mm d−1 in global mean precipitation. The warming was prominent over the middle and high latitudes of the Northern Hemisphere (with a maximum increase exceeding 1.4 °C. The precipitation notably increased (maximum increase of 1.8 mm d−1 over the ocean between 10°N and 20°N and significantly decreased (maximum decrease >–0.6 mm d−1 between 10°S and 10°N. These changes caused a northward movement of precipitation cell in the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ. Cloud cover significantly increased (by approximately 4% in the high latitudes in both hemispheres, and sharply decreased (by approximately 3% in tropical areas.

Isotope measurement techniques for atmospheric methane

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lowe, D.; White, J.; Levin, I.; Wahlen, M.; Miller, J.B.; Bergamaschi, P.

2002-01-01

Measurement techniques for the carbon isotopic composition of atmospheric methane (δ 13 C) are described in detail as applied in several leading institutions active in this field since many years. The standard techniques with offline sample preparation and subsequent measurement by dual inlet isotope ratio mass spectrometry (IRMS) are compared with continuous flow IRMS. The potential use of infrared absorption spectroscopy is briefly discussed. Details on quality control and calibration are provided. Basic analytical aspects for the measurement of other species, 2 H and 14 C, are also given. (author)

Contribution to atmospheric methane by natural seepages on the Bulgarian continental shelf

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dimitrov, L. [Bulgarian Academy of Science, Varna (Bulgaria). Inst. of Oceanology

2002-07-01

This paper provides an estimation of the atmospheric methane flux from Bulgarian Black Sea continental shelf. Potential gas source rocks include Holocene gas-charged sediments, Quaternary peats and sapropels, and deep-lying Palaeocene and Neogene clays, Cretaceous coals, and other sediments of late Jurassic to early Cretaceous age. These cover almost the whole continental shelf and slope and, together with irregularly developed seal rocks and widespread active and conducting faults, provide good conditions for upward gas migration. A total of 5 100 line kilometers of shallow seismic (boomer) and echo-sounder records acquired during the Institute of Oceanology's regional surveys, and several detailed side-scan sonar lines, have been reviewed for water column targets. Four hundred and eighty-two targets were assigned as gas seepage plumes. It is estimated that a total of 19,735 individual seeps exists on the open shelf. The number of seeps in coastal waters was estimated to be 6020; this is based on available public-domain data, specific research, and results of a specially made questionnaire which was distributed to a range of 'seamen'. More than 150 measurements of the seabed flux rates were made in the 'Golden sands' and 'Zelenka' seepage areas between 1976 and 1991. Indirect estimations of flux rates from video and photo materials, and a review of published data have also been undertaken. Based on these data, three types of seepages were identified as the most representative of Bulgarian coastal waters. These have flux rates of 0.4, 1.8, and 3.51/min. The contribution to atmospheric methane is calculated by multiplying the flux rates with the number of seepages, and entering corrections for methane concentration and the survival of gas bubbles as they ascend through seawater of the corresponding water depth. The estimation indicates that between 45,100,000 (0.03 Tg) and 210,650,000 m{sup 3} (0. 15 Tg) methane yr{sup -1} come

Influence of environmental parameters on the concentration of subsurface dissolved methane in two hydroelectric power plants in Brazil

Science.gov (United States)

Silva, M. G.; Marani, L.; Alvala, P. C.

2013-12-01

Methane (CH4) is a trace gas in the atmosphere of great importance for atmospheric chemistry as one of the main greenhouse gases. There are different sources with the largest individual production associated with the degradation of organic matter submerged in flooded areas. The amount of dissolved methane that reaches the surface depends on the production in the sediments and consumption in the water column. Both processes are associated with microbial activity and consequently dependent on the physico-chemical environmental conditions. The construction of hydroelectric dams cause flooding of areas near the river that can change the characteristics of the environment and cause changes in subsurface methane concentration. In this work, we studied two hydroelectric plants located in Brazil: Batalha (17°20'39.52"S, 47°29'34.29"W), under construction when the samples were take, and Itaipu (25°24'45.00"S, 54°35'39.00"W) which has been floated over 30 years ago. The water samples to determine dissolved methane were collected approximately 5 cm near the surface. In each collection point was measured depth, water temperature, pH and redox potential. The range of dissolved methane between the two dams was similar: 0.07-10.33 μg/l (Batalha) and 0.15-10.93 μg/l (Itaipu). However, the Batalha's average (4.04 × 3.43 μg/l; median = 3.66 μg/l) was higher than that observed in Itaipu (2.15 × 1.59 μg/l; median = 2.53 μg/l). The influence of environmental parameters on the concentration of dissolved methane was evaluated by multivariate statistical techniques (Principal Component Analysis - PCA). All of the parameters had some correlation with dissolved methane, however, the greatest contribution in Batalha was associated with pH while in Itaipu was the depth. The pH variation of the various points studied in Batalha may be associated with periods of drought and flooding of the river and hence the incorporation of organic matter in the environment. The organisms

Implications of Representative Concentration Pathway 4.5 Methane Emissions to Stabilize Radiative Forcing

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Emanuel, William R.; Janetos, Anthony C.

2013-02-01

Increases in the abundance of methane (CH4) in the Earth’s atmosphere are responsible for significant radiative forcing of climate change (Forster et al., 2007; Wuebbles and Hayhoe, 2002). Since 1750, a 2.5 fold increase in atmospheric CH4 contributed 0.5 W/m2 to direct radiative forcing and an additional 0.2 W/m2 indirectly through changes in atmospheric chemistry. Next to water and carbon dioxide (CO2), methane is the most abundant greenhouse gas in the troposphere. Additionally, CH4 is significantly more effective as a greenhouse gas on a per molecule basis than is CO2, and increasing atmospheric CH4 has been second only to CO2 in radiative forcing (Forster et al., 2007). The chemical reactivity of CH4 is important to both tropospheric and stratospheric chemistry. Along with carbon monoxide, methane helps control the amount of the hydroxyl radical (OH) in the troposphere where oxidation of CH4 by OH leads to the formation of formaldehyde, carbon monoxide, and ozone.

Origin of methane and sources of high concentrations in Los Angeles groundwater

Science.gov (United States)

Kulongoski, Justin; McMahon, Peter B.; Land, Michael; Wright, Michael; Johnson, Theodore; Landon, Matthew K.

2018-01-01

In 2014, samples from 37 monitoring wells at 17 locations, within or near oil fields, and one site >5 km from oil fields, in the Los Angeles Basin, California, were analyzed for dissolved hydrocarbon gas isotopes and abundances. The wells sample a variety of depths of an aquifer system composed of unconsolidated and semiconsolidated sediments under various conditions of confinement. Concentrations of methane in groundwater samples ranged from 0.002 to 150 mg/L—some of the highest concentrations reported in a densely populated urban area. The δ13C and δ2H of the methane ranged from −80.8 to −45.5 per mil (‰) and −249.8 to −134.9‰, respectively, and, along with oxidation‐reduction processes, helped to identify the origin of methane as microbial methanogenesis and CO2 reduction as its main formation pathway. The distribution of methane concentrations and isotopes is consistent with the high concentrations of methane in Los Angeles Basin groundwater originating from relatively shallow microbial production in anoxic or suboxic conditions. Source of the methane is the aquifer sediments rather than the upward migration or leakage of thermogenic methane associated with oil fields in the basin.

An Aerial ``Sniffer Dog'' for Methane

Science.gov (United States)

Nathan, Brian; Schaefer, Dave; Zondlo, Mark; Khan, Amir; Lary, David

2012-10-01

The Earth's surface and its atmosphere maintain a ``Radiation Balance.'' Any factor which influences this balance is labeled as a mechanism of ``Radiative Forcing'' (RF). Greenhouse Gas (GHG) concentrations are among the most important forcing mechanisms. Methane, the second-most-abundant noncondensing greenhouse gas, is over 25 times more effective per molecule at radiating heat than the most abundant, Carbon Dioxide. Methane is also the principal component of Natural Gas, and gas leaks can cause explosions. Additionally, massive quantities of methane reside (in the form of natural gas) in underground shale basins. Recent technological advancements--specifically the combination of horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing--have allowed drillers access to portions of these ``plays'' which were previously unreachable, leading to an exponential growth in the shale gas industry. Presently, very little is known about the amount of methane which escapes into the global atmosphere from the extraction process. By using remote-controlled robotic helicopters equipped with specially developed trace gas laser sensors, we can get a 3-D profile of where and how methane is being released into the global atmosphere.

Characterization of Methane Degradation and Methane-Degrading Microbes in Alaska Coastal Water

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kirchman, David L. [Univ. of Delaware, Lewes, DE (United States)

2012-03-29

The net flux of methane from methane hydrates and other sources to the atmosphere depends on methane degradation as well as methane production and release from geological sources. The goal of this project was to examine methane-degrading archaea and organic carbon oxidizing bacteria in methane-rich and methane-poor sediments of the Beaufort Sea, Alaska. The Beaufort Sea system was sampled as part of a multi-disciplinary expedition (Methane in the Arctic Shelf or MIDAS) in September 2009. Microbial communities were examined by quantitative PCR analyses of 16S rRNA genes and key methane degradation genes (pmoA and mcrA involved in aerobic and anaerobic methane degradation, respectively), tag pyrosequencing of 16S rRNA genes to determine the taxonomic make up of microbes in these sediments, and sequencing of all microbial genes (metagenomes ). The taxonomic and functional make-up of the microbial communities varied with methane concentrations, with some data suggesting higher abundances of potential methane-oxidizing archaea in methane-rich sediments. Sequence analysis of PCR amplicons revealed that most of the mcrA genes were from the ANME-2 group of methane oxidizers. According to metagenomic data, genes involved in methane degradation and other degradation pathways changed with sediment depth along with sulfate and methane concentrations. Most importantly, sulfate reduction genes decreased with depth while the anaerobic methane degradation gene (mcrA) increased along with methane concentrations. The number of potential methane degradation genes (mcrA) was low and inconsistent with other data indicating the large impact of methane on these sediments. The data can be reconciled if a small number of potential methane-oxidizing archaea mediates a large flux of carbon in these sediments. Our study is the first to report metagenomic data from sediments dominated by ANME-2 archaea and is one of the few to examine the entire microbial assemblage potentially involved in

Large methane releases lead to strong aerosol forcing and reduced cloudiness

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

T. Kurtén

2011-07-01

Full Text Available The release of vast quantities of methane into the atmosphere as a result of clathrate destabilization is a potential mechanism for rapid amplification of global warming. Previous studies have calculated the enhanced warming based mainly on the radiative effect of the methane itself, with smaller contributions from the associated carbon dioxide or ozone increases. Here, we study the effect of strongly elevated methane (CH₄ levels on oxidant and aerosol particle concentrations using a combination of chemistry-transport and general circulation models. A 10-fold increase in methane concentrations is predicted to significantly decrease hydroxyl radical (OH concentrations, while moderately increasing ozone (O₃. These changes lead to a 70 % increase in the atmospheric lifetime of methane, and an 18 % decrease in global mean cloud droplet number concentrations (CDNC. The CDNC change causes a radiative forcing that is comparable in magnitude to the longwave radiative forcing ("enhanced greenhouse effect" of the added methane. Together, the indirect CH₄-O₃ and CH₄-OH-aerosol forcings could more than double the warming effect of large methane increases. Our findings may help explain the anomalously large temperature changes associated with historic methane releases.

The consumption of atmospheric methane by soil in a simulated future climate

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

C. L. Curry

2009-11-01

Full Text Available A recently developed model for the consumption of atmospheric methane by soil (Curry, 2007 is used to investigate the global magnitude and distribution of methane uptake in a simulated future climate. In addition to solving the one-dimensional diffusion-reaction equation, the model includes a parameterization of biological CH₄ oxidation that is sensitive to soil temperature and moisture content, along with specified reduction factors for land cultivation and wetland fractional coverage. Under the SRES emission scenario A1B, the model projects an 8% increase in the global annual mean CH₄ soil sink by 2100, over and above the 15% increase expected from increased CH₄ concentration alone. While the largest absolute increases occur in cool temperate and subtropical forest ecosystems, the largest relative increases in consumption (>40% are seen in the boreal forest, tundra and polar desert environments of the high northern latitudes. Methane uptake at mid- to high northern latitudes increases year-round in 2100, with a 68% increase over present-day values in June. This increase is primarily due to enhanced soil diffusivity resulting from lower soil moisture produced by increased evaporation and reduced snow cover. At lower latitudes, uptake is enhanced mainly by elevated soil temperatures and/or reduced soil moisture stress, with the dominant influence determined by the local climate.

Simulation of comprehensive chemistry and atmospheric methane lifetime in the LGM with EMAC

Science.gov (United States)

Gromov, Sergey; Steil, Benedikt

2017-04-01

sensitivity of zonal OH to changes in various component of the ES, e.g. in stratospheric O3 input and dynamics. Finally, we discuss the potential set of parameters required for efficient λ and/or OH parameterisation implementation in models dealing with (transient) climate simulations. References 1. Fischer, H., et al.: Changing boreal methane sources and constant biomass burning during the last termination, Nature, 452, 864-867, doi: 10.1038/nature06825, 2008. 2. Kaplan, J. O., Folberth, G.,and Hauglustaine, D. A.: Role of methane and biogenic volatile organic compound sources in late glacial and Holocene fluctuations of atmospheric methane concentrations, Global Biogeochemical Cycles, 20, n/a-n/a, doi: 10.1029/2005GB002590, 2006. 3. Murray, L. T., et al.: Factors controlling variability in the oxidative capacity of the troposphere since the Last Glacial Maximum, Atmos. Chem. Phys., 14, 3589-3622, doi: 10.5194/acp-14-3589-2014, 2014. 4. Valdes, P. J., Beerling, D. J.,and Johnson, C. E.: The ice age methane budget, Geophysical Research Letters, 32, n/a-n/a, doi: 10.1029/2004GL021004, 2005. 5. Jöckel, P., et al.: Development cycle 2 of the Modular Earth Submodel System (MESSy2), Geosci. Model Dev., 3, 717-752, doi: 10.5194/gmd-3-717-2010, 2010. 6. Lelieveld, J., et al.: Global tropospheric hydroxyl distribution, budget and reactivity, Atmos. Chem. Phys., 16, 12477-12493, doi: 10.5194/acp-16-12477-2016, 2016.

Production of hydrogen via methane reforming using atmospheric pressure microwave plasma

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jasinski, Mariusz; Dors, Miroslaw [Centre for Plasma and Laser Engineering, The Szewalski Institute of Fluid-Flow Machinery, Polish Academy of Sciences, Fiszera 14, 80-952 Gdansk (Poland); Mizeraczyk, Jerzy [Centre for Plasma and Laser Engineering, The Szewalski Institute of Fluid-Flow Machinery, Polish Academy of Sciences, Fiszera 14, 80-952 Gdansk (Poland); Department of Marine Electronics, Gdynia Maritime University, Morska 83, 81-225 Gdynia (Poland)

2008-06-15

In this paper, results of hydrogen production via methane reforming in the atmospheric pressure microwave plasma are presented. A waveguide-based nozzleless cylinder-type microwave plasma source (MPS) was used to convert methane into hydrogen. Important advantages of the presented waveguide-based nozzleless cylinder-type MPS are: stable operation in various gases (including air) at high flow rates, no need for a cooling system, and impedance matching. The plasma generation was stabilized by an additional swirled nitrogen flow (50 or 100 l min{sup -1}). The methane flow rate was up to 175 l min{sup -1}. The absorbed microwave power could be changed from 3000 to 5000 W. The hydrogen production rate and the corresponding energy efficiency in the presented methane reforming by the waveguide-based nozzleless cylinder-type MPS were up to 255 g[H{sub 2}] h{sup -1} and 85 g[H{sub 2}] kWh{sup -1}, respectively. These parameters are better than those typical of the conventional methods of hydrogen production (steam reforming of methane and water electrolysis). (author)

Impact of a global warming on biospheric sources of methane and its climatic consequences

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hameed, S; Cess, R D [State Univ. of New York at Stony Brook, Stony Brook, NY (USA). Lab. for Planetary Atmospheres Research

1983-01-01

Most of atmospheric methane originates by bacterial processes in anaerobic environments within the soil which are found to become more productive with increases in ambient temperature. A warming of climate, due to increasing levels of industrial gases resulting from fossil fuel burning, is thus likely to increase methane abundance within the atmosphere. This may lead to further heating of the atmosphere, since both methane and ozone (which is generated in the troposphere from reactions of methane) have greenhouse effects. We have explored this feedback mechanism using a coupled climate-chemical model of the troposphere, by calculating the impact of the predicted global warming due to increased emissions of carbon dioxide and other industrial gases on the biospheric sources of methane. Although we find this climate feedback to be, by itself, relatively minor, it can produce measurable increases in atmospheric CH/sub 4/ concentration, a quantity which should additionally increase as a consequence of increasing anthropogenic emissions of CO and CH/sub 4/ itself. It would thus seem useful to carefully monitor future atmospheric CH/sub 4/ concentrations.

Impact of a global warming on biospheric sources of methane and its climatic consequences

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hameed, S; Cess, R D

1983-02-01

Most of atmospheric methane originates by bacterial processes in anaerobic environments within the soil which are found to become more productive with increases in ambient temperature. A warming of climate, due to increasing levels of industrial gases resulting from fossil fuel burning, is thus likely to increase methane abundance within the atmosphere. This may lead to further heating of the atmosphere, since both methane and ozone (which is generated in the troposphere from reactions of methane) have greenhouse effects. We have explored this feedback mechanism using a coupled climate-chemical model of the troposphere, by calculating the impact of the predicted global warming due to increased emissions of carbon dioxide and other industrial gases on the biospheric sources of methane. Although we find this climate feedback to be, by itself, relatively minor, it can produce measurable increases in atmospheric CH/sub 4/ concentration, a quantity which should additionally increase as a consequence of increasing anthropogenic emissions of CO and CH/sub 4/ itself. It would thus seem useful to carefully monitor future atmospheric CH/sub 4/ concentrations.

Atmospheric methane from organic carbon mobilization in sedimentary basins — The sleeping giant?

Science.gov (United States)

Kroeger, K. F.; di Primio, R.; Horsfield, B.

2011-08-01

The mass of organic carbon in sedimentary basins amounts to a staggering 10 16 t, dwarfing the mass contained in coal, oil, gas and all living systems by ten thousand-fold. The evolution of this giant mass during subsidence and uplift, via chemical, physical and biological processes, not only controls fossil energy resource occurrence worldwide, but also has the capacity for driving global climate: only a tiny change in the degree of leakage, particularly if focused through the hydrate cycle, can result in globally significant greenhouse gas emissions. To date, neither climate models nor atmospheric CO 2 budget estimates have quantitatively included methane from thermal or microbial cracking of sedimentary organic matter deep in sedimentary basins. Recent estimates of average low latitude Eocene surface temperatures beyond 30 °C require extreme levels of atmospheric CO 2. Methane degassing from sedimentary basins may be a mechanism to explain increases of atmospheric CO 2 to values as much as 20 times higher than pre-industrial values. Increased natural gas emission could have been set in motion either by global tectonic processes such as pulses of activity in the global alpine fold belt, leading to increased basin subsidence and maturation rates in the prolific Jurassic and Cretaceous organic-rich sediments, or by increased magmatic activity such as observed in the northern Atlantic around the Paleocene-Eocene boundary. Increased natural gas emission would have led to global warming that was accentuated by long lasting positive feedback effects through temperature transfer from the surface into sedimentary basins. Massive gas hydrate dissociation may have been an additional positive feedback factor during hyperthermals superimposed on long term warming, such as the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM). As geologic sources may have contributed over one third of global atmospheric methane in pre-industrial time, variability in methane flux from sedimentary

Comparison of the HadGEM2 climate-chemistry model against in situ and SCIAMACHY atmospheric methane data

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

G. D. Hayman

2014-12-01

Full Text Available Wetlands are a major emission source of methane (CH4 globally. In this study, we evaluate wetland emission estimates derived using the UK community land surface model (JULES, the Joint UK Land Earth Simulator against atmospheric observations of methane, including, for the first time, total methane columns derived from the SCIAMACHY instrument on board the ENVISAT satellite. Two JULES wetland emission estimates are investigated: (a from an offline run driven with Climatic Research Unit–National Centers for Environmental Prediction (CRU-NCEP meteorological data and (b from the same offline run in which the modelled wetland fractions are replaced with those derived from the Global Inundation Extent from Multi-Satellites (GIEMS remote sensing product. The mean annual emission assumed for each inventory (181 Tg CH4 per annum over the period 1999–2007 is in line with other recently published estimates. There are regional differences as the unconstrained JULES inventory gives significantly higher emissions in the Amazon (by ~36 Tg CH4 yr−1 and lower emissions in other regions (by up to 10 Tg CH4 yr−1 compared to the JULES estimates constrained with the GIEMS product. Using the UK Hadley Centre's Earth System model with atmospheric chemistry (HadGEM2, we evaluate these JULES wetland emissions against atmospheric observations of methane. We obtain improved agreement with the surface concentration measurements, especially at high northern latitudes, compared to previous HadGEM2 runs using the wetland emission data set of Fung et al. (1991. Although the modelled monthly atmospheric methane columns reproduce the large-scale patterns in the SCIAMACHY observations, they are biased low by 50 part per billion by volume (ppb. Replacing the HadGEM2 modelled concentrations above 300 hPa with HALOE–ACE assimilated TOMCAT output results in a significantly better agreement with the SCIAMACHY observations. The use of the GIEMS product to constrain the JULES

Large methane releases lead to strong aerosol forcing and reduced cloudiness

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kurten, T.; Zhou, L.; Makkonen, R.

2011-01-01

The release of vast quantities of methane into the atmosphere as a result of clathrate destabilization is a potential mechanism for rapid amplification of global warming. Previous studies have calculated the enhanced warming based mainly on the radiative effect of the methane itself, with smaller...... is predicted to significantly decrease hydroxyl radical (OH) concentrations, while moderately increasing ozone (O-3). These changes lead to a 70% increase in the atmospheric lifetime of methane, and an 18% decrease in global mean cloud droplet number concentrations (CDNC). The CDNC change causes a radiative...... forcing that is comparable in magnitude to the long-wave radiative forcing ("enhanced greenhouse effect") of the added methane. Together, the indirect CH4-O-3 and CH4-OHaerosol forcings could more than double the warming effect of large methane increases. Our findings may help explain the anomalously...

Methane emissions from grasslands

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Pol - van Dasselaar, van den A.

1998-01-01

Introduction

Methane (CH ₄ ) is an important greenhouse gas. The concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere has been increasing since pre-industrial times, mainly due to human activities. This increase gives concern,

Tracking the MSL-SAM methane detection source location Through Mars Regional Atmospheric Modeling System (MRAMS)

Science.gov (United States)

Pla-García, Jorge

2016-04-01

1. Introduction: The putative in situ detection of methane by Sample Analysis at Mars (SAM) instrument suite on Curiosi-ty at Gale crater has garnered significant attention because of the potential implications for the presence of geological methane sources or indigenous Martian organisms [1, 2]. SAM reported detection of back-ground levels of atmospheric methane of mean value 0.69±0.25 parts per billion by volume (ppbv) at the 95% confidence interval (CI). Additionally, in four sequential measurements spanning a 60-sol period, SAM observed elevated levels of methane of 7.2±2.1 ppbv (95% CI), implying that Mars is episodically producing methane from an additional unknown source. There are many major unresolved questions regard-ing this detection: 1) What are the potential sources of the methane release? 2) What causes the rapid decrease in concentration? and 3) Where is the re-lease location? 4) How spatially extensive is the re-lease? 5) For how long is CH4 released? Regarding the first question, the source of methane, is so far not identified. It could be related with geo-logical process like methane release from clathrates [3], serpentinisation [4] and volcanism [5]; or due to biological activity from methanogenesis [6]. To answer the second question, the rapid decrease in concentration, it is important to note that the photo-chemical lifetime of methane is of order 100 years, much longer than the atmospheric mixing time scale, and thus the gas should tend to be well mixed except near a source or shortly after an episodic release. The observed spike of 7 ppb from the background of System (MRAMS). The model was focused on rover locations using nested grids with a spacing of 330 meters on the in-nermost grid that is centered over the landing [8, 9]. MRAMS is ideally suited for this investigation; the model is explicitly designed to simulate Mars' at-mospheric circulations at the mesoscale and smaller with realistic, high-resolution surface properties [10, 11

Elimination of methane in exhaust gas from biogas upgrading process by immobilized methane-oxidizing bacteria.

Science.gov (United States)

Wu, Ya-Min; Yang, Jing; Fan, Xiao-Lei; Fu, Shan-Fei; Sun, Meng-Ting; Guo, Rong-Bo

2017-05-01

Biogas upgrading is essential for the comprehensive utilization of biogas as substitute of natural gas. However, the methane in the biogas can be fully recovered during the upgrading process of biogas, and the exhaust gas produced during biogas upgrading may contain a very low concentration of methane. If the exhaust gas with low concentration methane releases to atmosphere, it will be harmful to environment. In addition, the utilization of large amounts of digestate produced from biogas plant is another important issue for the development of biogas industry. In this study, solid digestate was used to produce active carbon, which was subsequently used as immobilized material for methane-oxidizing bacteria (MOB) in biofilter. Biofilter with MOB immobilized on active carbon was used to eliminate the methane in exhaust gas from biogas upgrading process. Results showed porous active carbon was successfully made from solid digestate. The final methane elimination capacity of immobilized MOB reached about 13molh -1 m -3 , which was more 4 times higher than that of MOB without immobilization. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Measurements of Positively Charged Ions in Premixed Methane-Oxygen Atmospheric Flames

KAUST Repository

Alquaity, Awad

2016-08-22

Cations and anions are formed as a result of chemi-ionization processes in combustion systems. Electric fields can be applied to reduce emissions and improve combustion efficiency by active control of the combustion process. Detailed flame ion chemistry models are needed to understand and predict the effect of external electric fields on combustion plasmas. In this work, a molecular beam mass spectrometer (MBMS) is utilized to measure ion concentration profiles in premixed methane–oxygen argon burner-stabilized atmospheric flames. Lean and stoichiometric flames are considered to assess the dependence of ion chemistry on flame stoichiometry. Relative ion concentration profiles are compared with numerical simulations using various temperature profiles, and good qualitative agreement was observed for the stoichiometric flame. However, for the lean flame, numerical simulations misrepresent the spatial distribution of selected ions greatly. Three modifications are suggested to enhance the ion mechanism and improve the agreement between experiments and simulations. The first two modifications comprise the addition of anion detachment reactions to increase anion recombination at low temperatures. The third modification involves restoring a detachment reaction to its original irreversible form. To our knowledge, this work presents the first detailed measurements of cations and flame temperature in canonical methane–oxygen-argon atmospheric flat flames. The positive ion profiles reported here may be useful to validate and improve ion chemistry models for methane-oxygen flames.

CYANOBACTERIA FOR MITIGATING METHANE EMISSION FROM SUBMERGED PADDY FIELDS

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Upasana Mishra; Shalini Anand [Department of Environmental Studies, Inderprastha Engineering College, Sahibabad, Ghaziabad (India)

2008-09-30

Atmospheric methane, a potent greenhouse gas with high absorption potential for infrared radiation, is responsible for one forth of the total anticipated warming. It is forming a major part of green house gases, next after carbon dioxide. Its concentration has been increasing alarmingly on an average at the rate of one percent per year. Atmospheric methane, originating mainly from biogenic sources such as paddy fields, natural wetlands and landfills, accounts for 15-20% of the world's total anthropogenic methane emission. With intensification of rice cultivation in coming future, methane emissions from paddy fields are anticipated to increase. India's share in world's rice production is next after to China and likewise total methane emission from paddy fields also. Methane oxidation through planktophytes, particularly microalgae which are autotrophic and abundant in rice rhizospheres, hold promise in controlling methane emission from submerged paddy fields. The present study is focused on the role of nitrogen fixing, heterocystous cyanobacteria and Azolla (a water fern harboring a cyanobacterium Anabaena azollae) as biological sink for headspace concentration of methane in flooded soils. In this laboratory study, soil samples containing five potent nitrogen fixer cyanobacterial strains from paddy fields, were examined for their methane reducing potential. Soil sample without cyanobacterial strain was tested and taken as control. Anabaena sp. was found most effective in inhibiting methane concentration by 5-6 folds over the control. Moist soil cores treated with chemical nitrogen, urea, in combination with cyanobacteria mixture, Azolla microphylla or cyanobacteria mixture plus Azolla microphylla exhibited significance reduction in the headspace concentration of methane than the soil cores treated with urea alone. Contrary to other reports, this study also demonstrates that methane oxidation in soil core samples from paddy fields was stimulated by

Global climate: Methane contribution to greenhouse effect

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Metalli, P.

1992-01-01

The global atmospheric concentration of methane greatly contributes to the severity of the greenhouse effect. It has been estimated that this concentration, due mainly to human activities, is growing at the rate of roughly 1.1% per year. Environmental scientists suggest that a reduction, even as small as 10%, in global methane emissions would be enough to curtail the hypothetical global warning scenarios forecasted for the up-coming century. Through the recovery of methane from municipal and farm wastes, as well as, through the control of methane leaks and dispersions in coal mining and petrochemical processes, substantial progress towards the abatement of greenhouse gas effects could be achieved without having to resort to economically detrimental limitations on the use of fossil fuels

Activity of type i methanotrophs dominates under high methane concentration: Methanotrophic activity in slurry surface crusts as influenced by methane, oxygen, and inorganic nitrogen

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Duan, Yun Feng; Reinsch, Sabine; Ambus, Per

2017-01-01

Livestock slurry is a major source of atmospheric methane (CH4), but surface crusts harboring methane-oxidizing bacteria (MOB) could mediate against CH4 emissions. This study examined conditions for CH4 oxidation by in situ measurements of oxygen (O2) and nitrous oxide (N2O), as a proxy for inorg......Livestock slurry is a major source of atmospheric methane (CH4), but surface crusts harboring methane-oxidizing bacteria (MOB) could mediate against CH4 emissions. This study examined conditions for CH4 oxidation by in situ measurements of oxygen (O2) and nitrous oxide (N2O), as a proxy...... for inorganic N transformations, in intact crusts using microsensors. This was combined with laboratory incubations of crust material to investigate the effects of O2, CH4, and inorganic N on CH4 oxidation, using 13CH4 to trace C incorporation into lipids of MOB. Oxygen penetration into the crust was 2 to 14 mm...

Impact of a global warming on biospheric sources of methane and its climatic consequences

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hameed, S; Cess, R D

1983-01-01

Most atmospheric methane originates by bacterial processes in anaerobic environments within the soil, which become more productive with increases in ambient temperature. A warming of the climate, due to increasing levels of industrial gases resulting from fossil fuel burning, is likely to increase methane concentrations within the atmosphere, possibly leading to further heating, since both methane and ozone (which is generated in the troposphere from reactions of methane) have greenhouse effects. Investigators explored this feedback mechanism using a coupled climate-chemical model of the troposphere, by calculating the impact of the predicted global warming due to increased emissions of carbon dioxide and other industrial gases on the biospheric sources of methane. Although they found this climate feedback to be, by itself, relatively minor, it can produce measurable increases in atmospheric CH/sub 4/ concentration, a quantity that should additionally increase as a consequence of increasing anthropogenic emissions of CO and CH/sub 4/.

Background levels of methane in Mars’ atmosphere show strong seasonal variations

Science.gov (United States)

Webster, Christopher R.; Mahaffy, Paul R.; Atreya, Sushil K.; Moores, John E.; Flesch, Gregory J.; Malespin, Charles; McKay, Christopher P.; Martinez, German; Smith, Christina L.; Martin-Torres, Javier; Gomez-Elvira, Javier; Zorzano, Maria-Paz; Wong, Michael H.; Trainer, Melissa G.; Steele, Andrew; Archer, Doug; Sutter, Brad; Coll, Patrice J.; Freissinet, Caroline; Meslin, Pierre-Yves; Gough, Raina V.; House, Christopher H.; Pavlov, Alexander; Eigenbrode, Jennifer L.; Glavin, Daniel P.; Pearson, John C.; Keymeulen, Didier; Christensen, Lance E.; Schwenzer, Susanne P.; Navarro-Gonzalez, Rafael; Pla-García, Jorge; Rafkin, Scot C. R.; Vicente-Retortillo, Álvaro; Kahanpää, Henrik; Viudez-Moreiras, Daniel; Smith, Michael D.; Harri, Ari-Matti; Genzer, Maria; Hassler, Donald M.; Lemmon, Mark; Crisp, Joy; Sander, Stanley P.; Zurek, Richard W.; Vasavada, Ashwin R.

2018-06-01

Variable levels of methane in the martian atmosphere have eluded explanation partly because the measurements are not repeatable in time or location. We report in situ measurements at Gale crater made over a 5-year period by the Tunable Laser Spectrometer on the Curiosity rover. The background levels of methane have a mean value 0.41 ± 0.16 parts per billion by volume (ppbv) (95% confidence interval) and exhibit a strong, repeatable seasonal variation (0.24 to 0.65 ppbv). This variation is greater than that predicted from either ultraviolet degradation of impact-delivered organics on the surface or from the annual surface pressure cycle. The large seasonal variation in the background and occurrences of higher temporary spikes (~7 ppbv) are consistent with small localized sources of methane released from martian surface or subsurface reservoirs.

The Effect of the Interannual Variability of the OH Sink on the Interannual Variability of the Atmospheric Methane Mixing Ratio and Carbon Stable Isotope Composition

Science.gov (United States)

Guillermo Nuñez Ramirez, Tonatiuh; Houweling, Sander; Marshall, Julia; Williams, Jason; Brailsford, Gordon; Schneising, Oliver; Heimann, Martin

2013-04-01

The atmospheric hydroxyl radical concentration (OH) varies due to changes in the incoming UV radiation, in the abundance of atmospheric species involved in the production, recycling and destruction of OH molecules and due to climate variability. Variability in carbon monoxide emissions from biomass burning induced by El Niño Southern Oscillation are particularly important. Although the OH sink accounts for the oxidation of approximately 90% of atmospheric CH4, the effect of the variability in the distribution and strength of the OH sink on the interannual variability of atmospheric methane (CH4) mixing ratio and stable carbon isotope composition (δ13C-CH4) has often been ignored. To show this effect we simulated the atmospheric signals of CH4 in a three-dimensional atmospheric transport model (TM3). ERA Interim reanalysis data provided the atmospheric transport and temperature variability from 1990 to 2010. We performed simulations using time dependent OH concentration estimations from an atmospheric chemistry transport model and an atmospheric chemistry climate model. The models assumed a different set of reactions and algorithms which caused a very different strength and distribution of the OH concentration. Methane emissions were based on published bottom-up estimates including inventories, upscaled estimations and modeled fluxes. The simulations also included modeled concentrations of atomic chlorine (Cl) and excited oxygen atoms (O(1D)). The isotopic signal of the sources and the fractionation factors of the sinks were based on literature values, however the isotopic signal from wetlands and enteric fermentation processes followed a linear relationship with a map of C4 plant fraction. The same set of CH4emissions and stratospheric reactants was used in all simulations. Two simulations were done per OH field: one in which the CH4 sources were allowed to vary interannually, and a second where the sources were climatological. The simulated mixing ratios and

Role of Megafauna and Frozen Soil in the Atmospheric CH4 Dynamics

Science.gov (United States)

Zimov, Sergey; Zimov, Nikita

2014-01-01

Modern wetlands are the world’s strongest methane source. But what was the role of this source in the past? An analysis of global 14C data for basal peat combined with modelling of wetland succession allowed us to reconstruct the dynamics of global wetland methane emission through time. These data show that the rise of atmospheric methane concentrations during the Pleistocene-Holocene transition was not connected with wetland expansion, but rather started substantially later, only 9 thousand years ago. Additionally, wetland expansion took place against the background of a decline in atmospheric methane concentration. The isotopic composition of methane varies according to source. Owing to ice sheet drilling programs past dynamics of atmospheric methane isotopic composition is now known. For example over the course of Pleistocene-Holocene transition atmospheric methane became depleted in the deuterium isotope, which indicated that the rise in methane concentrations was not connected with activation of the deuterium-rich gas clathrates. Modelling of the budget of the atmospheric methane and its isotopic composition allowed us to reconstruct the dynamics of all main methane sources. For the late Pleistocene, the largest methane source was megaherbivores, whose total biomass is estimated to have exceeded that of present-day humans and domestic animals. This corresponds with our independent estimates of herbivore density on the pastures of the late Pleistocene based on herbivore skeleton density in the permafrost. During deglaciation, the largest methane emissions originated from degrading frozen soils of the mammoth steppe biome. Methane from this source is unique, as it is depleted of all isotopes. We estimated that over the entire course of deglaciation (15,000 to 6,000 year before present), soils of the mammoth steppe released 300–550 Pg (1015 g) of methane. From current study we conclude that the Late Quaternary Extinction significantly affected the global

A comparative study of carbon plasma emission in methane and argon atmospheres

Science.gov (United States)

Yousfi, H.; Abdelli-Messaci, S.; Ouamerali, O.; Dekhira, A.

2018-04-01

The interaction between laser produced plasma (LPP) and an ambient gas is largely investigated by Optical Emission Spectroscopy (OES). The analysis of carbon plasma produced by an excimer KrF laser was performed under controlled atmospheres of methane and argon. For each ambient gas, the features of produced species have been highlighted. Using the time of flight (TOF) analysis, we have observed that the C and C2 exhibit a triple and a double peaks respectively in argon atmosphere in contrast to the methane atmosphere. The evolution of the first peaks of C and C2 follows the plasma expansion, whereas the second peaks move backward, undergoing reflected shocks. It was found that the translational temperature, obtained by Shifted Maxwell Boltzmann distribution function is strongly affected by the nature of ambient gas. The dissociation of CH4 by electronic impact presents the principal approach for explaining the emission of CH radical in reactive plasma. Some chemical reactions have been proposed in order to explain the formation process of molecular species.

Factors Controlling Methane in Arctic Lakes of Southwest Greenland.

Science.gov (United States)

Northington, Robert M; Saros, Jasmine E

2016-01-01

We surveyed 15 lakes during the growing season of 2014 in Arctic lakes of southwest Greenland to determine which factors influence methane concentrations in these systems. Methane averaged 2.5 μmol L-1 in lakes, but varied a great deal across the landscape with lakes on older landscapes farther from the ice sheet margin having some of the highest values of methane reported in lakes in the northern hemisphere (125 μmol L-1). The most important factors influencing methane in Greenland lakes included ionic composition (SO4, Na, Cl) and chlorophyll a in the water column. DOC concentrations were also related to methane, but the short length of the study likely underestimated the influence and timing of DOC on methane concentrations in the region. Atmospheric methane concentrations are increasing globally, with freshwater ecosystems in northern latitudes continuing to serve as potentially large sources in the future. Much less is known about how freshwater lakes in Greenland fit in the global methane budget compared to other, more well-studied areas of the Arctic, hence our work provides essential data for a more complete view of this rapidly changing region.

Airborne Measurements of Atmospheric Methane Using Pulsed Laser Transmitters

Science.gov (United States)

Numata, Kenji; Riris, Haris; Wu, Stewart; Gonzalez, Brayler; Rodriguez, Michael; Hasselbrack, William; Fahey, Molly; Yu, Anthony; Stephen, Mark; Mao, Jianping;

Statistical atmospheric inversion of local gas emissions by coupling the tracer release technique and local-scale transport modelling: a test case with controlled methane emissions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

S. Ars

2017-12-01

Full Text Available This study presents a new concept for estimating the pollutant emission rates of a site and its main facilities using a series of atmospheric measurements across the pollutant plumes. This concept combines the tracer release method, local-scale atmospheric transport modelling and a statistical atmospheric inversion approach. The conversion between the controlled emission and the measured atmospheric concentrations of the released tracer across the plume places valuable constraints on the atmospheric transport. This is used to optimise the configuration of the transport model parameters and the model uncertainty statistics in the inversion system. The emission rates of all sources are then inverted to optimise the match between the concentrations simulated with the transport model and the pollutants' measured atmospheric concentrations, accounting for the transport model uncertainty. In principle, by using atmospheric transport modelling, this concept does not strongly rely on the good colocation between the tracer and pollutant sources and can be used to monitor multiple sources within a single site, unlike the classical tracer release technique. The statistical inversion framework and the use of the tracer data for the configuration of the transport and inversion modelling systems should ensure that the transport modelling errors are correctly handled in the source estimation. The potential of this new concept is evaluated with a relatively simple practical implementation based on a Gaussian plume model and a series of inversions of controlled methane point sources using acetylene as a tracer gas. The experimental conditions are chosen so that they are suitable for the use of a Gaussian plume model to simulate the atmospheric transport. In these experiments, different configurations of methane and acetylene point source locations are tested to assess the efficiency of the method in comparison to the classic tracer release technique in coping

Statistical atmospheric inversion of local gas emissions by coupling the tracer release technique and local-scale transport modelling: a test case with controlled methane emissions

Science.gov (United States)

Ars, Sébastien; Broquet, Grégoire; Yver Kwok, Camille; Roustan, Yelva; Wu, Lin; Arzoumanian, Emmanuel; Bousquet, Philippe

2017-12-01

This study presents a new concept for estimating the pollutant emission rates of a site and its main facilities using a series of atmospheric measurements across the pollutant plumes. This concept combines the tracer release method, local-scale atmospheric transport modelling and a statistical atmospheric inversion approach. The conversion between the controlled emission and the measured atmospheric concentrations of the released tracer across the plume places valuable constraints on the atmospheric transport. This is used to optimise the configuration of the transport model parameters and the model uncertainty statistics in the inversion system. The emission rates of all sources are then inverted to optimise the match between the concentrations simulated with the transport model and the pollutants' measured atmospheric concentrations, accounting for the transport model uncertainty. In principle, by using atmospheric transport modelling, this concept does not strongly rely on the good colocation between the tracer and pollutant sources and can be used to monitor multiple sources within a single site, unlike the classical tracer release technique. The statistical inversion framework and the use of the tracer data for the configuration of the transport and inversion modelling systems should ensure that the transport modelling errors are correctly handled in the source estimation. The potential of this new concept is evaluated with a relatively simple practical implementation based on a Gaussian plume model and a series of inversions of controlled methane point sources using acetylene as a tracer gas. The experimental conditions are chosen so that they are suitable for the use of a Gaussian plume model to simulate the atmospheric transport. In these experiments, different configurations of methane and acetylene point source locations are tested to assess the efficiency of the method in comparison to the classic tracer release technique in coping with the distances

Exploratory study of atmospheric methane enhancements derived from natural gas use in the Houston urban area

Science.gov (United States)

Sanchez, Nancy P.; Zheng, Chuantao; Ye, Weilin; Czader, Beata; Cohan, Daniel S.; Tittel, Frank K.; Griffin, Robert J.

2018-03-01

The extensive use of natural gas (NG) in urban areas for heating and cooking and as a vehicular fuel is associated with potentially significant emissions of methane (CH4) to the atmosphere. Methane, a potent greenhouse gas that influences the chemistry of the atmosphere, can be emitted from different sources including leakage from NG infrastructure, transportation activities, end-use uncombusted NG, landfills and livestock. Although significant CH4 leakage associated with aging local NG distribution systems in the U.S. has been reported, further investigation is required to study the role of this infrastructure component and other NG-related sources in atmospheric CH4 enhancements in urban centers. In this study, neighborhood-scale mobile-based monitoring of potential CH4 emissions associated with NG in the Greater Houston area (GHA) is reported. A novel dual-gas 3.337 μm interband cascade laser-based sensor system was developed and mobile-mode deployed for simultaneous CH4 and ethane (C2H6) monitoring during a period of over 14 days, corresponding to ∼ 90 h of effective data collection during summer 2016. The sampling campaign covered ∼250 exclusive road miles and was primarily concentrated on eight residential zones with distinct infrastructure age and NG usage levels. A moderate number of elevated CH4 concentration events (37 episodes) with mixing ratios not exceeding 3.60 ppmv and associated with atmospheric background enhancements below 1.21 ppmv were observed during the field campaign. Source discrimination analyses based on the covariance between CH4 and C2H6 levels indicated the predominance of thermogenic sources (e.g., NG) in the elevated CH4 concentration episodes. The volumetric fraction of C2H6 in the sources associated with the thermogenic CH4 spikes varied between 2.7 and 5.9%, concurring with the C2H6 content in NG distributed in the GHA. Isolated CH4 peak events with significantly higher C2H6 enhancements (∼11%) were observed at industrial

Permafrost-associated gas hydrates of Northern Alaska: A possible source of atmospheric methane

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Collett, T.S.

1991-01-01

Numerous researchers have suggested that destabilized gas hydrates may be contributing to this buildup in atmospheric methane. Little is known about the geologic or geochemical nature of gas hydrates, even though they are known to occur in numerous arctic sedimentary basins. Because of the abundance of available geologic data, the author's research has focused on assessing the distribution of gas hydrates within the onshore regions of northern Alaska; currently, onshore permafrost-associated gas hydrates are believed to be insulated from most atmospheric temperature changes and are not at this time an important source of atmospheric methane. Their onshore gas hydrate studies, however, can be used to develop geologic analogs for potential gas hydrate occurrences within unexplored areas, such as the thermally unstable nearshore continental shelf. On the North Slope, gas hydrates have been identified in 36 industry wells by using well-log responses calibrated to the response of an interval in one well where gas hydrates were recovered in a core by an oil company. Most gas hydrates they identified occur in six laterally continuous Upper Cretaceous and lower Tertiary sandstone and conglomerate units; all these hydrates are geographically restricted to the area overlying the eastern part of the Kuparuk River Oil Field and the western part of the Prudhoe Bay Oil Field. Stable carbon isotope geochemical analysis of well cuttings suggests that the identified hydrates originated from a mixture of deep-source thermogenic gas and shallow microbial gas that was either directly converted to gas hydrate or first concentrated in existing traps and later converted to gas hydrate. They postulate that the thermogenic gas migrated from deeper reservoirs along the faults thought to be migration pathways for the large volumes of shallow, heavy oil found in the same area

Atmospheric Radiation Measurement Program facilities newsletter, July 2001.; TOPICAL

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Holdridge, D. J.

2001-01-01

Global Warming and Methane-Global warming, an increase in Earth's near-surface temperature, is believed to result from the buildup of what scientists refer to as ''greenhouse gases.'' These gases include water vapor, carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, ozone, perfluorocarbons, hydrofluoro-carbons, and sulfur hexafluoride. Greenhouse gases can absorb outgoing infrared (heat) radiation and re-emit it back to Earth, warming the surface. Thus, these gases act like the glass of a greenhouse enclosure, trapping infrared radiation inside and warming the space. One of the more important greenhouse gases is the naturally occurring hydrocarbon methane. Methane, a primary component of natural gas, is the second most important contributor to the greenhouse effect (after carbon dioxide). Natural sources of methane include wetlands, fossil sources, termites, oceans, fresh-waters, and non-wetland soils. Methane is also produced by human-related (or anthropogenic) activities such as fossil fuel production, coal mining, rice cultivation, biomass burning, water treatment facilities, waste management operations and landfills, and domesticated livestock operations (Figure 1). These anthropogenic activities account for approximately 70% of the methane emissions to the atmosphere. Methane is removed naturally from the atmosphere in three ways. These methods, commonly referred to as sinks, are oxidation by chemical reaction with tropospheric hydroxyl ion, oxidation within the stratosphere, and microbial uptake by soils. In spite of their important role in removing excess methane from the atmosphere, the sinks cannot keep up with global methane production. Methane concentrations in the atmosphere have increased by 145% since 1800. Increases in atmospheric methane roughly parallel world population growth, pointing to anthropogenic sources as the cause (Figure 2). Increases in the methane concentration reduce Earth's natural cooling efficiency by trapping more of the outgoing

Methane concentrations 1990-1997. What do they tell?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Visser, H.; Vosbeek, M.E.J.P.

2000-01-01

Generally, spatial and temporal fluctuations in concentrations of methane are poorly understood. For this reason, a project has been started with the title: 'Sources, regional scaling and validation of CH4 and N2O emissions from the Netherlands and Northwest Europe. As part of this project we deal here with the detection of local emission sources from temporal concentration patterns in The Netherlands. 3 refs

Methane cycling in peat bogs: Environmental relevance of methano-Trophs revealed by microbial lipid chemistry

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van Winden, J.F.

2011-01-01

Global warming is continuing without delay and this is caused by the accumulation of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. Methane is a strong greenhouse gas, 25 times stronger compared to CO2. The increase in methane concentrations in the atmosphere is largely the result of human influences, but

Applications of Ground-based Mobile Atmospheric Monitoring: Real-time Characterization of Source Emissions and Ambient Concentrations

Science.gov (United States)

Goetz, J. Douglas

Gas and particle phase atmospheric pollution are known to impact human and environmental health as well as contribute to climate forcing. While many atmospheric pollutants are regulated or controlled in the developed world uncertainty still remains regarding the impacts from under characterized emission sources, the interaction of anthropogenic and naturally occurring pollution, and the chemical and physical evolution of emissions in the atmosphere, among many other uncertainties. Because of the complexity of atmospheric pollution many types of monitoring have been implemented in the past, but none are capable of perfectly characterizing the atmosphere and each monitoring type has known benefits and disadvantages. Ground-based mobile monitoring with fast-response in-situ instrumentation has been used in the past for a number of applications that fill data gaps not possible with other types of atmospheric monitoring. In this work, ground-based mobile monitoring was implemented to quantify emissions from under characterized emission sources using both moving and portable applications, and used in a novel way for the characterization of ambient concentrations. In the Marcellus Shale region of Pennsylvania two mobile platforms were used to estimate emission rates from infrastructure associated with the production and transmission of natural gas using two unique methods. One campaign investigated emissions of aerosols, volatile organic compounds (VOCs), methane, carbon monoxide (CO), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), and carbon dioxide (CO 2) from natural gas wells, well development practices, and compressor stations using tracer release ratio methods and a developed fenceline tracer release correction factor. Another campaign investigated emissions of methane from Marcellus Shale gas wells and infrastructure associated with two large national transmission pipelines using the "Point Source Gaussian" method described in the EPA OTM-33a. During both campaigns ambient concentrations

Methane Fluxes at the Tree Stem, Soil, and Ecosystem-scales in a Cottonwood Riparian Forest

Science.gov (United States)

Flanagan, L. B.; Nikkel, D. J.; Scherloski, L. M.; Tkach, R. E.; Rood, S. B.

2017-12-01

Trees can emit methane to the atmosphere that is produced by microbes inside their decaying stems or by taking up and releasing methane that is produced by microbes in adjacent, anoxic soil layers. The significance of these two methane production pathways for possible net release to the atmosphere depends on the magnitude of simultaneous oxidation of atmospheric methane that occurs in well-aerated, shallow soil zones. In order to quantify the significance of these processes, we made methane flux measurements using the eddy covariance technique at the ecosystem-scale and via chamber-based methods applied on the soil surface and on tree stems in a riparian cottonwood ecosystem in southern Alberta that was dominated by Populus tree species and their natural hybrids. Tree stem methane fluxes varied greatly among individual Populus trees and changed seasonally, with peak growing season average values of 4 nmol m-2 s-1 (tree surface area basis). When scaled to the ecosystem, the tree stem methane emissions (0.9 nmol m-2 s-1, ground area basis) were slightly higher than average soil surface methane uptake rates (-0.8 nmol m-2 s-1). In addition, we observed regular nighttime increases in methane concentration within the forest boundary layer (by 300 nmol mol-1 on average at 22 m height during July). The majority of the methane concentration build-up was flushed from the ecosystem to the well-mixed atmosphere, with combined eddy covariance and air column storage fluxes reaching values of 70-80 nmol m-2 s-1 for approximately one hour after sunrise. Daily average net methane emission rates at the ecosystem-scale were 4.4 nmol m-2 s-1 during July. Additional lab studies demonstrated that tree stem methane was produced via the CO2-reduction pathway, as tissue in the central stem of living Populus trees was being decomposed. This study demonstrated net methane emission from an upland, cottonwood forest ecosystem, resulting from microbe methane production in tree stems that

Lightning generation in Titan due to the electrical self-polarization properties of Methane

Science.gov (United States)

Quintero, A.; Falcón, N.

2009-05-01

We describe an electrical charge process in Titan's thunderclouds, due to the self-polarization properties or pyroelectricity of methane, which increases the internal electric field in thunderclouds and facilitates the charge generation and separation processes. Microphysics that generates lightning flashes is associated with the physical and chemical properties of the local atmosphere, so methane could be the principal agent of the electrical activity because of its great concentration in Titan's atmosphere. Besides, Titan's electrical activity should not be very influenced by Saturn's magnetosphere because lightning occurs at very low altitude above Titan's surface, compared with the greater distance of Saturn's magnetosphere and Titan's troposphere. Using an electrostatic treatment, we calculate the internal electric field of Titan's thunderclouds due to methane's pyroelectrical properties, 7.05×10^11 Vm^-1; and using the telluric capacitor approximation for thunderclouds, we calculate the total charge obtained for a typical Titan thundercloud, 2.67×10^9 C. However, it is not right to use an electrostatic treatment because charge times are very fast due to the large methane concentration in Titan's clouds and the life time of thunderclouds is very low (around 2 hours). We consider a time dependent mechanism, employing common Earth atmospheric approaches, because of the similitude in chemical composition of both atmospheres (mainly nitrogen), so the typical charge of a thundercloud in Titan should reach between 20 C to 40 C, like on Earth. We obtain that lightning occurs with a frequency between 2 and 6 KHz. In Titan's atmosphere, methane concentration is higher than on Earth, and atmospheric electrical activity is stronger, so this model could be consistent with the observed phenomenology.

The Potential for Methane Isotopologue Channels in GOSAT-2

Science.gov (United States)

Malina, Edward; Yoshida, Yukio; Matsunaga, Tsuneo; Muller, Jan-Peter

2017-04-01

Of the major Greenhouse Gases (GHGs) currently considered as having a major impact on atmospheric chemistry, Methane is amongst the most important (IPCC, 2014). Methane concentration in the atmosphere has been documented to be rising steadily over the past century, aside from an unexplained short period in the middle of the last decade (Heimann., 2011), leading to renewed efforts to understand global atmospheric Methane. Atmospheric Methane is primarily composed of two key isotopologues, 12CH4 and 13CH4, which have a natural abundance of about 98% and 1.1% respectively. It is a well-established fact that different sources of Methane (i.e. biogenic sources such as methanogens, or non-biogenic such as industrial hydrocarbon burning) vary in the abundance of these isotopologues (Etiope, 2009). The global identification of the ratios of these isotopologues could vastly increase knowledge of global Methane sources, and shed some light on global Methane growth. GOSAT-2 due to be launched in 2018 is a follow on from the original GOSAT mission launched in 2009. GOSAT-2 aims to continue the legacy of GOSAT by providing global measurements of Methane and Carbon Dioxide on a global basis in order to monitor GHG emissions. GOSAT-2 in the context of this study has a significant advantage over GOSAT, which is the extension of the sensitivity of band 3 to 2330nm from 2080nm where significant numbers of Methane spectral lines are located. In this study we apply the well-established Information Content (IC) analysis techniques originally proposed by Rodgers (2000) to determine the potential benefit of retrieving total column Methane isotopologue concentrations assuming bands 2 and 3 of the GOSAT-2/TANSO-FTS-2 instrument. The value of such studies has been proven on multiple occasions and can provide guidance on appropriate potential retrieval setups. Due to the fact that there has been limited research in this area, no 'a priori' state vectors or Variance Covariance Matrices (VCMs

Experiment and modeling of low-concentration methane catalytic combustion in a fluidized bed reactor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yang, Zhongqing; Yang, Peng; Zhang, Li; Guo, Mingnv; Ran, Jingyu

2016-01-01

Highlights: • The catalytic combustion of 0.15~3 vol. % low concentration methane in a fluidized bed was studied. • A mathematical model was proposed on the basis of gas–solid flow theory. • A comparative analysis of the established model with plug flow, mixed flow and K-L models was carried out. • The axial methane profile along fluidized bed was predicted by using the mathematical model. • The bed temperature has greater impact on methane conversion than fluidized velocity. - Abstract: This study undertakes a theoretical analysis and an experimental investigation into the characteristics of low-concentration methane catalytic combustion in a bubbling fluidized bed reactor using 0.5 wt.% Pd/Al_2O_3 as catalytic particles. A mathematical model is established based on gas–solid flow theory and is used to study the effects of bed temperature and fluidized velocity on methane catalytic combustion, and predict the dimensionless methane concentration axial profile in reactor. It is shown that methane conversion increases with bed temperature, but decreases with increasing fluidized velocity. These theoretical results are found to correlate well with the experimental measurement, with a deviation within 5%. A comparative analysis of the developed model with plug flow, mixed flow and K-L models is also carried out, and this further verifies that the established model better reflects the characteristics of low-concentration methane catalytic combustion in a bubbling fluidized bed. Using this reaction model, it was found that the difference in methane conversion between dense and freeboard zones gradually increases with bed temperature; the dense zone reaction levels off at 650 °C, thereby minimizing the difference between the dense and freeboard regions to around 15%. With an increase in bed temperature, the dimensionless methane concentration in the dense zone decreases exponentially, while in the splash zone, it varies from an exponential decay to a slow

Ion measurements in premixed methane-oxygen flames

KAUST Repository

Alquaity, Awad; Hourani, Nadim; Chahine, May; Selim, Hatem; Sarathy, Mani; Farooq, Aamir

2014-01-01

Mass Spectrometer (MBMS) is utilized to measure ion concentration profiles in premixed methane-oxygen-argon burner-stabilized flames. Lean, stoichiometric and rich flames at atmospheric pressure are used to study the dependence of ion chemistry

Atmospheric methane removal by methane-oxidizing bacteria immobilized on porous building materials.

Science.gov (United States)

Ganendra, Giovanni; De Muynck, Willem; Ho, Adrian; Hoefman, Sven; De Vos, Paul; Boeckx, Pascal; Boon, Nico

2014-04-01

Biological treatment using methane-oxidizing bacteria (MOB) immobilized on six porous carrier materials have been used to mitigate methane emission. Experiments were performed with different MOB inoculated in building materials at high (~20 % (v/v)) and low (~100 ppmv) methane mixing ratios. Methylocystis parvus in autoclaved aerated concrete (AAC) exhibited the highest methane removal rate at high (28.5 ± 3.8 μg CH₄ g⁻¹ building material h⁻¹) and low (1.7 ± 0.4 μg CH₄ g⁻¹ building material h⁻¹) methane mixing ratio. Due to the higher volume of pores with diameter >5 μm compared to other materials tested, AAC was able to adsorb more bacteria which might explain for the higher methane removal observed. The total methane and carbon dioxide-carbon in the headspace was decreased for 65.2 ± 10.9 % when M. parvus in Ytong was incubated for 100 h. This study showed that immobilized MOB on building materials could be used to remove methane from the air and also act as carbon sink.

Methane Fluxes in West Siberia: 3-D Regional Model Simulation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jagovkina, S. V.; Karol, I. L.; Zubov, V. A.; Lagun, V. E.; Reshetnikov, A. I.; Rozanov, E. V.

2001-01-01

The West Siberian region is one of the main contributors of the atmospheric greenhouse gas methane due to the large areas of wetlands, rivers, lakes and numerous gas deposits situated there.But there are no reliable estimations of integral methane flux from this area into the atmosphere. For assessment of methane fluxes in West Siberia the specially constructed 3-D regional chemical transport model was applied. The 3-D distribution of methane is calculated on the basis of the current meteorological data fields(wind, temperature, geopotential) updated 4 times a day. The methane concentrations measured near the main gas fields of West Siberia in the summer season of 1999, were used for correction of methane flux intensity estimates obtained previously by comparison of measurements carried out in summer 1993 and 1996 with modelled methane mixing ratio distribution. This set of field and model experiments confirmed the preliminary conclusion about low leakage intensity: anthropogenic methane flux does not exceed 5-15% of total summer methane flux, estimated as 11-12 Mt CH 4 in summer from this region, in spite of the large areas of gas deposits located there

The isotopic composition of methane in polar ice cores

Science.gov (United States)

Craig, H.; Chou, C. C.; Welhan, J. A.; Stevens, C. M.; Engelkemeir, A.

1988-01-01

Air bubbles in polar ice cores indicate that about 300 years ago the atmospheric mixing ratio of methane began to increase rapidly. Today the mixing ratio is about 1.7 parts per million by volume, and, having doubled once in the past several hundred years, it will double again in the next 60 years if current rates continue. Carbon isotope ratios in methane up to 350 years in age have been measured with as little as 25 kilograms of polar ice recovered in 4-meter-long ice-core segments. The data show that: (1) in situ microbiology or chemistry has not altered the ice-core methane concentrations, and (2) that the carbon-13 to carbon-12 ratio of atmospheric CH4 in ice from 100 years and 300 years ago was about 2 per mil lower than at present. Atmospheric methane has a rich spectrum of isotopic sources: the ice-core data indicate that anthropogenic burning of the earth's biomass is the principal cause of the recent C-13H4 enrichment, although other factors may also contribute.

Methane Feedback on Atmospheric Chemistry: Methods, Models, and Mechanisms

Science.gov (United States)

Holmes, Christopher D.

2018-04-01

The atmospheric methane (CH4) chemical feedback is a key process for understanding the behavior of atmospheric CH4 and its environmental impact. This work reviews how the feedback is defined and used, then examines the meteorological, chemical, and emission factors that control the feedback strength. Geographical and temporal variations in the feedback are described and explained by HOx (HOx = OH + HO2) production and partitioning. Different CH4 boundary conditions used by models, however, make no meaningful difference to the feedback calculation. The strength of the CH4 feedback depends on atmospheric composition, particularly the atmospheric CH4 burden, and is therefore not constant. Sensitivity tests show that the feedback depends very weakly on temperature, insolation, water vapor, and emissions of NO. While the feedback strength has likely remained within 10% of its present value over the industrial era and likely will over the twenty-first century, neglecting these changes biases our understanding of CH4 impacts. Most environmental consequences per kg of CH4 emissions, including its global warming potential (GWP), scale with the perturbation time, which may have grown as much as 40% over the industrial era and continues to rise.

Raman studies of methane-ethane hydrate metastability.

Science.gov (United States)

Ohno, Hiroshi; Strobel, Timothy A; Dec, Steven F; Sloan, E Dendy; Koh, Carolyn A

2009-03-05

The interconversion of methane-ethane hydrate from metastable to stable structures was studied using Raman spectroscopy. sI and sII hydrates were synthesized from methane-ethane gas mixtures of 65% or 93% methane in ethane and water, both with and without the kinetic hydrate inhibitor, poly(N-vinylcaprolactam). The observed faster structural conversion rate in the higher methane concentration atmosphere can be explained in terms of the differences in driving force (difference in chemical potential of water in sI and sII hydrates) and kinetics (mass transfer of gas and water rearrangement). The kinetic hydrate inhibitor increased the conversion rate at 65% methane in ethane (sI is thermodynamically stable) but retards the rate at 93% methane in ethane (sII is thermodynamically stable), implying there is a complex interaction between the polymer, water, and hydrate guests at crystal surfaces.

Future concentrations of atmospheric greenhouse gases CO2, CFC and CH4 - an assessment on the educational level

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hoppenau, S.

1992-01-01

A model on the educational level is described to estimate effective future atmospheric CO 2 concentrations. The effects of chlorofluorocarbon and methane emission and deforestation are taken into account. The influence of different emission scenarios on the time evolution of greenhouse-gas concentration are illustrated. Future global energy policies are discussed both under the aspects of rising world population and the reduction in global CO 2 emissions. The model can be handled on a PC or even on a pocket calculator

Methane distributions and transports in the nocturnal boundary layer at a rural station

Science.gov (United States)

Schäfer, Klaus; Zeeman, Matthias; Brosy, Caroline; Münkel, Christoph; Fersch, Benjamin; Mauder, Matthias; Emeis, Stefan

2016-10-01

To investigate the methane distributions and transports, the role of related atmospheric processes by determination of vertical profiles of wind, turbulence, temperature and humidity as well as nocturnal boundary layer (NBL) height and the quantification of methane emissions at local and plot scale the so-called ScaleX-campaign was performed in a pre-alpine observatory in Southern Germany from 01 June until 31 July 2015. The following measurements from the ground up to the free troposphere were performed: layering of the atmosphere by a ceilometer (Vaisala CL51); temperature, wind, turbulence profiles from 50 m up to 500 m by a Radio-Acoustic Sounding System (RASS, Metek GmbH); temperature, humidity profiles in situ by a hexacopter; methane farm emissions by two open-path laser spectrometers (Boreal GasFinder2); methane concentrations in situ (Los Gatos DLT-100) with tubes in 0.3 m agl and 5 sampling heads; and methane soil emissions by a big chamber (10 m length, 2.60 m width, up to 0.61 m height) with a plastic cover. The methane concentrations near the surface show a daily variation with a maximum and a frequent double-peak structure during night-time. Analysis of the variation of the nocturnal methane concentration together with the hexacopter and RASS data indicates that the first peak in the nocturnal methane concentration is probably due to local cooling and stabilization which keeps the methane emissions from the soil near the ground. The second peak seems to be due to advection of methane-enriched air which had formed in the environment of the nearby farm yards. These dairy farm emissions were determined by up-wind and down-wind open-path concentration measurements, turbulence data from an EC station nearby and Backward Lagrangian Simulation (WindTrax software). The methane fluxes at plot scale (big chamber) are characterized by emissions at water saturated grassland patches, by an exponential decrease of these emissions during grassland drying, and by an

Methane excess in Arctic surface water-triggered by sea ice formation and melting.

Science.gov (United States)

Damm, E; Rudels, B; Schauer, U; Mau, S; Dieckmann, G

2015-11-10

Arctic amplification of global warming has led to increased summer sea ice retreat, which influences gas exchange between the Arctic Ocean and the atmosphere where sea ice previously acted as a physical barrier. Indeed, recently observed enhanced atmospheric methane concentrations in Arctic regions with fractional sea-ice cover point to unexpected feedbacks in cycling of methane. We report on methane excess in sea ice-influenced water masses in the interior Arctic Ocean and provide evidence that sea ice is a potential source. We show that methane release from sea ice into the ocean occurs via brine drainage during freezing and melting i.e. in winter and spring. In summer under a fractional sea ice cover, reduced turbulence restricts gas transfer, then seawater acts as buffer in which methane remains entrained. However, in autumn and winter surface convection initiates pronounced efflux of methane from the ice covered ocean to the atmosphere. Our results demonstrate that sea ice-sourced methane cycles seasonally between sea ice, sea-ice-influenced seawater and the atmosphere, while the deeper ocean remains decoupled. Freshening due to summer sea ice retreat will enhance this decoupling, which restricts the capacity of the deeper Arctic Ocean to act as a sink for this greenhouse gas.

Large methane releases lead to strong aerosol forcing and reduced cloudiness

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kurten, T.; Zhou, L.; Makkonen, R.

2011-01-01

forcing that is comparable in magnitude to the long-wave radiative forcing ("enhanced greenhouse effect") of the added methane. Together, the indirect CH4-O-3 and CH4-OHaerosol forcings could more than double the warming effect of large methane increases. Our findings may help explain the anomalously......The release of vast quantities of methane into the atmosphere as a result of clathrate destabilization is a potential mechanism for rapid amplification of global warming. Previous studies have calculated the enhanced warming based mainly on the radiative effect of the methane itself, with smaller...... contributions from the associated carbon dioxide or ozone increases. Here, we study the effect of strongly elevated methane (CH4) levels on oxidant and aerosol particle concentrations using a combination of chemistry-transport and general circulation models. A 10-fold increase in methane concentrations...

Temporal variations of methane concentration and isotopic composition in groundwater of the St. Lawrence Lowlands, eastern Canada

Science.gov (United States)

Rivard, Christine; Bordeleau, Geneviève; Lavoie, Denis; Lefebvre, René; Malet, Xavier

2018-03-01

Dissolved methane concentrations in shallow groundwater are known to vary both spatially and temporally. The extent of these variations is poorly documented although this knowledge is critical for distinguishing natural fluctuations from anthropogenic impacts stemming from oil and gas activities. This issue was addressed as part of a groundwater research project aiming to assess the risk of shale gas development for groundwater quality over a 500-km2 area in the St. Lawrence Lowlands (Quebec, Canada). A specific study was carried out to define the natural variability of methane concentrations and carbon and hydrogen isotope ratios in groundwater, as dissolved methane is naturally ubiquitous in aquifers of this area. Monitoring was carried out over a period of up to 2.5 years in seven monitoring wells. Results showed that for a given well, using the same sampling depth and technique, methane concentrations can vary over time from 2.5 to 6 times relative to the lowest recorded value. Methane isotopic composition, which is a useful tool to distinguish gas origin, was found to be stable for most wells, but varied significantly over time in the two wells where methane concentrations are the lowest. The use of concentration ratios, as well as isotopic composition of methane and dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC), helped unravel the processes responsible for these variations. This study indicates that both methane concentrations and isotopic composition, as well as DIC isotopes, should be regularly monitored over at least 1 year to establish their potential natural variations prior to hydrocarbon development.

Can groundwater sampling techniques used in monitoring wells influence methane concentrations and isotopes?

Science.gov (United States)

Rivard, Christine; Bordeleau, Geneviève; Lavoie, Denis; Lefebvre, René; Malet, Xavier

2018-03-06

Methane concentrations and isotopic composition in groundwater are the focus of a growing number of studies. However, concerns are often expressed regarding the integrity of samples, as methane is very volatile and may partially exsolve during sample lifting in the well and transfer to sampling containers. While issues concerning bottle-filling techniques have already been documented, this paper documents a comparison of methane concentration and isotopic composition obtained with three devices commonly used to retrieve water samples from dedicated observation wells. This work lies within the framework of a larger project carried out in the Saint-Édouard area (southern Québec, Canada), whose objective was to assess the risk to shallow groundwater quality related to potential shale gas exploitation. The selected sampling devices, which were tested on ten wells during three sampling campaigns, consist of an impeller pump, a bladder pump, and disposable sampling bags (HydraSleeve). The sampling bags were used both before and after pumping, to verify the appropriateness of a no-purge approach, compared to the low-flow approach involving pumping until stabilization of field physicochemical parameters. Results show that methane concentrations obtained with the selected sampling techniques are usually similar and that there is no systematic bias related to a specific technique. Nonetheless, concentrations can sometimes vary quite significantly (up to 3.5 times) for a given well and sampling event. Methane isotopic composition obtained with all sampling techniques is very similar, except in some cases where sampling bags were used before pumping (no-purge approach), in wells where multiple groundwater sources enter the borehole.

Atmospheric methane removal by methane-oxidizing bacteria immobilized on porous building materials

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Ganendra, G; De Muynck, W; Ho, A.; Hoefman, S.; De Vos, P.; Boeckx, P.; Boon, N.

2014-01-01

Biological treatment using methane-oxidizing bacteria (MOB) immobilized on six porous carrier materials have been used to mitigate methane emission. Experiments were performed with different MOB inoculated in building materials at high (similar to 20 % (v/v)) and low (similar to 100 ppmv) methane

Determination of the isotopic composition of atmospheric methane and its application in the Antarctic

Science.gov (United States)

Lowe, David C.; Brenninkmeijer, Carl A. M.; Tyler, Stanley C.; Dlugkencky, Edward J.

1991-01-01

A procedure for establishing the C-13/C-12 ratio and the C-14 abundance in the atmospheric methane is discussed. The method involves air sample collection, measurement of the methane mixing ratio by gas chromotography followed by quantitative conversion of the methane in the air samples to CO2 and H2O, and analysis of the resulting CO2 for the C-13/C-12 ratio by stable isotope ratio mass spectrometry and measurement of C-14 content by accelerator mass spectrometry. The carbon isotropic composition of methane in air collected at Baring Head, New Zealand, and in air collected on aircraft flights between New Zealand and Antarctica is determined by the method, and no gradient in the composition between Baring Head and the South Pole station is found. As the technique is refined, and more data is gathered, small seasonal and long-term variations in C-13 are expected to be resolved.

MethaneSat: Detecting Methane Emissions in the Barnett Shale Region

Science.gov (United States)

Propp, A. M.; Benmergui, J. S.; Turner, A. J.; Wofsy, S. C.

2017-12-01

In this study, we investigate the new information that will be provided by MethaneSat, a proposed satellite that will measure the total column dry-air mole fraction of methane at 1x1 km or 2x2 km spatial resolution with 0.1-0.2% random error. We run an atmospheric model to simulate MethaneSat's ability to characterize methane emissions from the Barnett Shale, a natural gas province in Texas. For comparison, we perform observation system simulation experiments (OSSEs) for MethaneSat, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric administration (NOAA) surface and aircraft network, and Greenhouse Gases Observing Satellite (GOSAT). The results demonstrate the added benefit that MethaneSat would provide in our efforts to monitor and report methane emissions. We find that MethaneSat successfully quantifies total methane emissions in the region, as well as their spatial distribution and steep gradients. Under the same test conditions, both the NOAA network and GOSAT fail to capture this information. Furthermore, we find that the results for MethaneSat depend far less on the prior emission estimate than do those for the other observing systems, demonstrating the benefit of high sampling density. The results suggest that MethaneSat would be an incredibly useful tool for obtaining detailed methane emission information from oil and gas provinces around the world.

Renewable Methane Generation from Carbon Dioxide and Sunlight.

Science.gov (United States)

Steinlechner, Christoph; Junge, Henrik

2018-01-02

The direct approach: Methane is a potential key player in the world's transition to a more sustainable energy future. The direct conversion of carbon dioxide into methane is highly desirable to lower the concentration of CO 2 in the atmosphere and also to store renewable energy. This Highlight describes the first homogeneous system for the light-driven conversion of CO 2 into CH 4 . © 2018 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Ion measurements in premixed methane-oxygen flames

KAUST Repository

Alquaity, Awad

2014-07-25

Ions are formed as a result of chemi-ionization processes in combustion systems. Recently, there has been an increasing interest in understanding flame ion chemistry due to the possible application of external electric fields to reduce emissions and improve combustion efficiency by active control of combustion process. In order to predict the effect of external electric fields on combustion plasma, it is critical to gain a good understanding of the flame ion chemistry. In this work, a Molecular Beam Mass Spectrometer (MBMS) is utilized to measure ion concentration profiles in premixed methane-oxygen-argon burner-stabilized flames. Lean, stoichiometric and rich flames at atmospheric pressure are used to study the dependence of ion chemistry on equivalence ratio of premixed flames. The relative ion concentration profiles are compared qualitatively with previous methane-oxygen studies and show good agreement. The relative ion concentration data obtained in the present study can be used to validate and improve ion chemistry models for methane-oxygen flames.

Project identification for methane reduction options

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kerr, T.

1996-12-31

This paper discusses efforts directed at reduction in emission of methane to the atmosphere. Methane is a potent greenhouse gas, which on a 20 year timeframe may present a similar problem to carbon dioxide. In addition, methane causes additional problems in the form of smog and its longer atmospheric lifetime. The author discusses strategies for reducing methane emission from several major sources. This includes landfill methane recovery, coalbed methane recovery, livestock methane reduction - in the form of ruminant methane reduction and manure methane recovery. The author presents examples of projects which have implemented these ideas, the economics of the projects, and additional gains which come from the projects.

Performance of a low-cost methane sensor for ambient concentration measurements in preliminary studies

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

W. Eugster

2012-08-01

Full Text Available Methane is the second most important greenhouse gas after CO₂ and contributes to global warming. Its sources are not uniformly distributed across terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems, and most of the methane flux is expected to stem from hotspots which often occupy a very small fraction of the total landscape area. Continuous time-series measurements of CH₄ concentrations can help identify and locate these methane hotspots. Newer, low-cost trace gas sensors such as the Figaro TGS 2600 can detect CH₄ even at ambient concentrations. Hence, in this paper we tested this sensor under real-world conditions over Toolik Lake, Alaska, to determine its suitability for preliminary studies before placing more expensive and service-intensive equipment at a given locality. A reasonably good agreement with parallel measurements made using a Los Gatos Research FMA 100 methane analyzer was found after removal of the strong sensitivities for temperature and relative humidity. Correcting for this sensitivity increased the absolute accuracy required for in-depth studies, and the reproducibility between two TGS 2600 sensors run in parallel is very good. We conclude that the relative CH₄ concentrations derived from such sensors are sufficient for preliminary investigations in the search of potential methane hotspots.

The Global Methane Budget 2000-2012

Science.gov (United States)

Saunois, Marielle; Bousquet, Philippe; Poulter, Benjamin; Peregon, Anna; Ciais, Philippe; Canadell, Josep G.; Dlugokencky, Edward J.; Etiope, Giuseppe; Bastviken, David; Houweling, Sander;

Ancient dissolved methane in inland waters at low concentrations revealed by a new collection method for radiocarbon (^{14}C) analysis

Science.gov (United States)

Dean, Joshua F.; Billett, Michael F.; Murray, Callum; Garnett, Mark H.

2017-04-01

Methane (CH4) is a powerful greenhouse gas and is released to the atmosphere from freshwater systems in numerous biomes globally. Radiocarbon (14C) analysis of methane can provide unique information about its age, source and rate of cycling in natural environments. Methane is often released from aquatic sediments in bubbles (ebullition), but dissolved methane is also present in lakes and streams at lower concentrations, and may not be of the same age or source. Obtaining sufficient non-ebullitive aquatic methane for 14C analysis remains a major technical challenge. Previous studies have shown that freshwater methane, in both dissolved and ebullitive form, can be significantly older than other forms of aquatic carbon (C), and it is therefore important to characterise this part of the terrestrial C balance. We present a novel method to capture sufficient amounts of dissolved methane from freshwater environments for 14C analysis by circulating water across a hydrophobic, gas-permeable membrane and collecting the methane in a large collapsible vessel. The results of laboratory and field tests show that reliable dissolved δ13CH4 and 14CH4 samples can be readily collected over short time periods (˜4 to 24 hours), at relatively low cost and from a variety of surface water types. The initial results further support previous findings that dissolved methane can be significantly older than other forms of aquatic C, especially in organic-rich catchments, and is currently unaccounted for in many terrestrial C balances and models. This method is suitable for use in remote locations, and could potentially be used to detect the leakage of unique 14CH4 signatures from point sources into waterways, e.g. coal seam gas and landfill gas.

Supplementary Material for: Measurements of Positively Charged Ions in Premixed Methane-Oxygen Atmospheric Flames

KAUST Repository

Alquaity, Awad B. S.

2017-01-01

Cations and anions are formed as a result of chemi-ionization processes in combustion systems. Electric fields can be applied to reduce emissions and improve combustion efficiency by active control of the combustion process. Detailed flame ion chemistry models are needed to understand and predict the effect of external electric fields on combustion plasmas. In this work, a molecular beam mass spectrometer (MBMS) is utilized to measure ion concentration profiles in premixed methane–oxygen argon burner-stabilized atmospheric flames. Lean and stoichiometric flames are considered to assess the dependence of ion chemistry on flame stoichiometry. Relative ion concentration profiles are compared with numerical simulations using various temperature profiles, and good qualitative agreement was observed for the stoichiometric flame. However, for the lean flame, numerical simulations misrepresent the spatial distribution of selected ions greatly. Three modifications are suggested to enhance the ion mechanism and improve the agreement between experiments and simulations. The first two modifications comprise the addition of anion detachment reactions to increase anion recombination at low temperatures. The third modification involves restoring a detachment reaction to its original irreversible form. To our knowledge, this work presents the first detailed measurements of cations and flame temperature in canonical methane–oxygen-argon atmospheric flat flames. The positive ion profiles reported here may be useful to validate and improve ion chemistry models for methane-oxygen flames.

Methane emission from naturally ventilated livestock buildings can be determined from gas concentration measurements

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bjerg, B; Zhang, Guoqiang; Madsen, J

2012-01-01

Determination of emission of contaminant gases as ammonia, methane, or laughing gas from natural ventilated livestock buildings with large opening is a challenge due to the large variations in gas concentration and air velocity in the openings. The close relation between calculated animal heat pr...... to investigate the influence of feed composition on methane emission in a relative large number of operating cattle buildings and consequently it can support a development towards reduced greenhouse gas emission from cattle production.......Determination of emission of contaminant gases as ammonia, methane, or laughing gas from natural ventilated livestock buildings with large opening is a challenge due to the large variations in gas concentration and air velocity in the openings. The close relation between calculated animal heat...... ventilated, 150 milking cow building. The results showed that the methane emission can be determined with much higher precision than ammonia or laughing gas emissions, and, for methane, relatively precise estimations can be based on measure periods as short as 3 h. This result makes it feasible...

Methane oxidation and formation of EPS in compost: effect of oxygen concentration

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wilshusen, J.H.; Hettiaratchi, J.P.A.; Visscher, A. de; Saint-Fort, R.

2004-01-01

Oxygen concentration plays an important role in the regulation of methane oxidation and the microbial ecology of methanotrophs. However, this effect is still poorly quantified in soil and compost ecosystems. The effect of oxygen on the formation of exopolymeric substances (EPS) is as yet unknown. We studied the effect of oxygen on the evolution of methanotrophic activity. At both high and low oxygen concentrations, peak activity was observed twice within a period of 6 months. Phospholipid fatty acid analysis showed that there was a shift from type I to type II methanotrophs during this period. At high oxygen concentration, EPS production was about 250% of the amount at low oxygen concentration. It is hypothesized that EPS serves as a carbon cycling mechanism for type I methanotrophs when inorganic nitrogen is limiting. Simultaneously, EPS stimulates nitrogenase activity in type II methanotrophs by creating oxygen-depleted zones. The kinetic results were incorporated in a simulation model for gas transport and methane oxidation in a passively aerated biofilter. Comparison between the model and experimental data showed that, besides acting as a micro-scale diffusion barrier, EPS can act as a barrier to macro-scale diffusion, reducing the performance of such biofilters. - 1.5% oxygen resulted in a slightly higher and more stable methane oxidation activity

Atmospheric characterization through fused mobile airborne and surface in situ surveys: methane emissions quantification from a producing oil field

Science.gov (United States)

Leifer, Ira; Melton, Christopher; Fischer, Marc L.; Fladeland, Matthew; Frash, Jason; Gore, Warren; Iraci, Laura T.; Marrero, Josette E.; Ryoo, Ju-Mee; Tanaka, Tomoaki; Yates, Emma L.

2018-03-01

Methane (CH4) inventory uncertainties are large, requiring robust emission derivation approaches. We report on a fused airborne-surface data collection approach to derive emissions from an active oil field near Bakersfield, central California. The approach characterizes the atmosphere from the surface to above the planetary boundary layer (PBL) and combines downwind trace gas concentration anomaly (plume) above background with normal winds to derive flux. This approach does not require a well-mixed PBL; allows explicit, data-based, uncertainty evaluation; and was applied to complex topography and wind flows. In situ airborne (collected by AJAX - the Alpha Jet Atmospheric eXperiment) and mobile surface (collected by AMOG - the AutoMObile trace Gas - Surveyor) data were collected on 19 August 2015 to assess source strength. Data included an AMOG and AJAX intercomparison transect profiling from the San Joaquin Valley (SJV) floor into the Sierra Nevada (0.1-2.2 km altitude), validating a novel surface approach for atmospheric profiling by leveraging topography. The profile intercomparison found good agreement in multiple parameters for the overlapping altitude range from 500 to 1500 m for the upper 5 % of surface winds, which accounts for wind-impeding structures, i.e., terrain, trees, buildings, etc. Annualized emissions from the active oil fields were 31.3 ± 16 Gg methane and 2.4 ± 1.2 Tg carbon dioxide. Data showed the PBL was not well mixed at distances of 10-20 km downwind, highlighting the importance of the experimental design.

Methane emission by bubbling from Gatun Lake, Panama

Science.gov (United States)

Keller, Michael; Stallard, Robert F.

1994-01-01

We studied methane emission by bubbling from Gatun Lake, Panama, at water depths of less than 1 m to about 10 m. Gas bubbles were collected in floating traps deployed during 12- to 60-hour observation periods. Comparison of floating traps and floating chambers showed that about 98% of methane emission occurred by bubbling and only 2% occurred by diffusion. Average methane concentration of bubbles at our sites varied from 67% to 77%. Methane emission by bubbling occurred episodically, with greatest rates primarily between the hours of 0800 and 1400 LT. Events appear to be triggered by wind. The flux of methane associated with bubbling was strongly anticorrelated with water depth. Seasonal changes in water depth caused seasonal variation of methane emission. Bubble methane fluxes through the lake surface into the atmosphere measured during 24-hour intervals were least (10-200 mg/m2/d) at deeper sites (greater than 7 m) and greatest (300-2000 mg/m2/d) at shallow sites (less than 2 m).

Simulation of preindustrial atmospheric methane to constrain the global source strength of natural wetlands

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Houweling, S; Dentener, F; Lelieveld, J

2000-01-01

Previous attempts to quantify the global source strength of CH4 from natural wetlands have resulted in a range of 90-260 TE(CH4) yr(-1). This relatively uncertain estimate significantly limits our understanding of atmospheric methane. In this study we reduce this uncertainty by simulating

Coalbed Methane Outreach Program

Science.gov (United States)

Coalbed Methane Outreach Program, voluntary program seeking to reduce methane emissions from coal mining activities. CMOP promotes profitable recovery/use of coal mine methane (CMM), addressing barriers to using CMM instead of emitting it to atmosphere.

The design of a PC-based real-time system for monitoring Methane and Oxygen concentration in biogas production

Science.gov (United States)

Yantidewi, M.; Muntini, M. S.; Deta, U. A.; Lestari, N. A.

2018-03-01

Limited fossil fuels nowadays trigger the development of alternative energy, one of which is biogas. Biogas is one type of bioenergy in the form of fermented gases of organic materials such as animal waste. The components of gases present in biogas and affect the biogas production are various, such as methane and oxygen. The biogas utilization will be more optimal if both gases concentration (in this case is methane and oxygen concentration) can be monitored. Therefore, this research focused on designing the monitoring system of methane and oxygen concentration in biogas production in real-time. The results showed that the instrument system was capable of monitoring and recording the data of gases (methane and oxygen) concentration in biogas production in every second.

Light-Dependent Aerobic Methane Oxidation Reduces Methane Emissions from Seasonally Stratified Lakes

Science.gov (United States)

Oswald, Kirsten; Milucka, Jana; Brand, Andreas; Littmann, Sten; Wehrli, Bernhard; Kuypers, Marcel M. M.; Schubert, Carsten J.

2015-01-01

Lakes are a natural source of methane to the atmosphere and contribute significantly to total emissions compared to the oceans. Controls on methane emissions from lake surfaces, particularly biotic processes within anoxic hypolimnia, are only partially understood. Here we investigated biological methane oxidation in the water column of the seasonally stratified Lake Rotsee. A zone of methane oxidation extending from the oxic/anoxic interface into anoxic waters was identified by chemical profiling of oxygen, methane and δ13C of methane. Incubation experiments with 13C-methane yielded highest oxidation rates within the oxycline, and comparable rates were measured in anoxic waters. Despite predominantly anoxic conditions within the zone of methane oxidation, known groups of anaerobic methanotrophic archaea were conspicuously absent. Instead, aerobic gammaproteobacterial methanotrophs were identified as the active methane oxidizers. In addition, continuous oxidation and maximum rates always occurred under light conditions. These findings, along with the detection of chlorophyll a, suggest that aerobic methane oxidation is tightly coupled to light-dependent photosynthetic oxygen production both at the oxycline and in the anoxic bottom layer. It is likely that this interaction between oxygenic phototrophs and aerobic methanotrophs represents a widespread mechanism by which methane is oxidized in lake water, thus diminishing its release into the atmosphere. PMID:26193458

The origin of methane and biomolecules from a CO2 cycle on terrestrial planets

Science.gov (United States)

Civiš, Svatopluk; Knížek, Antonín; Ivanek, Ondřej; Kubelík, Petr; Zukalová, Markéta; Kavan, Ladislav; Ferus, Martin

2017-10-01

Understanding the chemical evolution of newly formed terrestrial planets involves uncertainties in atmospheric chemical composition and assessing the plausibility of biomolecule synthesis. In this study, an original scenario for the origin of methane on Mars and terrestrial planets is suggested. Carbon dioxide in Martian and other planetary atmospheres can be abiotically converted into a mixture of methane and carbon monoxide by `methanogenesis' on porous mineral photoactive surfaces under soft ultraviolet irradiation. On young planets exposed to heavy bombardment by interplanetary matter, this process can be followed by biomolecule synthesis through the reprocessing of reactive reducing atmospheres by impact-induced shock waves. The proposed mechanism of methanogenesis may help to answer the question concerning the formation of methane and carbon monoxide by photochemical processes, the formation of biomolecules on early Earth and other terrestrial planets, and the source and seasonal variation of methane concentrations on Mars.

Renewable methane generation from carbon dioxide and sunlight

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Steinlechner, Christoph; Junge, Henrik [Leibniz Institut fuer Katalyse, Universitaet Rostock e.V., Rostock (Germany)

2018-01-02

The direct approach: Methane is a potential key player in the world's transition to a more sustainable energy future. The direct conversion of carbon dioxide into methane is highly desirable to lower the concentration of CO{sub 2} in the atmosphere and also to store renewable energy. This Highlight describes the first homogeneous system for the light-driven conversion of CO{sub 2} into CH{sub 4}. (copyright 2018 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH and Co. KGaA, Weinheim)

Remote sensing of methane with OSAS-lidar on the 2ν3 band Q-branch: Experimental proof

Science.gov (United States)

Galtier, Sandrine; Anselmo, Christophe; Welschinger, Jean-Yves; Sivignon, J. F.; Cariou, Jean-Pierre; Miffre, Alain; Rairoux, Patrick

2018-06-01

Optical sensors based on absorption spectroscopy play a central role in the detection and monitoring of atmospheric trace gases. We here present for the first time the experimental demonstration of OSAS-Lidar on the remote sensing of CH4 in the atmosphere. This new methodology, the OSAS-Lidar, couples the Optical Similitude Absorption Spectroscopy (OSAS) methodology with a light detection and ranging device. It is based on the differential absorption of spectrally integrated signals following Beer Lambert-Bouguer law, which are range-resolved. Its novelty originates from the use of broadband laser spectroscopy and from the mathematical approach used to retrieve the trace gas concentration. We previously applied the OSAS methodology in laboratory on the 2ν3 methane absorption band, centered at the 1665 nm wavelength and demonstrated that the OSAS-methodology is almost independent from atmospheric temperature and pressure. In this paper, we achieve an OSAS-Lidar device capable of observing large concentrations of CH4 released from a methane source directly into the atmosphere. Comparison with a standard in-situ measurement device shows that the path-integrated concentrations retrieved from OSAS-Lidar methodology exhibit sufficient sensitivity (2 000 ppm m) and observational time resolution (1 s) to remotely sense methane leaks in the atmosphere. The coupling of OSAS-lidar with a wind measurement device opens the way to monitor time-resolved methane flux emissions, which is important in regards to future climate mitigation involving regional reduction of CH4 flux emissions.

Molecular gas species in the lunar atmosphere

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hoffman, J.H.; Hodges, R.R. Jr.

1975-01-01

There is good evidence for the existence of very small amounts of methane, ammonia and carbon dioxide in the very tenuous lunar atmosphere which consists primarily of the rare gases helium, neon and argon. All of these gases, except 40 Ar, originate from solar wind particles which impinge on the lunar surface and are imbedded in the surface material. Here they may form molecules before being released into the atmosphere, or may be released directly, as is the case for rare gases. Evidence for the existence of the molecular gas species is based on the pre-dawn enhancement of the mass peaks attributable to these compounds in the data from the Apollo 17 Lunar Mass Spectrometer. Methane is the most abundant molecular gas but its concentration is exceedingly low, 1 x 10 3 mol cm -3 , slightly less than 36 Ar, whereas the solar wind flux of carbon is approximately 2000 times that of 36 Ar. Several reasons are advanced for the very low concentration of methane in the lunar atmosphere

Ground truthing for methane hotspots at Railroad Valley, NV - application to Mars

Science.gov (United States)

Detweiler, A. M.; Kelley, C. A.; Bebout, B.; McKay, C. P.; DeMarines, J.; Yates, E. L.; Iraci, L. T.

2011-12-01

During the 2010 Greenhouse gas Observing SATellite (GOSAT) calibration and validation campaign at Railroad Valley (RRV) playa, NV, unexpected methane and carbon dioxide fluctuations were observed at the dry lakebed. Possible sources included the presence of natural gas (thermogenic methane) from oil deposits in the surrounding playa, and/or methane production from microbial activity (biogenic) in the subsurface of the playa. In the summer of 2011, measurements were undertaken to identify potential methane sources at RRV. The biogenicity of the methane was determined based on δ13C values and methane/ethane ratios. Soil gas samples and sediments were collected at different sites in the playa and surrounding areas. The soils of the playa consist of a surface crust layer (upper ~ 10 cm) grading to a dense clay below about 25 cm. Soil gas from the playa, sampled at about 20 and 80 cm depths, reflected atmospheric methane concentrations, ranging from 2 to 2.4 ppm, suggesting that no methane was produced within the playa. Natural springs on the northeast and western border of the playa, detected as methane hotspots from a flyover by the Sensor Integrated Environmental Remote Research Aircraft (SIERRA), were also sampled. Bubbles in these springs had methane concentrations that ranged from 69 to 84% by volume. In addition, ethane was detected at very low concentrations, giving methane/ethane ratios in excess of 100,000, indicating biogenic methane in the springs. Soils and sediments collected at the playa and spring sites were incubated in vials over a period of ~23 days. Methane production was observed in the spring sites (avg. 228.6 ± 49.1 nmol/g/d at Kate Springs), but was not evident for the playa sites. The incubation data, therefore, corroborated in situ methane concentration measurements. Particulate organic carbon (POC) was low for all sites samples (0.05-0.38%), with the exception of Kate Springs, which had a much higher POC concentration of 3.4 ± 0

Seasonal inter-relationships in atmospheric methane and companion delta13C values: effects of sinks and sources

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lassey, K. R.; Mikaloff Fletcher, S. E. (NIWA, Wellington (New Zealand)), e-mail: k.lassey@niwa.co.nz; Allan, W. (Allan Planning and Research Ltd., Petone (New Zealand))

2011-07-15

Recent developments in applying carbon-isotope information to better understand regional and global methane budgets infer a strong role by a highly fractionating seasonal sink such as atomic chlorine. Specifically, OH as the predominant seasonal sink cannot account for the 'phase ellipses' based on observed seasonal cycles of methane mixing ratio and isotope ratio, delta13C. Although a strong role by atomic chlorine is inferred empirically, open questions remain about the interplay between sources and sinks in determining the properties of phase ellipses. This paper employs a simple didactic model of the seasonal cycling of atmospheric methane to understand such interplay. We demonstrate that a single seasonal sink and seasonal source act together to imprint anti-phase seasonalities on atmospheric methane and delta13C, which lead to phase ellipses that collapse onto a straight line with slope characteristic of that sink. This explains empirical findings of these anti-phase relationships in three-dimensional modelling studies. We also demonstrate that multiple seasonal sinks acting with a seasonal source can yield surprising properties for the phase ellipse that not only explain some features of phase ellipses reported in modelling studies but also have the potential to explain marked inter-annual variation in phase ellipses based on observation

Methane emissions from oceans, coasts, and freshwater habitats: New perspectives and feedbacks on climate

Science.gov (United States)

Hamdan, Leila J.; Wickland, Kimberly P.

2016-01-01

Methane is a powerful greenhouse gas, and atmospheric concentrations have risen 2.5 times since the beginning of the Industrial age. While much of this increase is attributed to anthropogenic sources, natural sources, which contribute between 35% and 50% of global methane emissions, are thought to have a role in the atmospheric methane increase, in part due to human influences. Methane emissions from many natural sources are sensitive to climate, and positive feedbacks from climate change and cultural eutrophication may promote increased emissions to the atmosphere. These natural sources include aquatic environments such as wetlands, freshwater lakes, streams and rivers, and estuarine, coastal, and marine systems. Furthermore, there are significant marine sediment stores of methane in the form of clathrates that are vulnerable to mobilization and release to the atmosphere from climate feedbacks, and subsurface thermogenic gas which in exceptional cases may be released following accidents and disasters (North Sea blowout and Deepwater Horizon Spill respectively). Understanding of natural sources, key processes, and controls on emission is continually evolving as new measurement and modeling capabilities develop, and different sources and processes are revealed. This special issue of Limnology and Oceanography gathers together diverse studies on methane production, consumption, and emissions from freshwater, estuarine, and marine systems, and provides a broad view of the current science on methane dynamics of aquatic ecosystems. Here, we provide a general overview of aquatic methane sources, their contribution to the global methane budget, and key uncertainties. We then briefly summarize the contributions to and highlights of this special issue.

Estimation of Atmospheric Methane Surface Fluxes Using a Global 3-D Chemical Transport Model

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Y.; Prinn, R.

2003-12-01

Accurate determination of atmospheric methane surface fluxes is an important and challenging problem in global biogeochemical cycles. We use inverse modeling to estimate annual, seasonal, and interannual CH4 fluxes between 1996 and 2001. The fluxes include 7 time-varying seasonal (3 wetland, rice, and 3 biomass burning) and 3 steady aseasonal (animals/waste, coal, and gas) global processes. To simulate atmospheric methane, we use the 3-D chemical transport model MATCH driven by NCEP reanalyzed observed winds at a resolution of T42 ( ˜2.8° x 2.8° ) in the horizontal and 28 levels (1000 - 3 mb) in the vertical. By combining existing datasets of individual processes, we construct a reference emissions field that represents our prior guess of the total CH4 surface flux. For the methane sink, we use a prescribed, annually-repeating OH field scaled to fit methyl chloroform observations. MATCH is used to produce both the reference run from the reference emissions, and the time-dependent sensitivities that relate individual emission processes to observations. The observational data include CH4 time-series from ˜15 high-frequency (in-situ) and ˜50 low-frequency (flask) observing sites. Most of the high-frequency data, at a time resolution of 40-60 minutes, have not previously been used in global scale inversions. In the inversion, the high-frequency data generally have greater weight than the weekly flask data because they better define the observational monthly means. The Kalman Filter is used as the optimal inversion technique to solve for emissions between 1996-2001. At each step in the inversion, new monthly observations are utilized and new emissions estimates are produced. The optimized emissions represent deviations from the reference emissions that lead to a better fit to the observations. The seasonal processes are optimized for each month, and contain the methane seasonality and interannual variability. The aseasonal processes, which are less variable, are

Methane, where does it come from and what is its impact on climate?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Andre, Jean-Claude; Boucher, Olivier; Bousquet, Philippe; Chanin, Marie-Lise; Chappellaz, Jerome; Tardieu, Bernard; Denegre, Jean; Beauvais, Muriel; Lefaudeux, Francois; Appert, Olivier; Desmarest, Patrice; Feillet, Pierre; Jarry, Bruno; Minster, Jean-Francois; Masson-Delmotte, Valerie; Dessus, Benjamin; Le Treut, Herve

2013-01-01

This report proposes a detailed presentation of knowledge on methane and on its role in the atmosphere. The first part addresses methane and the greenhouse effect: general considerations on methane in the atmosphere, radiative properties and importance with respect to the greenhouse effect, methane and future climate change. The second part proposes a presentation of methane sources and sinks. The third part addresses the study of methane fluxes: possible approaches to assess methane fluxes, measurement of atmospheric methane, the issue of atmospheric inversion (an approach to convert atmospheric observations into methane fluxes, lessons learned from atmospheric inversions, perspectives to improve knowledge on methane fluxes). The next chapters discuss the past, present and future evolution of methane in the atmosphere, discuss the carbon equivalence of methane (Kyoto protocol, policies of climate change, global warming power, role of methane, metrics, emission reduction), and comment the current perceivable evolutions, propose some methodological recommendations and actions to be implemented on the short term with no regret

Understanding Natural Gas Methane Leakage from Buried Pipelines as Affected by Soil and Atmospheric Conditions - Field Scale Experimental and Modeling Study

Science.gov (United States)

Smits, K. M.; Mitton, M.; Moradi, A.; Chamindu, D. K.

2017-12-01

Reducing the amount of leaked natural gas (NG) from pipelines from production to use has become a high priority in efforts to cut anthropogenic emissions of methane. In addition to environmental impacts, NG leakage can cause significant economic losses and safety failures such as fires and explosions. However, tracking and evaluating NG pipeline leaks requires a better understanding of the leak from the source to the detector as well as more robust quantification methods. Although recent measurement-based approaches continue to make progress towards this end, efforts are hampered due to the complexity of leakage scenarios. Sub- surface transport of leaked NG from pipelines occurs through complex transport pathways due to soil heterogeneities and changes in soil moisture. Furthermore, it is affected by variable atmospheric conditions such as winds, frontal passages and rain. To better understand fugitive emissions from NG pipelines, we developed a field scale testbed that simulates low pressure gas leaks from pipe buried in soil. The system is equipped with subsurface and surface sensors to continuously monitor changes in soil and atmospheric conditions (e.g. moisture, pressure, temperature) and methane concentrations. Using this testbed, we are currently conducting a series of gas leakage experiments to study of the impact of subsurface (e.g. soil moisture, heterogeneity) and atmospheric conditions (near-surface wind and temperature) on the detected gas signals and establish the relative importance of the many pathways for methane migration between the source and the sensor location. Accompanying numerical modeling of the system using the multiphase transport simulator TOUGH2-EOS7CA demonstrates the influence of leak location and direction on gas migration. These findings will better inform leak detectors of the leak severity before excavation, aiding with safety precautions and work order categorization for improved efficiency.

Atmospheric characterization through fused mobile airborne and surface in situ surveys: methane emissions quantification from a producing oil field

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

I. Leifer

2018-03-01

Full Text Available Methane (CH4 inventory uncertainties are large, requiring robust emission derivation approaches. We report on a fused airborne–surface data collection approach to derive emissions from an active oil field near Bakersfield, central California. The approach characterizes the atmosphere from the surface to above the planetary boundary layer (PBL and combines downwind trace gas concentration anomaly (plume above background with normal winds to derive flux. This approach does not require a well-mixed PBL; allows explicit, data-based, uncertainty evaluation; and was applied to complex topography and wind flows. In situ airborne (collected by AJAX – the Alpha Jet Atmospheric eXperiment and mobile surface (collected by AMOG – the AutoMObile trace Gas – Surveyor data were collected on 19 August 2015 to assess source strength. Data included an AMOG and AJAX intercomparison transect profiling from the San Joaquin Valley (SJV floor into the Sierra Nevada (0.1–2.2 km altitude, validating a novel surface approach for atmospheric profiling by leveraging topography. The profile intercomparison found good agreement in multiple parameters for the overlapping altitude range from 500 to 1500 m for the upper 5 % of surface winds, which accounts for wind-impeding structures, i.e., terrain, trees, buildings, etc. Annualized emissions from the active oil fields were 31.3 ± 16 Gg methane and 2.4 ± 1.2 Tg carbon dioxide. Data showed the PBL was not well mixed at distances of 10–20 km downwind, highlighting the importance of the experimental design.

Continuous methane measurements from a late Holocene Greenland ice core

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rhodes, R.H.; Mitchell, L.E.; Brook, E.J.

2013-01-01

Ancient air trapped inside bubbles in ice cores can now be analysed for methane concentration utilising a laser spectrometer coupled to a continuous melter system. We present a new ultra-high resolution record of atmospheric methane variability over the last 1800yr obtained from continuous analysis...... of a shallow ice core from the North Greenland Eemian project (NEEM-2011-S1) during a 4-week laboratory-based measurement campaign. Our record faithfully replicates the form and amplitudes of multi-decadal oscillations previously observed in other ice cores and demonstrates the detailed depth resolution (5.3cm......), rapid acquisition time (30mday) and good long-term reproducibility (2.6%, 2s) of the continuous measurement technique.In addition, we report the detection of high frequency ice core methane signals of non-atmospheric origin. Firstly, measurements of air from the firn-ice transition region...

Global Methane Biogeochemistry

Science.gov (United States)

Reeburgh, W. S.

2003-12-01

Methane (CH4) has been studied as an atmospheric constituent for over 200 years. A 1776 letter from Alessandro Volta to Father Campi described the first experiments on flammable "air" released by shallow sediments in Lake Maggiore (Wolfe, 1996; King, 1992). The first quantitative measurements of CH4, both involving combustion and gravimetric determination of trapped oxidation products, were reported in French by Boussingault and Boussingault, 1864 and Gautier (1901), who reported CH4 concentrations of 10 ppmv and 0.28 ppmv (seashore) and 95 ppmv (Paris), respectively. The first modern measurements of atmospheric CH4 were the infrared absorption measurements of Migeotte (1948), who estimated an atmospheric concentration of 2.0 ppmv. Development of gas chromatography and the flame ionization detector in the 1950s led to observations of vertical CH4 distributions in the troposphere and stratosphere, and to establishment of time-series sampling programs in the late 1970s. Results from these sampling programs led to suggestions that the concentration of CH4, as that of CO2, was increasing in the atmosphere. The possible role of CH4 as a greenhouse gas stimulated further research on CH4 sources and sinks. Methane has also been of interest to microbiologists, but findings from microbiology have entered the larger context of the global CH4 budget only recently.Methane is the most abundant hydrocarbon in the atmosphere. It plays important roles in atmospheric chemistry and the radiative balance of the Earth. Stratospheric oxidation of CH4 provides a means of introducing water vapor above the tropopause. Methane reacts with atomic chlorine in the stratosphere, forming HCl, a reservoir species for chlorine. Some 90% of the CH4 entering the atmosphere is oxidized through reactions initiated by the OH radical. These reactions are discussed in more detail by Wofsy (1976) and Cicerone and Oremland (1988), and are important in controlling the oxidation state of the atmosphere

Drivers of methane uptake by montane forest soils in the Peruvian Andes

Science.gov (United States)

Jones, Sam; Diem, Torsten; Huaraca Quispe, Lidia; Cahuana, Adan; Meir, Patrick; Teh, Yit

2016-04-01

The exchange of methane between the soils of humid tropical forests and the atmosphere is relatively poorly documented. This is particularly true of montane settings where variations between uptake and emission of atmospheric methane have been observed. Whilst most of these ecosystems appear to function as net sinks for atmospheric methane, some act as considerable sources. In regions like the Andes, humid montane forests are extensive and a better understanding of the magnitude and controls on soil-atmosphere methane exchange is required. We report methane fluxes from upper montane cloud forest (2811 - 2962 m asl), lower montane cloud forest (1532 - 1786 m asl), and premontane forest (1070 - 1088 m asl) soils in south-eastern Peru. Between 1000 and 3000 m asl, mean annual air temperature and total annual precipitation decrease from 24 ° C and 5000 mm to 12 ° C and 1700 mm. The study region experiences a pronounced wet season between October and April. Monthly measurements of soil-atmosphere gas exchange, soil moisture, soil temperature, soil oxygen concentration, available ammonium and available nitrate were made from February 2011 in the upper and lower montane cloud forests and July 2011 in the premontane forest to June 2013. These soils acted as sinks for atmospheric methane with mean net fluxes for wet and dry season, respectively, of -2.1 (0.2) and -1.5 (0.1) mg CH4 m-2 d-1 in the upper montane forest; -1.5 (0.2) and -1.4 (0.1) mg CH4 m-2 d-1in the lower montane forest; and -0.3 (0.2) and -0.2 (0.2) mg CH4 m-2 d-1 in the premontane forest. Spatial variations among forest types were related to available nitrate and water-filled pore space suggesting that nitrate inhibition of oxidation or constraints on the diffusional supply of methane to methanotrophic communities may be important controls on methane cycling in these soils. Seasonality in methane exchange, with weaker uptake related to increased water-filled pore space and soil temperature during the wet

A simple headspace equilibration method for measuring dissolved methane

Science.gov (United States)

Magen, C; Lapham, L.L.; Pohlman, John W.; Marshall, Kristin N.; Bosman, S.; Casso, Michael; Chanton, J.P.

2014-01-01

Dissolved methane concentrations in the ocean are close to equilibrium with the atmosphere. Because methane is only sparingly soluble in seawater, measuring it without contamination is challenging for samples collected and processed in the presence of air. Several methods for analyzing dissolved methane are described in the literature, yet none has conducted a thorough assessment of the method yield, contamination issues during collection, transport and storage, and the effect of temperature changes and preservative. Previous extraction methods transfer methane from water to gas by either a "sparge and trap" or a "headspace equilibration" technique. The gas is then analyzed for methane by gas chromatography. Here, we revisit the headspace equilibration technique and describe a simple, inexpensive, and reliable method to measure methane in fresh and seawater, regardless of concentration. Within the range of concentrations typically found in surface seawaters (2-1000 nmol L-1), the yield of the method nears 100% of what is expected from solubility calculation following the addition of known amount of methane. In addition to being sensitive (detection limit of 0.1 ppmv, or 0.74 nmol L-1), this method requires less than 10 min per sample, and does not use highly toxic chemicals. It can be conducted with minimum materials and does not require the use of a gas chromatograph at the collection site. It can therefore be used in various remote working environments and conditions.

Extreme methane emissions from a Swiss hydropower reservoir: contribution from bubbling sediments.

Science.gov (United States)

Delsontro, Tonya; McGinnis, Daniel F; Sobek, Sebastian; Ostrovsky, Ilia; Wehrli, Bernhard

2010-04-01

Methane emission pathways and their importance were quantified during a yearlong survey of a temperate hydropower reservoir. Measurements using gas traps indicated very high ebullition rates, but due to the stochastic nature of ebullition a mass balance approach was crucial to deduce system-wide methane sources and losses. Methane diffusion from the sediment was generally low and seasonally stable and did not account for the high concentration of dissolved methane measured in the reservoir discharge. A strong positive correlation between water temperature and the observed dissolved methane concentration enabled us to quantify the dissolved methane addition from bubble dissolution using a system-wide mass balance. Finally, knowing the contribution due to bubble dissolution, we used a bubble model to estimate bubble emission directly to the atmosphere. Our results indicated that the total methane emission from Lake Wohlen was on average >150 mg CH(4) m(-2) d(-1), which is the highest ever documented for a midlatitude reservoir. The substantial temperature-dependent methane emissions discovered in this 90-year-old reservoir indicate that temperate water bodies can be an important but overlooked methane source.

Inter-hemispheric gradient of atmospheric trace gases in the Pacific

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lowe, D.; Manning, M.; Brailsford, G.; Bromley, T.; Moss, R.; Ferretti, D.

1997-01-01

Measurements of atmospheric trace gases show that the concentrations and isotopic compositions of these species can change dramatically across the intertropical convergence zone (ITCZ) separating the two hemispheres. Because the anthropogenic sources of virtually all trace gases are greater in the northern than in the southern hemisphere, concentrations of the species are lower in the southern hemisphere. Typically the concentration gradient is inversely proportional to the lifetime of the trace gas in the atmosphere. Hence understanding the transport across the ITCZ is crucial to determining the variation of important trace gases in the New Zealand region. Container ships are being used to collect large clean air samples on voyages across the Pacific on great circle routes between Auckland (New Zealand), Honolulu (Hawaii) and Los Angeles and Seattle on the US West coast. Measurements on these samples are being used to supplement extensive carbon isotope measurements of atmospheric methane made at fixed sites in the southern hemisphere: Baring Head (New Zealand), Suva (Fiji) and Scott Base (Antarctica) to provide information on the global methane cycle. The authors present the first results of high precision measurements of the stable isotopes of atmospheric carbon monoxide and methane in transects across the equator. These have been obtained using a Finnigan MAT 252 high precision isotope ratio mass spectrometer with a modified miniature inlet system and a stringent calibration protocol. Overall precision for δ 13 C in ambient methane and carbon monoxide in clean air approaches 0.02 per thousand which helps provide information on several subtle processes controlling the abundance of the trace gases in the atmosphere. The 13 C in methane and carbon dioxide data show remarkable seasonal variations across the intertropical convergence zone (ITCZ) and may be used to infer aspects of transport of gases to extra tropical regions in the southern hemisphere

Linking activity, composition and seasonal dynamics of atmospheric methane oxidizers in a meadow soil.

Science.gov (United States)

Shrestha, Pravin Malla; Kammann, Claudia; Lenhart, Katharina; Dam, Bomba; Liesack, Werner

2012-06-01

Microbial oxidation is the only biological sink for atmospheric methane. We assessed seasonal changes in atmospheric methane oxidation and the underlying methanotrophic communities in grassland near Giessen (Germany), along a soil moisture gradient. Soil samples were taken from the surface layer (0-10 cm) of three sites in August 2007, November 2007, February 2008 and May 2008. The sites showed seasonal differences in hydrological parameters. Net uptake rates varied seasonally between 0 and 70 μg CH(4) m(-2) h(-1). Greatest uptake rates coincided with lowest soil moisture in spring and summer. Over all sites and seasons, the methanotrophic communities were dominated by uncultivated methanotrophs. These formed a monophyletic cluster defined by the RA14, MHP and JR1 clades, referred to as upland soil cluster alphaproteobacteria (USCα)-like group. The copy numbers of pmoA genes ranged between 3.8 × 10(5)-1.9 × 10(6) copies g(-1) of soil. Temperature was positively correlated with CH(4) uptake rates (P50 vol% and primarily related to members of the MHP clade.

Constructing a Spatially Resolved Methane Emission Inventory of Natural Gas Production and Distribution over Contiguous United States

Science.gov (United States)

Li, X.; Omara, M.; Adams, P. J.; Presto, A. A.

2017-12-01

Methane is the second most powerful greenhouse gas after Carbon Dioxide. The natural gas production and distribution accounts for 23% of the total anthropogenic methane emissions in the United States. The boost of natural gas production in U.S. in recent years poses a potential concern of increased methane emissions from natural gas production and distribution. The Emission Database for Global Atmospheric Research (Edgar) v4.2 and the EPA Greenhouse Gas Inventory (GHGI) are currently the most commonly used methane emission inventories. However, recent studies suggested that both Edgar v4.2 and the EPA GHGI largely underestimated the methane emission from natural gas production and distribution in U.S. constrained by both ground and satellite measurements. In this work, we built a gridded (0.1° Latitude ×0.1° Longitude) methane emission inventory of natural gas production and distribution over the contiguous U.S. using emission factors measured by our mobile lab in the Marcellus Shale, the Denver-Julesburg Basin, and the Uintah Basin, and emission factors reported from other recent field studies for other natural gas production regions. The activity data (well location and count) are mostly obtained from the Drillinginfo, the EPA Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program (GHGRP) and the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA). Results show that the methane emission from natural gas production and distribution estimated by our inventory is about 20% higher than the EPA GHGI, and in some major natural gas production regions, methane emissions estimated by the EPA GHGI are significantly lower than our inventory. For example, in the Marcellus Shale, our estimated annual methane emission in 2015 is 600 Gg higher than the EPA GHGI. We also ran the GEOS-Chem methane simulation to estimate the methane concentration in the atmosphere with our built inventory, the EPA GHGI and the Edgar v4.2 over the nested North American Domain. These simulation results showed differences in

The atmosphere: Global commons to protect

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Obasi, G.O.P.

1996-01-01

One of the most important greenhouse gases is CO 2 , whose concentration in the atmosphere has increased from 280 parts per million by volume (ppmv) to 358ppmv in 1994, giving a general increase of over 27 per cent since pre-industrial times. This increase has been attributed largely to fossil fuel combustion. Significant increases have also been observed in atmospheric concentrations of the other greenhouse gases, including methane, nitrous oxide and global tropospheric ozone. Concentrations of methane and nitrous oxide have, for example, grown by 145 per cent and 15 per cent respectively since pre-industrial times. Such increases have been linked to the rapid world population growth, which has resulted in increasing demands for energy, food, water, shelter and other basic needs. Computer models indicate that the continued accumulation of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere could result in global climate change and global warming. As some uncertainties still exists in the model predictions, it may take a few more years to uniquely separate human-induced climate change signals from natural climate variability in global climate trends

Wetland methane emissions during the Last Glacial Maximum estimated from PMIP2 simulations: climate, vegetation and geographic controls

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Weber, S.L.; Drury, A.J.; Toonen, W.H.J.; Weele, M. van

2010-01-01

It is an open question to what extent wetlands contributed to the interglacial‐glacial decrease in atmospheric methane concentration. Here we estimate methane emissions from glacial wetlands, using newly available PMIP2 simulations of the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) climate from coupled

Quantifying the relative contribution of natural gas fugitive emissions to total methane emissions in Colorado, Utah, and Texas using mobile isotopic methane analysis based on Cavity Ringdown Spectroscopy

Science.gov (United States)

Rella, Chris; Winkler, Renato; Sweeney, Colm; Karion, Anna; Petron, Gabrielle; Crosson, Eric

2014-05-01

Fugitive emissions of methane into the atmosphere are a major concern facing the natural gas production industry. Because methane is more energy-rich than coal per kg of carbon dioxide emitted into the atmosphere, it represents an attractive alternative to coal for electricity generation, provided that the fugitive emissions of methane are kept under control. A key step in assessing these emissions in a given region is partitioning the observed methane emissions between natural gas fugitive emissions and other sources of methane, such as from landfills or agricultural activities. One effective method for assessing the contribution of these different sources is stable isotope analysis, using the isotopic carbon signature to distinguish between natural gas and landfills or ruminants. We present measurements of methane using a mobile spectroscopic stable isotope analyzer based on cavity ringdown spectroscopy, in three intense natural gas producing regions of the United States: the Denver-Julesburg basin in Colorado, the Uintah basin in Utah, and the Barnett Shale in Texas. Performance of the CRDS isotope analyzer is presented, including precision, calibration, stability, and the potential for measurement bias due to other atmospheric constituents. Mobile isotope measurements of individual sources and in the nocturnal boundary layer have been combined to establish the fraction of the observed methane emissions that can be attributed to natural gas activities. The fraction of total methane emissions in the Denver-Julesburg basin attributed to natural gas emissions is 78 +/- 13%. In the Uinta basin, which has no other significant sources of methane, the fraction is 96% +/- 15%. In addition, results from the Barnett shale are presented, which includes a major urban center (Dallas / Ft. Worth). Methane emissions in this region are spatially highly heterogeneous. Spatially-resolved isotope and concentration measurements are interpreted using a simple emissions model to

Understanding the Trends of Atmospheric Methane in the Past Decade

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, J. S.; Logan, J. A.; McElroy, M. B.; Duncan, B. N.; Yantosca, R. M.

2002-05-01

Methane (CH4) is the second most important anthropogenic greenhouse gas after carbon dioxide. After steady growth that resulted in an increase in atmospheric CH4 concentration by a factor of 2.5 over the past three centuries, the growth rate slowed in the 1980s; superimposed on the recent trend is significant interannual variability. In this study, various sources of information are utilized to quantify the contributions of individual CH4 sources and sinks to the trends of CH4 in the past decade. The GEOS-CHEM global three-dimensional chemical transport model with assimilated meteorology is used to test a number of hypotheses regarding recent trends in emissions. The model is evaluated with observations from the NOAA CMDL network. The model accounts for interannual variations in meteorology and concentrations of OH radical. In the baseline simulation, emissions are scaled to yearly country-by-country socioeconomic and other data: livestock populations and rice harvest areas are taken from the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization; statistics on natural gas consumption and flaring from the Carbon Dioxide Information Analysis Center are used; data on coal production from British Petroleum are used; and precipitation rate and soil temperature from NCEP reanalyses are used to calculate natural wetland emissions, the sensitivities for which are based on the results obtained by Walter et al. [2001a,b]. The absolute strength for each of the sources in the base year of 1988 is chosen so that the budget satisfies mass balance constraints for total CH4 as well as individual isotopomers while producing good agreement with 1988 observed CH4 at various sites. Preliminary results indicate that the model simulates well the horizontal and vertical distribution, seasonal cycle, and long-term trend of CH4, capturing over 70% of the variance in the observed time series between 1988 and 1998 at many sites. However, an overestimate of the growth rate in the Northern Hemisphere as well

Megafauna and frozen soil: the drivers of atmospheric CH4 dynamics

Science.gov (United States)

Zimov, N.; Zimov, S. A.

2010-12-01

During the last deglaciation (LD) a strong increase in atmospheric methane (CH4) concentrations occurred simultaneously with a rise in Greenland temperatures indicating that in the north, during this time period, strong CH4 sources “awakened”, as additionally documented by the appearance of a strong gradient between northern (Greenland) and southern (Antarctica) hemisphere atmospheric CH4 concentrations. This rise could not be caused by wetland expansion. A reconstruction of peatland formation dynamics has indicated that wetlands on Earth were few in LD and only actively expanded 10,000 yr BP, after atmospheric CH4 concentrations began to decline. Destabilization of methane clathrates also could not be the source for atmospheric CH4 increase. Geological CH4 (including methane clathrates) has the highest deuterium content (δD) among all of the known sources of CH4 while atmospheric CH4 δD values determined for the LD were record low. To explain recorded atmospheric CH4 and its isotopic dynamics required a strong northern source, which was active only during the LD and that provided very low δD CH4 values. Such a source is permafrost thawing under anaerobic conditions (or better stated soils of mammoth steppe-tundra ecosystems). Permafrost thawing is the strongest, among known, wetland sources (usually over 100g CH4/m2yr) and has a unique isotopic signature (δD = -400 per mil (-338 to -479 per mil), δ13C = -73 per mil (-58 to -99 per mil)). The main sources of atmospheric CH4 have different isotopic signatures (δ13C, δD). The isotopic content of atmospheric CH4 is a simple function of the weight average for all of the sources. Inclusion of permafrost source into a budget model of the atmospheric methane and its isotopes allowed us to reconstruct the dynamics of methane’s main sources. Model indicated geological source to be negligible as in LGM so and in LD and Holocene. During the glaciation, the largest methane source was megafauna, whose 1

Variability in concentrations and fluxes of methane in the Indian estuaries

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Rao, G.D.; Sarma, V.V.S.S.

and aerobic conditions in the sediments and water column (Abril and Iversen 2002; Valentine, 2011). In total marine CH4 emission to atmosphere, estuaries, coastal areas and continental shelves account a large fraction (75%) (Bange et al., 1994; Middelburg... and lagoons of Ivory Coast (West Africa). Biogeochemistry 100, 21-37 Krithika, K., R. Purvaja, and R. Ramesh. 2008. Fluxes of methane and nitrous oxide from an Indian mangrove. Current Science 94: 218-224. Mau, S., D.L.Valentine, J.F.Clark, J.Reed, R...

Variability and quasi-decadal changes in the methane budget over the period 2000-2012

Science.gov (United States)

Saunois, Marielle; Bousquet, Philippe; Poulter, Ben; Peregon, Anna; Ciais, Philippe; Canadell, Josep G.; Dlugokencky, Edward J.; Etiope, Giuseppe; Bastviken, David; Houweling, Sander; Janssens-Maenhout, Greet; Tubiello, Francesco N.; Castaldi, Simona; Jackson, Robert B.; Alexe, Mihai; Arora, Vivek K.; Beerling, David J.; Bergamaschi, Peter; Blake, Donald R.; Brailsford, Gordon; Bruhwiler, Lori; Crevoisier, Cyril; Crill, Patrick; Covey, Kristofer; Frankenberg, Christian; Gedney, Nicola; Höglund-Isaksson, Lena; Ishizawa, Misa; Ito, Akihiko; Joos, Fortunat; Kim, Heon-Sook; Kleinen, Thomas; Krummel, Paul; Lamarque, Jean-François; Langenfelds, Ray; Locatelli, Robin; Machida, Toshinobu; Maksyutov, Shamil; Melton, Joe R.; Morino, Isamu; Naik, Vaishali; O'Doherty, Simon; Parmentier, Frans-Jan W.; Patra, Prabir K.; Peng, Changhui; Peng, Shushi; Peters, Glen P.; Pison, Isabelle; Prinn, Ronald; Ramonet, Michel; Riley, William J.; Saito, Makoto; Santini, Monia; Schroeder, Ronny; Simpson, Isobel J.; Spahni, Renato; Takizawa, Atsushi; Thornton, Brett F.; Tian, Hanqin; Tohjima, Yasunori; Viovy, Nicolas; Voulgarakis, Apostolos; Weiss, Ray; Wilton, David J.; Wiltshire, Andy; Worthy, Doug; Wunch, Debra; Xu, Xiyan; Yoshida, Yukio; Zhang, Bowen; Zhang, Zhen; Zhu, Qiuan

2017-09-01

suggest smaller changes in fossil fuel emissions (from oil, gas, and coal industries) compared to the mean of the bottom-up inventories included in this study. This difference is partly driven by a smaller emission change in China from the top-down studies compared to the estimate in the Emission Database for Global Atmospheric Research (EDGARv4.2) inventory, which should be revised to smaller values in a near future. We apply isotopic signatures to the emission changes estimated for individual studies based on five emission sectors and find that for six individual top-down studies (out of eight) the average isotopic signature of the emission changes is not consistent with the observed change in atmospheric 13CH4. However, the partitioning in emission change derived from the ensemble mean is consistent with this isotopic constraint. At the global scale, the top-down ensemble mean suggests that the dominant contribution to the resumed atmospheric CH4 growth after 2006 comes from microbial sources (more from agriculture and waste sectors than from natural wetlands), with an uncertain but smaller contribution from fossil CH4 emissions. In addition, a decrease in biomass burning emissions (in agreement with the biomass burning emission databases) makes the balance of sources consistent with atmospheric 13CH4 observations. In most of the top-down studies included here, OH concentrations are considered constant over the years (seasonal variations but without any inter-annual variability). As a result, the methane loss (in particular through OH oxidation) varies mainly through the change in methane concentrations and not its oxidants. For these reasons, changes in the methane loss could not be properly investigated in this study, although it may play a significant role in the recent atmospheric methane changes as briefly discussed at the end of the paper.

Linking activity, composition and seasonal dynamics of atmospheric methane oxidizers in a meadow soil

Science.gov (United States)

Shrestha, Pravin Malla; Kammann, Claudia; Lenhart, Katharina; Dam, Bomba; Liesack, Werner

2012-01-01

Microbial oxidation is the only biological sink for atmospheric methane. We assessed seasonal changes in atmospheric methane oxidation and the underlying methanotrophic communities in grassland near Giessen (Germany), along a soil moisture gradient. Soil samples were taken from the surface layer (0–10 cm) of three sites in August 2007, November 2007, February 2008 and May 2008. The sites showed seasonal differences in hydrological parameters. Net uptake rates varied seasonally between 0 and 70 μg CH4 m−2 h−1. Greatest uptake rates coincided with lowest soil moisture in spring and summer. Over all sites and seasons, the methanotrophic communities were dominated by uncultivated methanotrophs. These formed a monophyletic cluster defined by the RA14, MHP and JR1 clades, referred to as upland soil cluster alphaproteobacteria (USCα)-like group. The copy numbers of pmoA genes ranged between 3.8 × 105–1.9 × 106 copies g−1 of soil. Temperature was positively correlated with CH4 uptake rates (P50 vol% and primarily related to members of the MHP clade. PMID:22189499

Methane distribution and oxidation around the Lena Delta in summer 2013

Science.gov (United States)

Bussmann, Ingeborg; Hackbusch, Steffen; Schaal, Patrick; Wichels, Antje

2017-11-01

The Lena River is one of the largest Russian rivers draining into the Laptev Sea. The predicted increases in global temperatures are expected to cause the permafrost areas surrounding the Lena Delta to melt at increasing rates. This melting will result in high amounts of methane reaching the waters of the Lena and the adjacent Laptev Sea. The only biological sink that can lower methane concentrations within this system is methane oxidation by methanotrophic bacteria. However, the polar estuary of the Lena River, due to its strong fluctuations in salinity and temperature, is a challenging environment for bacteria. We determined the activity and abundance of aerobic methanotrophic bacteria by a tracer method and by the quantitative polymerase chain reaction. We described the methanotrophic population with a molecular fingerprinting method (monooxygenase intergenic spacer analysis), as well as the methane distribution (via a headspace method) and other abiotic parameters, in the Lena Delta in September 2013. The median methane concentrations were 22 nmol L-1 for riverine water (salinity (S) 20). The Lena River was not the source of methane in surface water, and the methane concentrations of the bottom water were mainly influenced by the methane concentration in surface sediments. However, the bacterial populations of the riverine and polar waters showed similar methane oxidation rates (0.419 and 0.400 nmol L-1 d-1), despite a higher relative abundance of methanotrophs and a higher estimated diversity in the riverine water than in the polar water. The methane turnover times ranged from 167 days in mixed water and 91 days in riverine water to only 36 days in polar water. The environmental parameters influencing the methane oxidation rate and the methanotrophic population also differed between the water masses. We postulate the presence of a riverine methanotrophic population that is limited by sub-optimal temperatures and substrate concentrations and a polar

Aquatic herbivores facilitate the emission of methane from wetlands

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Dingemans, B.J.J.; Bakker, E.S.; Bodelier, P.L.E.

2011-01-01

Wetlands are significant sources of atmospheric methane. Methane produced by microbes enters roots and escapes to the atmosphere through the shoots of emergent wetland plants. Herbivorous birds graze on helophytes, but their effect on methane emission remains unknown. We hypothesized that grazing on

Atmospheric methane variability at the Peterhof station (Russia): ground-based observations and modeling

Science.gov (United States)

Makarova, Maria; Kirner, Oliver; Poberovskii, Anatoliy; Imhasin, Humud; Timofeyev, Yuriy; Virolainen, Yana; Makarov, Boris

2014-05-01

The Peterhof station (59.88 N, 29.83 E, 20 m asl) for atmospheric monitoring was founded by Saint - Petersburg State University, Russia. FTIR (Fourier transform IR) observations of methane total column are being carried out by Bruker IFS125 HR since 2009. The study presents a joint analysis of experimental data and EMAC (ECHAM/MESSy Atmospheric Chemistry model) model simulations for Peterhof over the period of 2009-2012. It was shown that CH4 total columns (TC) and column-averaged dry-air mole fractions (MF) obtained from observations are higher than model results with the difference of 1.3% and 0.3 % respectively. The correlation coefficients between FTIR and EMAC data are statistically significant (with 95% confidence) and equal to 0.82 ± 0.08 and 0.4 ± 0.1 for TC and MF of CH4 respectively. The high correlation for TCs shows that EMAC adequately reproduces CH4 variability due to meteorological processes in the atmosphere. On the other hand, the relatively low correlation coefficient for CH4 MF probably indicates an insufficiently precise knowledge of sources and sinks of the atmospheric methane. Amplitudes of the mean annual cycle of CH4 TC for experimental and model datasets (2009-2012) are of 2.1 % and 1.5 % respectively. The same amplitudes calculated for MF are less than for TC: 1.1% for FTIR and 0.6% for EMAC. Difference between FTIR and EMAC annual variations has pronounced seasonality with a maximum in September - November. It could be attributed to the underestimation of methane natural sources in the emission inventory used for EMAC simulations or by relatively coarse horizontal grid of the model (2.8°x2.8°). The analysis of modeling results allowed us to estimate the influence of the limited number of sunny days with FTIR measurement (i.e. specific meteorological conditions which usually take place during FTIR observations) on obtained FTIR estimates of the mean levels of TC and MF over 2009-2012. The systematic shifts of FTIR mean levels of TC and

Methane clumped isotopes: Progress and potential for a new isotopic tracer

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Douglas, Peter M. J.; Stolper, Daniel A.; Eiler, John M.; Sessions, Alex L.; Lawson, Michael; Shuai, Yanhua; Bishop, Andrew; Podlaha, Olaf G.; Ferreira, Alexandre A.; Santos Neto, Eugenio V.; Niemann, Martin; Steen, Arne S.; Huang, Ling; Chimiak, Laura; Valentine, David L.; Fiebig, Jens; Luhmann, Andrew J.; Seyfried, William E.; Etiope, Giuseppe; Schoell, Martin; Inskeep, William P.; Moran, James J.; Kitchen, Nami

2017-11-01

The isotopic composition of methane is of longstanding geochemical interest, with important implications for understanding hydrocarbon systems, atmospheric greenhouse gas concentrations, the global carbon cycle, and life in extreme environments. Recent analytical developments focusing on multiply substituted isotopologues (‘clumped isotopes’) are opening a potentially valuable new window into methane geochemistry. When methane forms in internal isotopic equilibrium, clumped isotopes can provide a direct record of formation temperature, making this property particularly valuable for identifying different methane origins. However, it has also become clear that in certain settings methane clumped isotope measurements record kinetic rather than equilibrium isotope effects. Here we present a substantially expanded dataset of methane clumped isotope analyses, and provide a synthesis of the current interpretive framework for this parameter. We review different processes affecting methane clumped isotope compositions, describe the relationships between conventional isotope and clumped isotope data, and summarize the types of information that this measurement can provide in different Earth and planetary environments.

Variability and quasi-decadal changes in the methane budget over the period 2000–2012

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M. Saunois

2017-09-01

another. However, all top-down studies suggest smaller changes in fossil fuel emissions (from oil, gas, and coal industries compared to the mean of the bottom-up inventories included in this study. This difference is partly driven by a smaller emission change in China from the top-down studies compared to the estimate in the Emission Database for Global Atmospheric Research (EDGARv4.2 inventory, which should be revised to smaller values in a near future. We apply isotopic signatures to the emission changes estimated for individual studies based on five emission sectors and find that for six individual top-down studies (out of eight the average isotopic signature of the emission changes is not consistent with the observed change in atmospheric 13CH4. However, the partitioning in emission change derived from the ensemble mean is consistent with this isotopic constraint. At the global scale, the top-down ensemble mean suggests that the dominant contribution to the resumed atmospheric CH4 growth after 2006 comes from microbial sources (more from agriculture and waste sectors than from natural wetlands, with an uncertain but smaller contribution from fossil CH4 emissions. In addition, a decrease in biomass burning emissions (in agreement with the biomass burning emission databases makes the balance of sources consistent with atmospheric 13CH4 observations. In most of the top-down studies included here, OH concentrations are considered constant over the years (seasonal variations but without any inter-annual variability. As a result, the methane loss (in particular through OH oxidation varies mainly through the change in methane concentrations and not its oxidants. For these reasons, changes in the methane loss could not be properly investigated in this study, although it may play a significant role in the recent atmospheric methane changes as briefly discussed at the end of the paper.

Controls on methane concentrations and fluxes in streams draining human-dominated landscapes

Science.gov (United States)

Crawford, John T.; Stanley, Emily H.

2016-01-01

Streams and rivers are active processors of carbon, leading to significant emissions of CO2 and possibly CH4 to the atmosphere. Patterns and controls of CH4 in fluvial ecosystems remain relatively poorly understood. Furthermore, little is known regarding how major human impacts to fluvial ecosystems may be transforming their role as CH4 producers and emitters. Here, we examine the consequences of two distinct ecosystem changes as a result of human land use: increased nutrient loading (primarily as nitrate), and increased sediment loading and deposition of fine particles in the benthic zone. We did not find support for the hypothesis that enhanced nitrate loading down-regulates methane production via thermodynamic or toxic effects. We did find strong evidence that increased sedimentation and enhanced organic matter content of the benthos lead to greater methane production (diffusive + ebullitive flux) relative to pristine fluvial systems in northern Wisconsin (upper Midwest, USA). Overall, streams in a human-dominated landscape of southern Wisconsin were major regional sources of CH4 to the atmosphere, equivalent to ~20% of dairy cattle emissions, or ~50% of a landfill’s annual emissions. We suggest that restoration of the benthic environment (reduced fine deposits) could lead to reduced CH4 emissions, while decreasing nutrient loading is likely to have limited impacts to this ecosystem process.

Direct Activation Of Methane

KAUST Repository

Basset, Jean-Marie; Sun, Miao; Caps, Valerie; Pelletier, Jeremie; Abou-Hamad, Edy

2013-01-01

Heteropolyacids (HPAs) can activate methane at ambient temperature (e.g., 20.degree. C.) and atmospheric pressure, and transform methane to acetic acid, in the absence of any noble metal such as Pd). The HPAs can be, for example, those with Keggin

Methane Conversion to C2 Hydrocarbons by Abnormal Glow Discharge at Atmospheric Pressure

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dai Wei; Yu Hui; Chen Qi; Yin Yongxiang; Dai Xiaoyan

2005-01-01

Methane conversion to C 2 hydrocarbons has been investigated with the addition of hydrogen in a plasma reactor of abnormal glow discharge at atmospheric pressure. The aim of this experiment is to minimize coke formation and improve discharge stability. The typical conditions in the experiment are 300 ml of total feed flux and 400 W of discharge power. The experimental results show that methane conversion is from 91.6% to 35.2% in mol, acetylene selectivity is from 90.2% to 57.6%, and ethylene selectivity is approximately from 7.8% to 3.6%, where the coke increases gradually along with the increase of CH 4 /H 2 from 2: 8 to 9: 1. A stable discharge for a considerable running time can be obtained only at a lower ratio of CH 4 /H 2 2: 8 or 3: 7. These phenomena indicate that the coke deposition during methane conversion is obviously reduced by adding a large amount of hydrogen during an abnormal glow discharge. A qualitative interpretation is presented, namely, with abundant hydrogen, the possibility that hydrogen molecules are activated to hydrogen radicals is increased with the help of the abnormal glow discharge. These hydrogen radicals react with carbon radicals to form C 2 hydrocarbon products. Therefore, the deposition of coke is restrained

The levels, variation characteristics, and sources of atmospheric non-methane hydrocarbon compounds during wintertime in Beijing, China

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Chengtang; Ma, Zhuobiao; Mu, Yujing; Liu, Junfeng; Zhang, Chenglong; Zhang, Yuanyuan; Liu, Pengfei; Zhang, Hongxing

2017-09-01

Atmospheric non-methane hydrocarbon compounds (NMHCs) were measured at a sampling site in Beijing city from 15 December 2015 to 14 January 2016 to recognize their pollution levels, variation characteristics, and sources. We quantified 53 NMHCs, and the proportions of alkanes, alkenes, acetylene, and aromatics to the total NMHCs were 49.8-55.8, 21.5-24.7, 13.5-15.9, and 9.3-10.7 %, respectively. The variation trends in the NMHC concentrations were basically identical and exhibited remarkable fluctuation, which was mainly ascribed to the variation in meteorological conditions, especially wind speed. The diurnal variations in NMHCs on clear days exhibited two peaks during the morning and evening rush hours, whereas the rush hours' peaks diminished or even disappeared on the haze days, implying that the relative contribution of the vehicular emissions to atmospheric NMHCs depended on the pollution status. Two evident peaks of the propane / propene ratios appeared in the early morning before sun rise and at noontime on clear days, whereas only one peak occurred in the afternoon during the haze days, which were attributed to the relatively fast reactions of propene with OH, NO3, and O3. Based on the chemical kinetic equations, the daytime OH concentrations were calculated to be in the range of 3. 47 × 105-1. 04 × 106 molecules cm-3 on clear days and 6. 42 × 105-2. 35 × 106 molecules cm-3 on haze days. The nighttime NO3 concentrations were calculated to be in the range of 2. 82 × 109-4. 86 × 109 molecules cm-3 on clear days. The correlation coefficients of typical hydrocarbon pairs (benzene / toluene, o-xylene / m,p-xylene, isopentane / n-pentane, etc.) revealed that vehicular emissions and coal combustion were important sources for atmospheric NMHCs in Beijing during the wintertime. Five major emission sources for atmospheric NMHCs in Beijing during the wintertime were further identified by positive matrix factorization (PMF), including gasoline-related emissions

A Green Process for High-Concentration Ethylene and Hydrogen Production from Methane in a Plasma-Followed-by-Catalyst Reactor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang Kangjun; Li Xiaosong; Zhu Aimin

2011-01-01

A green process for the oxygen-free conversion of methane to high-concentration ethylene and hydrogen in a plasma-followed-by-catalyst (PFC) reactor is presented. Without any catalysts and with pure methane used as the feed gas, a stable kilohertz spark discharge leads to an acetylene yield of 64.1%, ethylene yield of 2.5% and hydrogen yield of 59.0% with 80.0% of methane conversion at a methane flow rate of 50 cm 3 /min and a specific input energy of 38.4 kJ/L. In the effluent gas from a stable kilohertz spark discharge reactor, the concentrations of acetylene, ethylene and hydrogen were 18.1%, 0.7% and 66.9%, respectively. When catalysts Pd-Ag/SiO 2 were employed in the second stage with discharge conditions same as in the case of plasma alone, the PFC reactor provides an ethylene yield of 52.1% and hydrogen yield of 43.4%. The concentrations of ethylene and hydrogen in the effluent gas from the PFC reactor were found to be as high as 17.1% and 62.6%, respectively. Moreover, no acetylene was detected in the effluent gas. This means that a high concentration of ethylene and oxygen-free hydrogen can be co-produced directly from methane in the PFC reactor.

Methane clathrates in the solar system.

Science.gov (United States)

Mousis, Olivier; Chassefière, Eric; Holm, Nils G; Bouquet, Alexis; Waite, Jack Hunter; Geppert, Wolf Dietrich; Picaud, Sylvain; Aikawa, Yuri; Ali-Dib, Mohamad; Charlou, Jean-Luc; Rousselot, Philippe

2015-04-01

We review the reservoirs of methane clathrates that may exist in the different bodies of the Solar System. Methane was formed in the interstellar medium prior to having been embedded in the protosolar nebula gas phase. This molecule was subsequently trapped in clathrates that formed from crystalline water ice during the cooling of the disk and incorporated in this form into the building blocks of comets, icy bodies, and giant planets. Methane clathrates may play an important role in the evolution of planetary atmospheres. On Earth, the production of methane in clathrates is essentially biological, and these compounds are mostly found in permafrost regions or in the sediments of continental shelves. On Mars, methane would more likely derive from hydrothermal reactions with olivine-rich material. If they do exist, martian methane clathrates would be stable only at depth in the cryosphere and sporadically release some methane into the atmosphere via mechanisms that remain to be determined. In the case of Titan, most of its methane probably originates from the protosolar nebula, where it would have been trapped in the clathrates agglomerated by the satellite's building blocks. Methane clathrates are still believed to play an important role in the present state of Titan. Their presence is invoked in the satellite's subsurface as a means of replenishing its atmosphere with methane via outgassing episodes. The internal oceans of Enceladus and Europa also provide appropriate thermodynamic conditions that allow formation of methane clathrates. In turn, these clathrates might influence the composition of these liquid reservoirs. Finally, comets and Kuiper Belt Objects might have formed from the agglomeration of clathrates and pure ices in the nebula. The methane observed in comets would then result from the destabilization of clathrate layers in the nuclei concurrent with their approach to perihelion. Thermodynamic equilibrium calculations show that methane-rich clathrate

Identification, Attribution, and Quantification of Highly Heterogeneous Methane Sources Using a Mobile Stable Isotope Analyzer

Science.gov (United States)

Crosson, E.; Rella, C.; Cunningham, K.

2012-04-01

Despite methane's importance as a potent greenhouse gas second only to carbon dioxide in the magnitude of its contribution to global warming, natural contributions to the overall methane budget are only poorly understood. A big contributor to this gap in knowledge is the highly spatially and temporally heterogeneous nature of most natural (and for that matter anthropogenic) methane sources. This high degree of heterogeneity, where the methane emission rates can vary over many orders of magnitude on a spatial scale of meters or even centimeters, and over a temporal scale of minutes or even seconds, means that traditional methods of emissions flux estimation, such as flux chambers or eddy-covariance, are difficult or impossible to apply. In this paper we present new measurement methods that are capable of detecting, attributing, and quantifying emissions from highly heterogeneous sources. These methods take full advantage of the new class of methane concentration and stable isotope analyzers that are capable of laboratory-quality analysis from a mobile field platform in real time. In this paper we present field measurements demonstrating the real-time detection of methane 'hot spots,' attribution of the methane to a source process via real-time stable isotope analysis, and quantification of the emissions flux using mobile concentration measurements of the horizontal and vertical atmospheric dispersion, combined with atmospheric transport calculations. Although these techniques are applicable to both anthropogenic and natural methane sources, in this initial work we focus primarily on landfills and fugitive emissions from natural gas distribution, as these sources are better characterized, and because they provide a more reliable and stable source of methane for quantifying the measurement uncertainty inherent in the different methods. Implications of these new technologies and techniques are explored for the quantification of natural methane sources in a variety of

Orbital and millennial-scale features of atmospheric CH4 over the past 800,000 years.

Science.gov (United States)

Loulergue, Laetitia; Schilt, Adrian; Spahni, Renato; Masson-Delmotte, Valérie; Blunier, Thomas; Lemieux, Bénédicte; Barnola, Jean-Marc; Raynaud, Dominique; Stocker, Thomas F; Chappellaz, Jérôme

2008-05-15

Atmospheric methane is an important greenhouse gas and a sensitive indicator of climate change and millennial-scale temperature variability. Its concentrations over the past 650,000 years have varied between approximately 350 and approximately 800 parts per 10(9) by volume (p.p.b.v.) during glacial and interglacial periods, respectively. In comparison, present-day methane levels of approximately 1,770 p.p.b.v. have been reported. Insights into the external forcing factors and internal feedbacks controlling atmospheric methane are essential for predicting the methane budget in a warmer world. Here we present a detailed atmospheric methane record from the EPICA Dome C ice core that extends the history of this greenhouse gas to 800,000 yr before present. The average time resolution of the new data is approximately 380 yr and permits the identification of orbital and millennial-scale features. Spectral analyses indicate that the long-term variability in atmospheric methane levels is dominated by approximately 100,000 yr glacial-interglacial cycles up to approximately 400,000 yr ago with an increasing contribution of the precessional component during the four more recent climatic cycles. We suggest that changes in the strength of tropical methane sources and sinks (wetlands, atmospheric oxidation), possibly influenced by changes in monsoon systems and the position of the intertropical convergence zone, controlled the atmospheric methane budget, with an additional source input during major terminations as the retreat of the northern ice sheet allowed higher methane emissions from extending periglacial wetlands. Millennial-scale changes in methane levels identified in our record as being associated with Antarctic isotope maxima events are indicative of ubiquitous millennial-scale temperature variability during the past eight glacial cycles.

Reaction of methane with coal

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yang, K.; Batts, B.D.; Wilson, M.A.; Gorbaty, M.L.; Maa, P.S.; Long, M.A.; He, S.J.X.; Attala, M.I. [Macquarie University, Macquarie, NSW (Australia). School of Chemistry

1997-10-01

A study of the reactivities of Australian coals and one American coal with methane or methane-hydrogen mixtures, in the range 350-400{degree}C and a range of pressures (6.0-8.3 MPa, cold) is reported. The effects of aluminophosphates (AIPO) or zeolite catalysts, with and without exchanged metals, on reactivity have also been examined. Yields of dichloromethane extractable material are increased by using a methane rather than a nitrogen atmosphere and different catalysts assist dissolution to various extends. It appears that surface exchanged catalysts are effective, but incorporating metals during AIPO lattice formation is detrimental. Aluminium phosphate catalysts are unstable to water produced during coal conversion, but are still able to increase extraction yields. For the American coal, under methane-hydrogen and a copper exchanged zeolite, 51.5% conversion was obtained, with a product selectivity close to that obtained under hydrogen alone, and with only 2% hydrogen consumption. The conversion under methane-hydrogen was also to that obtained under hydrogen alone, while a linear dependence of conversion on proportion of methane would predict a 43% conversion under methane-hydrogen. This illustrates a synergistic effect of the methane-hydrogen atmosphere for coal liquefaction using this catalyst systems. 31 refs., 5 figs., 7 tabs.

Effect of Elevated CO2 Concentration, Elevated Temperature and No Nitrogen Fertilization on Methanogenic Archaeal and Methane-Oxidizing Bacterial Community Structures in Paddy Soil.

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Dongyan; Tago, Kanako; Hayatsu, Masahito; Tokida, Takeshi; Sakai, Hidemitsu; Nakamura, Hirofumi; Usui, Yasuhiro; Hasegawa, Toshihiro; Asakawa, Susumu

2016-09-29

Elevated concentrations of atmospheric CO2 ([CO2]) enhance the production and emission of methane in paddy fields. In the present study, the effects of elevated [CO2], elevated temperature (ET), and no nitrogen fertilization (LN) on methanogenic archaeal and methane-oxidizing bacterial community structures in a free-air CO2 enrichment (FACE) experimental paddy field were investigated by PCR-DGGE and real-time quantitative PCR. Soil samples were collected from the upper and lower soil layers at the rice panicle initiation (PI) and mid-ripening (MR) stages. The composition of the methanogenic archaeal community in the upper and lower soil layers was not markedly affected by the elevated [CO2], ET, or LN condition. The abundance of the methanogenic archaeal community in the upper and lower soil layers was also not affected by elevated [CO2] or ET, but was significantly increased at the rice PI stage and significantly decreased by LN in the lower soil layer. In contrast, the composition of the methane-oxidizing bacterial community was affected by rice-growing stages in the upper soil layer. The abundance of methane-oxidizing bacteria was significantly decreased by elevated [CO2] and LN in both soil layers at the rice MR stage and by ET in the upper soil layer. The ratio of mcrA/pmoA genes correlated with methane emission from ambient and FACE paddy plots at the PI stage. These results indicate that the decrease observed in the abundance of methane-oxidizing bacteria was related to increased methane emission from the paddy field under the elevated [CO2], ET, and LN conditions.

Vista-LA: Mapping methane-emitting infrastructure in the Los Angeles megacity

Science.gov (United States)

Carranza, Valerie; Rafiq, Talha; Frausto-Vicencio, Isis; Hopkins, Francesca M.; Verhulst, Kristal R.; Rao, Preeti; Duren, Riley M.; Miller, Charles E.

2018-03-01

Methane (CH4) is a potent greenhouse gas (GHG) and a critical target of climate mitigation efforts. However, actionable emission reduction efforts are complicated by large uncertainties in the methane budget on relevant scales. Here, we present Vista, a Geographic Information System (GIS)-based approach to map potential methane emissions sources in the South Coast Air Basin (SoCAB) that encompasses Los Angeles, an area with a dense, complex mixture of methane sources. The goal of this work is to provide a database that, together with atmospheric observations, improves methane emissions estimates in urban areas with complex infrastructure. We aggregated methane source location information into three sectors (energy, agriculture, and waste) following the frameworks used by the State of California GHG Inventory and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Guidelines for GHG Reporting. Geospatial modeling was applied to publicly available datasets to precisely geolocate facilities and infrastructure comprising major anthropogenic methane source sectors. The final database, Vista-Los Angeles (Vista-LA), is presented as maps of infrastructure known or expected to emit CH4. Vista-LA contains over 33 000 features concentrated on Vista-LA is used as a planning and analysis tool for atmospheric measurement surveys of methane sources, particularly for airborne remote sensing, and methane hotspot detection using regional observations. This study represents a first step towards developing an accurate, spatially resolved methane flux estimate for point sources in SoCAB, with the potential to address discrepancies between bottom-up and top-down methane emissions accounting in this region. The Vista-LA datasets and associated metadata are available from the Oak Ridge National Laboratory Distributed Active Archive Center for Biogeochemical Dynamics (ORNL DAAC; https://doi.org/10.3334/ORNLDAAC/1525).

Methane seepage along the Hikurangi Margin of New Zealand : geochemical and physical data from the water column, sea surface and atmosphere

OpenAIRE

Faure, Kevin; Greinert, Jens; Schneider, Jens; McGinnis, Daniel; Kipfer, Rolf; Linke, Peter

2010-01-01

The concentration and carbon isotope values of dissolved methane were measured in the water column at Rock Garden, Omakere Ridge and Wairarapa areas in the first dedicated cold seep investigation along the Hikurangi Margin of New Zealand. These measurements provide a high resolution impression of the methane distribution in the water column and show that these seep sites are actively venting methane with varying intensity. The highest concentrations (up to 3500 nM) measured in water samples o...

Evidence for methane in Martian meteorites.

Science.gov (United States)

Blamey, Nigel J F; Parnell, John; McMahon, Sean; Mark, Darren F; Tomkinson, Tim; Lee, Martin; Shivak, Jared; Izawa, Matthew R M; Banerjee, Neil R; Flemming, Roberta L

2015-06-16

The putative occurrence of methane in the Martian atmosphere has had a major influence on the exploration of Mars, especially by the implication of active biology. The occurrence has not been borne out by measurements of atmosphere by the MSL rover Curiosity but, as on Earth, methane on Mars is most likely in the subsurface of the crust. Serpentinization of olivine-bearing rocks, to yield hydrogen that may further react with carbon-bearing species, has been widely invoked as a source of methane on Mars, but this possibility has not hitherto been tested. Here we show that some Martian meteorites, representing basic igneous rocks, liberate a methane-rich volatile component on crushing. The occurrence of methane in Martian rock samples adds strong weight to models whereby any life on Mars is/was likely to be resident in a subsurface habitat, where methane could be a source of energy and carbon for microbial activity.

Detection of Abiotic Methane in Terrestrial Continental Hydrothermal Systems: Implications for Methane on Mars

Science.gov (United States)

Socki, Richard A.; Niles, Paul B.; Gibson, Everett K., Jr.; Romanek, Christopher S.; Zhang, Chuanlun L.; Bissada, Kadry K.

2008-01-01

The recent detection of methane in the Martian atmosphere and the possibility that its origin could be attributed to biological activity, have highlighted the importance of understanding the mechanisms of methane formation and its usefulness as a biomarker. Much debate has centered on the source of the methane in hydrothermal fluids, whether it is formed biologically by microorganisms, diagenetically through the decomposition of sedimentary organic matter, or inorganically via reduction of CO2 at high temperatures. Ongoing research has now shown that much of the methane present in sea-floor hydrothermal systems is probably formed through inorganic CO2 reduction processes at very high temperatures (greater than 400 C). Experimental results have indicated that methane might form inorganically at temperatures lower still, however these results remain controversial. Currently, methane in continental hydrothermal systems is thought to be formed mainly through the breakdown of sedimentary organic matter and carbon isotope equilibrium between CO2 and CH4 is thought to be rarely present if at all. Based on isotopic measurements of CO2 and CH4 in two continental hydrothermal systems, we suggest that carbon isotope equilibration exists at temperatures as low as 155 C. This would indicate that methane is forming through abiotic CO2 reduction at lower temperatures than previously thought and could bolster arguments for an abiotic origin of the methane detected in the martian atmosphere.

Termites facilitate methane oxidation and shape the methanotrophic community.

Science.gov (United States)

Ho, Adrian; Erens, Hans; Mujinya, Basile Bazirake; Boeckx, Pascal; Baert, Geert; Schneider, Bellinda; Frenzel, Peter; Boon, Nico; Van Ranst, Eric

2013-12-01

Termite-derived methane contributes 3 to 4% to the total methane budget globally. Termites are not known to harbor methane-oxidizing microorganisms (methanotrophs). However, a considerable fraction of the methane produced can be consumed by methanotrophs that inhabit the mound material, yet the methanotroph ecology in these environments is virtually unknown. The potential for methane oxidation was determined using slurry incubations under conditions with high (12%) and in situ (∼0.004%) methane concentrations through a vertical profile of a termite (Macrotermes falciger) mound and a reference soil. Interestingly, the mound material showed higher methanotrophic activity. The methanotroph community structure was determined by means of a pmoA-based diagnostic microarray. Although the methanotrophs in the mound were derived from populations in the reference soil, it appears that termite activity selected for a distinct community. Applying an indicator species analysis revealed that putative atmospheric methane oxidizers (high-indicator-value probes specific for the JR3 cluster) were indicative of the active nest area, whereas methanotrophs belonging to both type I and type II were indicative of the reference soil. We conclude that termites modify their environment, resulting in higher methane oxidation and selecting and/or enriching for a distinct methanotroph population.

Quantification of the methane concentration using anaerobic oxidation of methane coupled to extracellular electron transfer

Science.gov (United States)

A biofilm anode acclimated with acetate, acetate+methane, and methane growth media for over three years produced a steady current density of 1.6-2.3 mA/m^2 in a microbial electrochemical cell (MxC) fed with methane as the sole electron donor. Geobacter was the dominant genus for...

Glacial wetland distribution and methane emissions estimated from PMIP2 climate simulations

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Weber, S.L.; Drury, A.J.; Toonen, W.H.J.; Weele, M. van

2010-01-01

The interglacial–glacial decrease in atmospheric methane concentration is often attributed to a strong decline in the wetland source. This seems consistent with the extreme coldness and vastly expanded ice sheets. Here we analyse coupled model simulations for the last glacial maximum from the

Diffusional limits to the consumption of atmospheric methane by soils

Science.gov (United States)

Striegl, Robert G.

1993-01-01

Net transport of atmospheric gases into and out of soil systems is primarily controlled by diffusion along gas partial pressure gradients. Gas fluxes between soil and the atmosphere can therefore be estimated by a generalization of the equation for ordinary gaseous diffusion in porous unsaturated media. Consumption of CH4 by methylotrophic bacteria in the top several centimeters of soil causes the uptake of atmospheric CH4 by aerated soils. The capacity of the methylotrophs to consume CH4 commonly exceeds the potential of CH4 to diffuse from the atmosphere to the consumers. The maximum rate of uptake of atmospheric CH4 by soil is, therefore, limited by diffusion and can be calculated from soil physical properties and the CH4 concentration gradient. The CH4 concentration versus depth profile is theoretically described by the equation for gaseous diffusion with homogeneous chemical reaction in porous unsaturated media. This allows for calculation of the in situ rate of CH4 consumption within specified depth intervals.

Abundance and δ13C values of fatty acids in lacustrine surface sediments: Relationships with in-lake methane concentrations

Science.gov (United States)

Stötter, Tabea; Bastviken, David; Bodelier, Paul L. E.; van Hardenbroek, Maarten; Rinta, Päivi; Schilder, Jos; Schubert, Carsten J.; Heiri, Oliver

2018-07-01

Proxy-indicators in lake sediments provide the only approach by which the dynamics of in-lake methane cycling can be examined on multi-decadal to centennial time scales. This information is necessary to constrain how lacustrine methane production, oxidation and emissions are expected to respond to global change drivers. Several of the available proxies for reconstructing methane cycle changes of lakes rely on interpreting past changes in the abundance or relevance of methane oxidizing bacteria (MOB), either directly (e.g. via analysis of bacterial lipids) or indirectly (e.g. via reconstructions of the past relevance of MOB in invertebrate diet). However, only limited information is available about the extent to which, at the ecosystem scale, variations in abundance and availability of MOB reflect past changes in in-lake methane concentrations. We present a study examining the abundances of fatty acids (FAs), particularly of 13C-depleted FAs known to be produced by MOB, relative to methane concentrations in 29 small European lakes. 39 surface sediment samples were obtained from these lakes and FA abundances were compared with methane concentrations measured at the lake surface, 10 cm above the sediments and 10 cm within the sediments. Three of the FAs in the surface sediment samples, C16:1ω7c, C16:1ω5c/t, and C18:1ω7c were characterized by lower δ13C values than the remaining FAs. We show that abundances of these FAs, relative to other short-chain FAs produced in lake ecosystems, are related with sedimentary MOB concentrations assessed by quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR). We observed positive relationships between methane concentrations and relative abundances of C16:1ω7c, C16:1ω5c/t, and C18:1ω7c and the sum of these FAs. For the full dataset these relationships were relatively weak (Spearman's rank correlation (rs) of 0.34-0.43) and not significant if corrected for multiple testing. However, noticeably stronger and statistically significant

Orbital and millennial-scale features of atmospheric CH4 over the past 800,000 years

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Loulergue, L.; Lemieux, B.; Barnola, J.M.; Raynaud, D.; Chappellaz, J.; Schilt, A.; Spahni, R.; Blunier, T.; Stocker, T.F.; Schilt, A.; Spahni, R.; Blunier, T.; Stocker, T.F.; Masson-Delmotte, V.

2008-01-01

Atmospheric methane is an important greenhouse gas and a sensitive indicator of climate change and millennial-scale temperature variability. Its concentrations over the past 650,000 years have varied between ∼ 350 and ∼ 800 parts per 10 9 by volume (p.p.b.v.) during glacial and interglacial periods, respectively. In comparison, present-day methane levels of ∼ 1,770 p.p.b.v. have been reported. Insights into the external forcing factors and internal feedbacks controlling atmospheric methane are essential for predicting the methane budget in a warmer world. Here we present a detailed atmospheric methane record from the EPICA Dome C ice core that extends the history of this greenhouse gas to 800,000 yr before present. The average time resolution of the new data is ∼ 380 yr and permits the identification of orbital and millennial-scale features. Spectral analyses indicate that the long-term variability in atmospheric methane levels is dominated by ∼100,000 yr glacial - interglacial cycles up to ∼400,000 yr ago with an increasing contribution of the precessional component during the four more recent climatic cycles. We suggest that changes in the strength of tropical methane sources and sinks (wetlands, atmospheric oxidation), possibly influenced by changes in monsoon systems and the position of the intertropical convergence zone, controlled the atmospheric methane budget, with an additional source input during major terminations as the retreat of the northern ice sheet allowed higher methane emissions from extending peri-glacial wetlands. Millennial-scale changes in methane levels identified in our record as being associated with Antarctic isotope maxima events are indicative of ubiquitous millennial-scale temperature variability during the past eight glacial cycles. (authors)

The indirect global warming potential and global temperature change potential due to methane oxidation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Boucher, Olivier; Collins, Bill; Friedlingstein, Pierre; Shine, Keith P

2009-01-01

Methane is the second most important anthropogenic greenhouse gas in the atmosphere next to carbon dioxide. Its global warming potential (GWP) for a time horizon of 100 years is 25, which makes it an attractive target for climate mitigation policies. Although the methane GWP traditionally includes the methane indirect effects on the concentrations of ozone and stratospheric water vapour, it does not take into account the production of carbon dioxide from methane oxidation. We argue here that this CO 2 -induced effect should be included for fossil sources of methane, which results in slightly larger GWP values for all time horizons. If the global temperature change potential is used as an alternative climate metric, then the impact of the CO 2 -induced effect is proportionally much larger. We also discuss what the correction term should be for methane from anthropogenic biogenic sources.

Organic chemistry in the atmosphere. [laboratory modeling of Titan atmosphere

Science.gov (United States)

Sagan, C.

1974-01-01

The existence of an at least moderately complex organic chemistry on Titan is stipulated based on clear evidence of methane, and at least presumptive evidence of hydrogen in its atmosphere. The ratio of methane to hydrogen is the highest of any atmosphere in the solar system. Irradiation of hydrogen/methane mixtures produces aromatic and aliphatic hydrocarbons. A very reasonable hypothesis assumes that the red cloud cover of Titan is made of organic chemicals. Two-carbon hydrocarbons experimentally produced from irradiated mixtures of methane, ammonia, water, and hydrogen bear out the possible organic chemistry of the Titanian environment.

Regional emission and loss budgets of atmospheric methane (2002-2012)

Science.gov (United States)

Saeki, T.; Patra, P. K.; Dlugokencky, E. J.; Ishijima, K.; Umezawa, T.; Ito, A.; Aoki, S.; Morimoto, S.; Kort, E. A.; Crotwell, A. M.; Ravi Kumar, K.; Nakazawa, T.

2015-12-01

Methane (CH4) plays important roles in atmospheric chemistry and short-term forcing of climate. Clear understanding of atmospheric CH4's budget of emissions and losses is required to aid sustainable development of Earth's future environment. We used an atmospheric chemistry-transport model (JAMSTEC's ACTM) for simulating atmospheric CH4. An inverse modeling system has been developed for estimating CH4 emissions (7 ensemble cases) from 53 land regions for 2002-2012 using measurements at 39 sites. Global net CH4 emissions varied between 505-509 and 524-545 Tg/yr during 2002-2004 and 2010-2012, respectively (ranges based on 6 inversion cases), with a step like increase in 2007 in agreement with atmospheric measurement. The inversion system did not account for interannual variations in radicals reacting with CH4 in atmosphere. Our results suggest that the recent update of EDGAR inventory (version 4.2FT2010) overestimated global total emissions by at least 25 Tg/yr in 2010. Increase in CH4 emission since 2004 originated in the tropical and southern hemisphere regions, with timing consistent with an increase of non-dairy cattle stocks by ~10% in 2012 from 1056 million heads in 2002, leading to ~10 Tg/yr increase in emissions from enteric fermentation. All 7 inversions robustly estimated the interannual variations in emissions, but poorly constrained the seasonal cycle amplitude or phase consistently for all regions due to sparse observational network. Forward simulation results using both the a priori and a posteriori emissions are compared with independent aircraft measurements for validation. By doing that we are able to reject the upper limit (545 Tg/yr) of global total emissions as 14 Tg/yr too high during 2008-2012, which allows us to further conclude that CH4 emission increase rate over the East Asia (China mainly) region was 7-8 Tg/yr between the 2002-2006 and 2008-2012 periods, contrary to 1-17 Tg/yr in the a priori emissions.

Concentrations and carbon isotope compositions of methane in the cored sediments from offshore SW Taiwan

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Chuang, P.C.; Yang, T.F.; Hong, W.L. [National Taiwan Univ., Taipei, Taiwan (China). Dept. of Geosciences; Lin, S.; Chen, J.C. [National Taiwan Univ., Taipei, Taiwan (China). Inst. of Oceanography; Sun, C.H. [CPC Corp., Wen Shan, Miaoli, Taiwan (China). Exploration and Development Research Inst.; Wang, Y. [Central Geological Survey, MOEA, Taipei, Taiwan (China)

2008-07-01

Gas hydrates are natural occurring solids that contain natural gases, mainly methane, within a rigid lattice of water molecules. They are a type of non-stoichiometric clathrates and metastable crystal products in low temperature and high pressure conditions and are widely distributed in oceans and in permafrost regions around the world. Gas hydrates have been considered as potential energy resources for the future since methane is the major gas inside gas hydrates. Methane is also a greenhouse gas that might affect the global climates from the dissociations of gas hydrates. Bottom simulating reflections (BSRs) have been found to be widely distributed in offshore southwestern Taiwan therefore, inferring the existence of potential gas hydrates underneath the seafloor sediments. This paper presented a study that involved the systematic collection of sea waters and cored sediments as well as the analysis of the gas composition of pore-space of sediments through ten cruises from 2003 to 2006. The paper discussed the results in terms of the distribution of methane concentrations in bottom waters and cored sediments; methane fluxes in offshore southwestern Taiwan; and isotopic compositions of methane in pore spaces of cored sediments. It was concluded that the carbon isotopic compositions of methane demonstrated that biogenic gas source was dominated at shallower depth. However, some thermogenic gases might be introduced from deeper source in this region. 15 refs., 5 figs.

Continuous-flow isotope ratio mass spectrometry method for carbon and hydrogen isotope measurements on atmospheric methane

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M. Brass

2010-12-01

Full Text Available We describe a continuous-flow isotope ratio mass spectrometry (CF-IRMS technique for high-precision δD and δ¹³C measurements of atmospheric methane on 40 mL air samples. CH₄ is separated from other air components by utilizing purely physical processes based on temperature, time and mechanical valve switching. Chemical agents are avoided. Trace amounts of interfering compounds can be separated by gas chromatography after pre-concentration of the CH₄ sample. The purified sample is then either combusted to CO₂ or pyrolyzed to H₂ for stable isotope measurement. Apart from connecting samples and refilling liquid nitrogen as coolant the system is fully automated and allows an unobserved, continuous analysis of samples. The analytical system has been used for analysis of air samples with CH₄ mixing ratios between ~100 and ~10 000 ppb, for higher mixing ratios samples usually have to be diluted.

The Roles of Sphagnum and Cyperaceae in the Methane Cycle of an Ombrotrophic Bog Revealed by the Carbon Isotope Ratios of Leaf Waxes

Science.gov (United States)

Isles, P. D.; Nichols, J. E.; Peteet, D. M.; Kenna, T. C.

2011-12-01

Methane is a strong greenhouse gas, and the role of the terrestrial carbon cycle in the concentrations of atmospheric methane is poorly understood. What is clear, is that northern peatlands are a significant source of methane to the atmosphere. A recent discovery, and a topic of much scrutiny, has been the relationship between Sphagnum in peatlands and symbiotic methanotrophic bacteria. These bacteria oxidize methane produced at depth in peatlands before it is released to the atmosphere, contributing 13C-depleted CO2 to Sphagnum photosynthate. We seek to better understand the fate of methane produced in peatlands at depth, and the relationship between methane release from peatland surfaces and parameters such as temperature, moisture, and vegetation type. We compare carbon isotope ratios of leaf wax n-alkanes from sphagnum and vascular plants and major element chemistry at three different microhabitats, hummock, hollow, and sedge tussock, in Mer Bleue an ombrotrophic peatland near Ottowa, Ontario, Canada. We use these compound-specific carbon isotope measurements to constrain the amount of methane-derived CO2 incorporated by Sphagnum. We also compare our multiannually resolved down-core measurements to data from long-term monitoring of climate parameters and methane flux from the same microhabitats to ground-truth our sedimentary signature of methane with instrumental measurements.

Methane distribution and oxidation around the Lena Delta in summer 2013

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

I. Bussmann

2017-11-01

postulate the presence of a riverine methanotrophic population that is limited by sub-optimal temperatures and substrate concentrations and a polar methanotrophic population that is well adapted to the cold and methane-poor polar environment but limited by a lack of nitrogen. The diffusive methane flux into the atmosphere ranged from 4 to 163 µmol m2 d−1 (median 24. The diffusive methane flux accounted for a loss of 8 % of the total methane inventory of the investigated area, whereas the methanotrophic bacteria consumed only 1 % of this methane inventory. Our results underscore the importance of measuring the methane oxidation activities in polar estuaries, and they indicate a population-level differentiation between riverine and polar water methanotrophs.

Martian methane plume models for defining Mars rover methane source search strategies

Science.gov (United States)

Nicol, Christopher; Ellery, Alex; Lynch, Brian; Cloutis, Ed

2018-07-01

The detection of atmospheric methane on Mars implies an active methane source. This introduces the possibility of a biotic source with the implied need to determine whether the methane is indeed biotic in nature or geologically generated. There is a clear need for robotic algorithms which are capable of manoeuvring a rover through a methane plume on Mars to locate its source. We explore aspects of Mars methane plume modelling to reveal complex dynamics characterized by advection and diffusion. A statistical analysis of the plume model has been performed and compared to analyses of terrestrial plume models. Finally, we consider a robotic search strategy to find a methane plume source. We find that gradient-based techniques are ineffective, but that more sophisticated model-based search strategies are unlikely to be available in near-term rover missions.

A Novel Framework for Quantifying past Methane Recycling by Sphagnum-Methanotroph Symbiosis Using Carbon and Hydrogen Isotope Ratios of Leaf Wax Biomarkers

Science.gov (United States)

Nichols, Jonathan E.; Isles, Peter D. F.; Peteet, Dorothy M.

2014-01-01

The concentration of atmospheric methane is strongly linked to variations in Earth's climate. Currently, we can directly reconstruct the total atmospheric concentration of methane, but not individual terms of the methane cycle. Northern wetlands, dominated by Sphagnum, are an important contributor of atmospheric methane, and we seek to understand the methane cycle in these systems. We present a novel method for quantifying the proportion of carbon Sphagnum assimilates from its methanotrophic symbionts using stable isotope ratios of leaf-wax biomarkers. Carbon isotope ratios of Sphagnum compounds are determined by two competing influences, water content and the isotope ratio of source carbon. We disentangled these effects using a combined hydrogen and carbon isotope approach. We constrained Sphagnum water content using the contrast between the hydrogen isotope ratios of Sphagnum and vascular plant biomarkers. We then used Sphagnum water content to calculate the carbon isotope ratio of Sphagnum's carbon pool. Using a mass balance equation, we calculated the proportion of recycled methane contributed to the Sphagnum carbon pool, 'PRM.' We quantified PRM in peat monoliths from three microhabitats in the Mer Bleue peatland complex. Modern studies have shown that water table depth and vegetation have strong influences on the peatland methane cycle on instrumental time scales. With this new approach, delta C-13 of Sphagnum compounds are now a useful tool for investigating the relationships among hydrology, vegetation, and methanotrophy in Sphagnum peatlands over the time scales of entire peatland sediment records, vital to our understanding of the global carbon cycle through the Late Glacial and Holocene.

Orbital and millennial-scale features of atmospheric CH{sub 4} over the past 800,000 years

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Loulergue, L; Lemieux, B; Barnola, J M; Raynaud, D; Chappellaz, J [Univ. Grenoble 1, CNRS, lab. glaciol. geophys. environm., F-38402 Saint Martin d' Heres, (France); Schilt, A; Spahni, R; Blunier, T; Stocker, T F [Climate and Environm. Physics, Physics Inst., Univ. Bern, CH-3012 Bern, (Switzerland); Schilt, A; Spahni, R; Blunier, T; Stocker, T F [Oeschger Centre for Climate Change Research, Univ. Bern, CH-3012 Bern, (Switzerland); Masson-Delmotte, V [Inst. Pierre Simon Laplace, LSCE, CEA-CNRS-Universite Versailles Saint Quentin, CEA Saclay, F-91191 Gif sur Yvette, (France)

2008-07-01

Atmospheric methane is an important greenhouse gas and a sensitive indicator of climate change and millennial-scale temperature variability. Its concentrations over the past 650,000 years have varied between {approx} 350 and {approx} 800 parts per 10{sup 9} by volume (p.p.b.v.) during glacial and interglacial periods, respectively. In comparison, present-day methane levels of {approx} 1,770 p.p.b.v. have been reported. Insights into the external forcing factors and internal feedbacks controlling atmospheric methane are essential for predicting the methane budget in a warmer world. Here we present a detailed atmospheric methane record from the EPICA Dome C ice core that extends the history of this greenhouse gas to 800,000 yr before present. The average time resolution of the new data is {approx} 380 yr and permits the identification of orbital and millennial-scale features. Spectral analyses indicate that the long-term variability in atmospheric methane levels is dominated by {approx}100,000 yr glacial - interglacial cycles up to {approx}400,000 yr ago with an increasing contribution of the precessional component during the four more recent climatic cycles. We suggest that changes in the strength of tropical methane sources and sinks (wetlands, atmospheric oxidation), possibly influenced by changes in monsoon systems and the position of the intertropical convergence zone, controlled the atmospheric methane budget, with an additional source input during major terminations as the retreat of the northern ice sheet allowed higher methane emissions from extending peri-glacial wetlands. Millennial-scale changes in methane levels identified in our record as being associated with Antarctic isotope maxima events are indicative of ubiquitous millennial-scale temperature variability during the past eight glacial cycles. (authors)

Seasonal Oxygen Dynamics in a Thermokarst Bog in Interior Alaska: Implications for Rates of Methane Oxidation

Science.gov (United States)

Neumann, R. B.; Moorberg, C.; Wong, A.; Waldrop, M. P.; Turetsky, M. R.

2015-12-01

Methane is a potent greenhouse gas, and wetlands represent the largest natural source of methane to the atmosphere. However, much of the methane generated in anoxic wetlands never gets emitted to the atmosphere; up to >90% of generated methane can get oxidized to carbon dioxide. Thus, oxidation is an important methane sink and changes in the rate of methane oxidation can affect wetland methane emissions. Most methane is aerobically oxidized at oxic-anoxic interfaces where rates of oxidation strongly depend on methane and oxygen concentrations. In wetlands, oxygen is often the limiting substrate. To improve understanding of belowground oxygen dynamics and its impact on methane oxidation, we deployed two planar optical oxygen sensors in a thermokarst bog in interior Alaska. Previous work at this site indicated that, similar to other sites, rates of methane oxidation decrease over the growing season. We used the sensors to track spatial and temporal patterns of oxygen concentrations over the growing season. We coupled these in-situ oxygen measurements with periodic oxygen injection experiments performed against the sensor to quantify belowground rates of oxygen consumption. We found that over the season, the thickness of the oxygenated water layer at the peatland surface decreased. Previous research has indicated that in sphagnum-dominated peatlands, like the one studied here, rates of methane oxidation are highest at or slightly below the water table. It is in these saturated but oxygenated locations that both methane and oxygen are available. Thus, a seasonal reduction in the thickness of the oxygenated water layer could restrict methane oxidation. The decrease in thickness of the oxygenated layer coincided with an increase in the rate of oxygen consumption during our oxygen injection experiments. The increase in oxygen consumption was not explained by temperature; we infer it was due to an increase in substrate availability for oxygen consuming reactions and

Risk factors of methane hydrate resource development in the concentrated zones distributed in the eastern Nankai Trough

Science.gov (United States)

Yamamoto, K.; Nagakubo, S.

2009-04-01

Some environmental and safety concerns on the offshore methane hydrate development have been raised, but the ground of such allegations are sometime not fully reasonable. The risks of methane hydrate resource development to environment and safety should be discussed upon methane hydrate occurrences condition, the production methods, and the designs of production system, under comprehensively scientific manners. In the Phase 1 of the Methane Hydrate Exploitation Program in Japan (FY2001-2008), the Research Consortium for Methane Hydrate Resources in Japan (MH21 Research Consortium) found methane hydrate concentrated zones in the eastern Nankai Trough that are potential prospects for resource development. The concentrated zones are consisted of turbidite-derived sandy sediments and hydrate crystals in pore spaces of sand grains (pore-filling type structure). The MH21 Research Consortium proposed the depressurization method as prime technique due to its efficiency of gas production in such concentrated zones, and has tried to develop conceptual designs of production systems based on the information of existing devices and facilities. Under the condition and circumstances described above, the authors tried to extract and evaluate some risk factors concerning methane hydrate development using depressurization in the area. Leakage of methane gas, that is less harmful substance to ecosystem than heavier hydrocarbons, from production system can be one possible risk. However, in the case of gas production through wellbore, even if catastrophic damages happen in the subsea production system during gas production, the leakages do not continue because the borehole could be filled by seawater and depressurization is stopped immediately. Another possible risk is a leakage of produced gas through seafloor. If methane hydrate production makes high pressure or temperature zones in sediments, the risk should be considered. However, depressurization method makes opposite condition

TITAN'S TRANSPORT-DRIVEN METHANE CYCLE

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mitchell, Jonathan L.

2012-01-01

The mechanisms behind the occurrence of large cloud outbursts and precipitation on Titan have been disputed. A global- and annual-mean estimate of surface fluxes indicated only 1% of the insolation, or ∼0.04 W m –2 , is exchanged as sensible and/or latent fluxes. Since these fluxes are responsible for driving atmospheric convection, it has been argued that moist convection should be quite rare and precipitation even rarer, even if evaporation globally dominates the surface-atmosphere energy exchange. In contrast, climate simulations indicate substantial cloud formation and/or precipitation. We argue that the top-of-atmosphere (TOA) radiative imbalance is diagnostic of horizontal heat transport by Titan's atmosphere, and thus constrains the strength of the methane cycle. Simple calculations show the TOA radiative imbalance is ∼0.5-1 W m –2 in Titan's equatorial region, which implies 2-3 MW of latitudinal heat transport by the atmosphere. Our simulation of Titan's climate suggests this transport may occur primarily as latent heat, with net evaporation at the equator and net accumulation at higher latitudes. Thus, the methane cycle could be 10-20 times previous estimates. Opposing seasonal transport at solstices, compensation by sensible heat transport, and focusing of precipitation by large-scale dynamics could further enhance the local, instantaneous strength of Titan's methane cycle by a factor of several. A limited supply of surface liquids in regions of large surface radiative imbalance may throttle the methane cycle, and if so, we predict more frequent large storms over the lakes district during Titan's northern summer.

Minimal geological methane emissions during the Younger Dryas-Preboreal abrupt warming event.

Science.gov (United States)

Petrenko, Vasilii V; Smith, Andrew M; Schaefer, Hinrich; Riedel, Katja; Brook, Edward; Baggenstos, Daniel; Harth, Christina; Hua, Quan; Buizert, Christo; Schilt, Adrian; Fain, Xavier; Mitchell, Logan; Bauska, Thomas; Orsi, Anais; Weiss, Ray F; Severinghaus, Jeffrey P

2017-08-23

Methane (CH 4 ) is a powerful greenhouse gas and plays a key part in global atmospheric chemistry. Natural geological emissions (fossil methane vented naturally from marine and terrestrial seeps and mud volcanoes) are thought to contribute around 52 teragrams of methane per year to the global methane source, about 10 per cent of the total, but both bottom-up methods (measuring emissions) and top-down approaches (measuring atmospheric mole fractions and isotopes) for constraining these geological emissions have been associated with large uncertainties. Here we use ice core measurements to quantify the absolute amount of radiocarbon-containing methane ( 14 CH 4 ) in the past atmosphere and show that geological methane emissions were no higher than 15.4 teragrams per year (95 per cent confidence), averaged over the abrupt warming event that occurred between the Younger Dryas and Preboreal intervals, approximately 11,600 years ago. Assuming that past geological methane emissions were no lower than today, our results indicate that current estimates of today's natural geological methane emissions (about 52 teragrams per year) are too high and, by extension, that current estimates of anthropogenic fossil methane emissions are too low. Our results also improve on and confirm earlier findings that the rapid increase of about 50 per cent in mole fraction of atmospheric methane at the Younger Dryas-Preboreal event was driven by contemporaneous methane from sources such as wetlands; our findings constrain the contribution from old carbon reservoirs (marine methane hydrates, permafrost and methane trapped under ice) to 19 per cent or less (95 per cent confidence). To the extent that the characteristics of the most recent deglaciation and the Younger Dryas-Preboreal warming are comparable to those of the current anthropogenic warming, our measurements suggest that large future atmospheric releases of methane from old carbon sources are unlikely to occur.

Minimal geological methane emissions during the Younger Dryas-Preboreal abrupt warming event

Science.gov (United States)

Petrenko, Vasilii V.; Smith, Andrew M.; Schaefer, Hinrich; Riedel, Katja; Brook, Edward; Baggenstos, Daniel; Harth, Christina; Hua, Quan; Buizert, Christo; Schilt, Adrian; Fain, Xavier; Mitchell, Logan; Bauska, Thomas; Orsi, Anais; Weiss, Ray F.; Severinghaus, Jeffrey P.

2017-08-01

Methane (CH4) is a powerful greenhouse gas and plays a key part in global atmospheric chemistry. Natural geological emissions (fossil methane vented naturally from marine and terrestrial seeps and mud volcanoes) are thought to contribute around 52 teragrams of methane per year to the global methane source, about 10 per cent of the total, but both bottom-up methods (measuring emissions) and top-down approaches (measuring atmospheric mole fractions and isotopes) for constraining these geological emissions have been associated with large uncertainties. Here we use ice core measurements to quantify the absolute amount of radiocarbon-containing methane (14CH4) in the past atmosphere and show that geological methane emissions were no higher than 15.4 teragrams per year (95 per cent confidence), averaged over the abrupt warming event that occurred between the Younger Dryas and Preboreal intervals, approximately 11,600 years ago. Assuming that past geological methane emissions were no lower than today, our results indicate that current estimates of today’s natural geological methane emissions (about 52 teragrams per year) are too high and, by extension, that current estimates of anthropogenic fossil methane emissions are too low. Our results also improve on and confirm earlier findings that the rapid increase of about 50 per cent in mole fraction of atmospheric methane at the Younger Dryas-Preboreal event was driven by contemporaneous methane from sources such as wetlands; our findings constrain the contribution from old carbon reservoirs (marine methane hydrates, permafrost and methane trapped under ice) to 19 per cent or less (95 per cent confidence). To the extent that the characteristics of the most recent deglaciation and the Younger Dryas-Preboreal warming are comparable to those of the current anthropogenic warming, our measurements suggest that large future atmospheric releases of methane from old carbon sources are unlikely to occur.

Four-dimensional variational data assimilation for inverse modelling of atmospheric methane emissions: method and comparison with synthesis inversion

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

J. F. Meirink

2008-11-01

Full Text Available A four-dimensional variational (4D-Var data assimilation system for inverse modelling of atmospheric methane emissions is presented. The system is based on the TM5 atmospheric transport model. It can be used for assimilating large volumes of measurements, in particular satellite observations and quasi-continuous in-situ observations, and at the same time it enables the optimization of a large number of model parameters, specifically grid-scale emission rates. Furthermore, the variational method allows to estimate uncertainties in posterior emissions. Here, the system is applied to optimize monthly methane emissions over a 1-year time window on the basis of surface observations from the NOAA-ESRL network. The results are rigorously compared with an analogous inversion by Bergamaschi et al. (2007, which was based on the traditional synthesis approach. The posterior emissions as well as their uncertainties obtained in both inversions show a high degree of consistency. At the same time we illustrate the advantage of 4D-Var in reducing aggregation errors by optimizing emissions at the grid scale of the transport model. The full potential of the assimilation system is exploited in Meirink et al. (2008, who use satellite observations of column-averaged methane mixing ratios to optimize emissions at high spatial resolution, taking advantage of the zooming capability of the TM5 model.

Investigations of Methane Production in Hypersaline Environments

Science.gov (United States)

Bebout, Brad M.

2015-01-01

The recent reports of methane in the atmosphere of Mars, as well as the findings of hypersaline paleo-environments on that planet, have underscored the need to evaluate the importance of biological (as opposed to geological) trace gas production and consumption. Methane in the atmosphere of Mars may be an indication of life but might also be a consequence of geologic activity and/or the thermal alteration of ancient organic matter. Hypersaline environments have now been reported to be extremely likely in several locations in our solar system, including: Mars, Europa, and Enceladus. Modern hypersaline microbial mat communities, (thought to be analogous to those present on the early Earth at a period of time when Mars was experiencing very similar environmental conditions), have been shown to produce methane. However, very little is known about the physical and/or biological controls imposed upon the rates at which methane, and other important trace gases, are produced and consumed in these environments. We describe here the results of our investigations of methane production in hypersaline environments, including field sites in Chile, Baja California Mexico, California, USA and the United Arab Emirates. We have measured high concentrations of methane in bubbles of gas produced both in the sediments underlying microbial mats, as well as in areas not colonized by microbial mats in the Guerrero Negro hypersaline ecosystem, Baja California Mexico, in Chile, and in salt ponds on the San Francisco Bay. The carbon isotopic (d13C) composition of the methane in the bubbles exhibited an extremely wide range of values, (ca. -75 per mille ca. -25 per mille). The hydrogen isotopic composition of the methane (d2H) ranged from -60 to -30per mille and -450 to -350per mille. These isotopic values are outside of the range of values normally considered to be biogenic, however incubations of the sediments in contact with these gas bubbles reveals that the methane is indeed being

Chemical effects of a high CO2 concentration in oxy-fuel combustion of methane

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Glarborg, Peter; Bentzen, L.L.B.

2008-01-01

The oxidation of methane in an atmospheric-pres sure flow reactor has been studied experimentally under highly diluted conditions in N-2 and CO2, respectively. The stoichiometry was varied from fuel-lean to fuel-rich, and the temperatures covered the range 1200-1800 K. The results were interpreted...... CO2. The high local CO levels may have implications for near-burner corrosion and stagging, but increased problems with CO emission in oxy-fuel combustion are not anticipated....

Chasing Sources and Transports of Methane Plumes in the Northern Gulf of Mexico Using In Situ Sensors on Untethered Landers

Science.gov (United States)

Martens, C. S.; Mendlovitz, H.; Seim, H.; Lapham, L.; Magen, C.; Joye, S. B.; MacDonald, I. R.; Asper, V. L.; Diercks, A. R.

2016-02-01

In situ time-series measurements of light hydrocarbons, oxygen, temperature and bottom currents from landers and elevators in the benthic boundary layer (BBL) at multiple sites in the northern Gulf of Mexico reveal spatial and temporal variability in methane concentrations controlled by horizontal advection of methane-rich plumes originating from nearby natural oil and gas seeps. Multi-sensor systems deployed for several weeks within 1m of the seafloor at depths from 882 to 1622m revealed methane concentrations ranging from near atmospheric saturation (gas chromatography. Continuous laser sensor methane measurements from mini-landers deployed in September 2015 at our Horn Dome and Bush Hill sites featuring numerous gas seeps revealed methane concentrations ranging from data within the BBL and friction layer from untethered platforms provides important new opportunities for monitoring the impacts of natural seeps and accidental hydrocarbon releases. The instrumented approaches we have developed to simultaneously monitor methane sources and physical processes controlling plume development and transport will enable more effective responses to further accidental hydrocarbon releases.

Capturing energy from ventilation air methane a preliminary design for a new approach

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cluff, D.L.; Kennedy, G.A.; Bennett, J.G.; Foster, P.J.

2015-01-01

Methane is a potent greenhouse gas (GHG), discharged to the atmosphere by coalmining, the natural gas industry and natural biological processes, second only to carbon dioxide; thus, any reduction in atmospheric methane would be globally beneficial. The capture or use of ventilation air methane (VAM) is challenging because it is a high volume low concentration methane source. This results in the routine discharge of methane into the atmosphere. A review of VAM mitigation technologies is provided and the main disadvantages of the existing technologies are discussed. In the proposed VamTurBurner © system, the heat from the combustion chamber is transferred to the preheating zone either by a heat exchanger or by redirecting the combustion products to mix with the ventilation air stream from a coalmine. Gas turbines (GT) are used to produce electricity with the exhaust gases directed to mix with the incoming ventilation airflow. The turbulence introduced by the GT exhaust assists with mixing of the incoming ventilation airflow and the return flow of combustion products from the combustion chamber. The combustion products are a source of heat, which increases the temperature of the incoming ventilation air to a value high enough for the methane to undergo flameless combustion upon encountering the igniters. The high temperature combustion products enter a multi-generation system. The multi-generation system is based on mature engineering technology such as heat exchangers and steam turbines. The residual heat provides additional heat based products such as industrial scale drying, chilling by an absorption chiller or simply hot water. The VamTurBurner © uses the energy from the GT, igniters and VAM to provide clean efficient energy while mitigating the atmospheric emissions of methane. The opportunity to collect carbon credits may improve the economics. Since the VAM is a free energy source, the output of the system is greater than the purchased energy. - Highlights: �

UV production of methane from surface and sedimenting IDPs on Mars in light of REMS data and with insights for TGO

Science.gov (United States)

Moores, John E.; Smith, Christina L.; Schuerger, Andrew C.

2017-11-01

This paper refines model predictions for the production of methane from UV-irradiated interplanetary dust particles (IDPs) now that the Rover Environmental Monitoring Station (REMS) instrument onboard the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) Rover has made the first measurements of the UV environment on the surface of Mars, at Gale Crater. Once these measurements are included in a UV radiative transfer model, we find that modelled UV sol-integrated energies across the planet are lower than pre-measurement estimates by 35% on average, considering all latitudes and seasons. This reduction, in turn, reduces the predicted production of methane from individual accreting IDPs, extending their lifetimes and increasing the surface concentration of organics that must accumulate in order to emit sufficient methane to balance the accretion of organic compounds to Mars. Emission from reasonable accumulations of IDPs could range up to ∼7.9 × 10-4 ppbv sol-1. Richer deposits of organic carbon at the surface may emit methane at no more than 3.9 ppbv sol-1. An examination of IDP-derived methane production during atmospheric settling indicates that no more than 0.32% of organic carbon from meteor streams may be deposited in the atmosphere. Thus, such a process cannot explain either the spikes observed in methane nor the low equilibrium values observed by MSL. Instead, this discrepancy may be explained if geographical and vertical distribution will be an important input for models attempting to understand the results to be derived from the Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO) mission that will map methane concentrations in the martian atmosphere in 2018 at 0.01 ppbv.

Response of the Black Sea methane budget to massive short-term submarine inputs of methane

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Schmale, O.; Haeckel, M.; McGinnis, D. F.

2011-01-01

A steady state box model was developed to estimate the methane input into the Black Sea water column at various water depths. Our model results reveal a total input of methane of 4.7 Tg yr(-1). The model predicts that the input of methane is largest at water depths between 600 and 700 m (7......% of the total input), suggesting that the dissociation of methane gas hydrates at water depths equivalent to their upper stability limit may represent an important source of methane into the water column. In addition we discuss the effects of massive short-term methane inputs (e. g. through eruptions of deep......-water mud volcanoes or submarine landslides at intermediate water depths) on the water column methane distribution and the resulting methane emission to the atmosphere. Our non-steady state simulations predict that these inputs will be effectively buffered by intense microbial methane consumption...

222Rn concentration in the outdoor atmosphere and its relation to the atmospheric stability

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Holy, K.; Boehm, R.; Bosa, I.; Polaskova, A.; Hola, O.

1998-01-01

The radon in the outdoor atmosphere has been monitored continuously since 1991. On the basis of the measured data mainly the average daily and the average annual courses of the 222 Rn concentrations have been studied. The annual courses of 222 Rn concentration are similar for all years. They present the annual variations. The average course of the 222 Rn concentration calculated on the basis of all continual measurements in the years 1991-1997 reaches the maximum value in October and the minimum value in April. The average daily courses of the 222 Rn concentration for the individual months of the year. The average daily courses have a form of waves with a maximum in the morning hours and with a minimum in the afternoon. The maximal amplitudes of daily waves have been reached in the summer months, from June till August. The amplitudes of daily waves are very small at the end of an autumn and during the winter months. The analysis of the daily waves and annual courses of 222 Rn showed that the amplitudes of the daily waves are in proportion to the global solar radiation irradiating the Earth's surface. The day duration influence on the phase of the daily wave and the wind velocity influence mainly on the level of the radon concentration. For the study of the relation of the radon concentration in the outdoor atmosphere to the stability the data of the atmosphere were obtained and they were correlated with the radon concentration. The results indicate that the 222 Rn concentrations int he outdoor atmosphere could be used for determination of the vertical atmospheric stability and these ones could reflect the atmospheric stability more completely than the different classifications based on the knowledge pertinent to the meteorological parameters. (authors)

Implementation of methane cycling for deep-time global warming simulations with the DCESS Earth system model (version 1.2)

Science.gov (United States)

Shaffer, Gary; Fernández Villanueva, Esteban; Rondanelli, Roberto; Olaf Pepke Pedersen, Jens; Malskær Olsen, Steffen; Huber, Matthew

2017-11-01

Geological records reveal a number of ancient, large and rapid negative excursions of the carbon-13 isotope. Such excursions can only be explained by massive injections of depleted carbon to the Earth system over a short duration. These injections may have forced strong global warming events, sometimes accompanied by mass extinctions such as the Triassic-Jurassic and end-Permian extinctions 201 and 252 million years ago, respectively. In many cases, evidence points to methane as the dominant form of injected carbon, whether as thermogenic methane formed by magma intrusions through overlying carbon-rich sediment or from warming-induced dissociation of methane hydrate, a solid compound of methane and water found in ocean sediments. As a consequence of the ubiquity and importance of methane in major Earth events, Earth system models for addressing such events should include a comprehensive treatment of methane cycling but such a treatment has often been lacking. Here we implement methane cycling in the Danish Center for Earth System Science (DCESS) model, a simplified but well-tested Earth system model of intermediate complexity. We use a generic methane input function that allows variation in input type, size, timescale and ocean-atmosphere partition. To be able to treat such massive inputs more correctly, we extend the model to deal with ocean suboxic/anoxic conditions and with radiative forcing and methane lifetimes appropriate for high atmospheric methane concentrations. With this new model version, we carried out an extensive set of simulations for methane inputs of various sizes, timescales and ocean-atmosphere partitions to probe model behavior. We find that larger methane inputs over shorter timescales with more methane dissolving in the ocean lead to ever-increasing ocean anoxia with consequences for ocean life and global carbon cycling. Greater methane input directly to the atmosphere leads to more warming and, for example, greater carbon dioxide release

Implementation of methane cycling for deep-time global warming simulations with the DCESS Earth system model (version 1.2

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

G. Shaffer

2017-11-01

Full Text Available Geological records reveal a number of ancient, large and rapid negative excursions of the carbon-13 isotope. Such excursions can only be explained by massive injections of depleted carbon to the Earth system over a short duration. These injections may have forced strong global warming events, sometimes accompanied by mass extinctions such as the Triassic-Jurassic and end-Permian extinctions 201 and 252 million years ago, respectively. In many cases, evidence points to methane as the dominant form of injected carbon, whether as thermogenic methane formed by magma intrusions through overlying carbon-rich sediment or from warming-induced dissociation of methane hydrate, a solid compound of methane and water found in ocean sediments. As a consequence of the ubiquity and importance of methane in major Earth events, Earth system models for addressing such events should include a comprehensive treatment of methane cycling but such a treatment has often been lacking. Here we implement methane cycling in the Danish Center for Earth System Science (DCESS model, a simplified but well-tested Earth system model of intermediate complexity. We use a generic methane input function that allows variation in input type, size, timescale and ocean–atmosphere partition. To be able to treat such massive inputs more correctly, we extend the model to deal with ocean suboxic/anoxic conditions and with radiative forcing and methane lifetimes appropriate for high atmospheric methane concentrations. With this new model version, we carried out an extensive set of simulations for methane inputs of various sizes, timescales and ocean–atmosphere partitions to probe model behavior. We find that larger methane inputs over shorter timescales with more methane dissolving in the ocean lead to ever-increasing ocean anoxia with consequences for ocean life and global carbon cycling. Greater methane input directly to the atmosphere leads to more warming and, for example

Ethane's 12C/13C Ratio in Titan: Implications for Methane Replenishment

Science.gov (United States)

Jennings, Donald E.; Nixon, C. A.; Romani, P. N.; Bjoraker, G. L.; Sada, P. V.; Lunsford, A. W.; Boyle, R. J.; Hesman, B. E.; McCabe, G. H.

2009-01-01

As the .main destination of carbon in the destruction of methane in the atmosphere of Titan, ethane provides information about the carbon isotopic composition of the reservoir from which methane is replenished. If the amount of methane entering the atmosphere is presently equal to the amount converted to ethane, the 12C/13C ratio in ethane should be close to the ratio in the reservoir. We have measured the 12C/13C ratio in ethane both with Cassini CIRS(exp 1) and from the ground and find that it is very close to the telluric standard and outer planet values (89), consistent with a primordial origin for the methane reservoir. The lower 12C/13C ratio measured for methane by Huygens GCMS (82.3) can be explained if the conversion of CH4 to CH3 (and C2H6) favors 12C over 13C with a carbon kinetic isotope effect of 1.08. The time required for the atmospheric methane to reach equilibrium, i.e., for replenishment to equal destruction, is approximately 5 methane atmospheric lifetimes.

Carbon fibre composite for ventilation air methane (VAM) capture

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Thiruvenkatachari, Ramesh; Su Shi; Yu Xinxiang

2009-01-01

Coal mine methane (CMM) is not only a hazardous greenhouse gas but is also a wasted energy resource, if not utilised. This paper evaluates a novel adsorbent material developed for capturing methane from ventilation air methane (VAM) gas in underground coal mines. The adsorbent material is a honeycomb monolithic carbon fibre composite (HMCFC) consisting of multiple parallel flow-through channels and the material exhibits unique features including low pressure drop, good mechanical properties, ability to handle dust-containing gas streams, good thermal and electrical conductivity and selective adsorption of gases. During this study, a series of HMCFC adsorbents (using different types of carbon fibres) were successfully fabricated. Experimental data demonstrated the proof-of-concept of using the HMCFC adsorbent to capture methane from VAM gas. The adsorption capacity of the HMCFC adsorbent was twice that of commercial activated carbon. Methane concentration of 0.56% in the inlet VAM gas stream is reduced to about 0.011% after it passes through the novel carbon fibre composite adsorbent material at ambient temperature and atmospheric pressure. This amounts to a maximum capture efficiency of 98%. These encouraging laboratory scale studies have prompted further large scale trials and economic assessment.

Progresses in the stable isotope studies of microbial processes associated with wetland methane production

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li Qing; Lin Guanghui

2013-01-01

Methane emissions from wetlands play a key role in regulating global atmospheric methane concentration, so better understanding of microbial processes for the methane emission in wetlands is critical for developing process models and reducing uncertainty in global methane emission inventory. In this review, we describe basic microbial processes for wetland methane production and then demonstrate how stable isotope fractionation and stable isotope probing can be used to investigate the mechanisms underlying different methanogenic pathways and to quantify microbial species involved in wetland methane production. When applying stable isotope technique to calculate contributions of different pathways to the total methane production in various wetlands, the technical challenge is how to determine isotopic fractionation factors for the acetate derived methane production and carbon dioxide derived methane production. Although the application of stable isotope probing techniques to study the actual functions of different microbial organisms to methane production process is significantly superior to the traditional molecular biology method, the combination of these two technologies will be crucial for direct linking of the microbial community and functional structure with the corresponding metabolic functions, and provide new ideas for future studies. (authors)

Comparison of atmospheric CH4 concentration observed by GOSAT and in-situ measurements in Thailand and India

Science.gov (United States)

Hayashida, S.; Ono, A.; Ishikawa, S.; Terao, Y.; Takeuchi, W.

2012-12-01

The concentration of atmospheric methane (CH4) has more than doubled since pre-industrial levels and the observed long-term changes in the CH4 concentration have been attributed to anthropogenic activity. However, despite the importance of atmospheric CH4 in global warming, the strength of individual sources of CH4 remains highly uncertain [e.g.,Dlugokencky et al., 2011]. To characterize and quantify the emissions of CH4 especially in Monsoon Asia and Siberia, which are the most important regions as CH4 source, we started a new project, "Characterization and Quantification of global methane emissions by utilizing GOSAT and in-situ measurements " by support of the Environment Research and Technology Development Fund (ERTDF) from June 2012 under the umbrella of Ministry of Environment Japan. The projects includes (1) satellite data applications, (2) in-situ measurements in Siberia, over Western Pacific and in Monsoon Asia, (3) development of the inverse model to derive CH4 emissions by top-down approach, and (4) flux measurements in Siberia and Asia to improve the bottom-up inventories. As an initiatory approach in the project, we started air sampling in Thailand and India where there are only a few CH4 data of direct sampling with high precision. We took eight air samples at Kohn Kaen and Pimai in Thailand on June 9 and 10, 2012. The high CH4 concentration near rice paddy field contrasted to the lower CH4 concentration near Cassava field. We are planning to take more samples in India in mid-August. The satellite CH4 data including GOSAT and SCIAMACHY are also compared with the Land Surface Water Coverage (LSWC) and the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI). The analysis revealed the seasonal variation in of xCH4 is closely related to the variation of the LSWC, coupled with NDVI. However, the satellite measurements are all column-averaged mixing ratio (xCH4), and therefore do not necessarily reflect high CH4 concentration near the surface over the emission

Continuous time-resolved regional methane leak detection with on-line background estimation using a novel combination of dual frequency comb laser spectroscopy and atmospheric inversions

Science.gov (United States)

Alden, C. B.; Coburn, S.; Wright, R.; Baumann, E.; Cossel, K.; Sweeney, C.; Ghosh, S.; Newbury, N.; Prasad, K.; Coddington, I.; Rieker, G. B.

2017-12-01

Advances in natural gas extraction technology have led to increased US production and transport activity, and as a consequence, an increased need for monitoring of methane leaks. Current leak detection methods provide time snapshots, and not continuous, time-varying estimates of emissions. Most approaches also require specific atmospheric conditions, operators, or the use of a tracer gas, requiring site access. Given known intermittency in fugitive methane emissions, continuous monitoring is a critical need for emissions mitigation. We present a novel leak detection method that employs dual frequency comb spectrometry to offer continuous, autonomous, leak detection and quantification over square-km scale areas. The spectrometer is situated in a field of natural gas pads, and a series of retroreflectors around the field direct light back to a detector. The laser light spans 1620-1680 nm with 0.002 nm line spacing, measuring thousands of individual absorption features from multiple species. The result is high-stability trace gas (here CH4, CO2, and H2O) measurements over long (1 km+) open paths through the atmosphere. Measurements are used in an atmospheric inversion to estimate the time variability of emissions at each location of interest. Importantly, the measurement framework and inversion solve explicitly for background concentrations, which vary rapidly in fields of active oil and gas production. We present the results of controlled-leak field tests in rural Colorado. We demonstrate the ability to locate and size a leak located 1 km away from the spectrometer and varying in strength from 1.5 to 7.7 g/min, resulting in mean atmospheric enhancements of 20 ppb. The inversion correctly identifies when the leak turned on and off over a 24-hour period, and determines the mean leak strength to within 10% of the true controlled rate. We further demonstrate the ability of the system to correctly locate and size the start and end of simultaneous 2.7 to 4.8 g/min leaks

柴油在甲烷氛围及在甲醇氛围下的着火燃烧特性%Ignition and Combustion Characteristics of Diesel in Premixed Methane and Methanol Atmosphere

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

耿培林; 姚春德; 胡江涛; 张德福; 马明

2017-01-01

为了解不同着火性质燃料之间的相互作用,在定容燃烧弹上结合高压燃油共轨系统,通过高速摄像光学系统,研究了柴油分别在两种不同的单碳高辛烷值燃料氛围下的着火和燃烧行为.结果表明:降低环境温度和增加预混甲烷的浓度均延长柴油着火滞燃期,增大燃烧放热率峰值,且较低的环境温度和高的甲烷浓度有利于减少碳烟的生成;相比于甲烷,甲醇对柴油着火的抑制作用更强,具有较长的滞燃期,为油气混合赢得更多的时间,预混燃烧部分增加,因此柴油在甲醇氛围下的放热率峰值略高于甲烷氛围,同时产生碳烟的扩散燃烧比例降低,生成的碳烟减少.%In order to understand the interaction between fuels of different ignition properties,the ignition and combustion characteristics of diesel injected in either methanol or methane mixture were researched in a constant volume combustion chamber coupled with high pressure common rail system by using high speed camera optical system.The premixed atmospheres are the mixture of methane and the mixture of methanol and air, respectively.Results show that the ignition delay period and the peak combustion release heat rate increase as the ambient temperature decreases or the premixed methane concentration increases.Under low ambient temperature or premixed methane atmosphere,the soot formation decreases.Compared with methanemethanol has a greater inhibitory effect on diesel ignitionso the ignition delay period of the methanol atmosphere is longer than that of the methane atmosphere.There are much time for diesel fuel to mix with airso the peak release heat rate of the methanol atmosphere is bigger and less soot is generated.

Environmental impact of coal mine methane emissions and responding strategies in China

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Cheng, Y.P.; Wang, L.; Zhang, X.L. [China University of Mining & Technology, Xuzhou (China)

2011-01-15

The impact on global climate change from coal mine methane emissions in China has been drawing attention as coal production has powered its economic development. Data on coal mine methane emissions from the State Administration of Coal Mine Safety of China has been analyzed. It is estimated that the methane emission from coal mining in China reached 20 billions of cubic meters in 2008, most of which comes from state-owned coal mines with high-gas content. China releases six times as much of methane from coal mines as compared to the United States. However, Chinese methane emission from coal production accounts for only a very small proportion on the environmental impact when compared to emissions of carbon dioxide from fossil fuel consumption. The Chinese government has shown environmental awareness and resolution on the mitigation and utilization of coal mine methane emissions. Measures have been taken to implement the programs of mitigation and utilization of coal mine methane, and at the same time, to ensure mining safety. Nearly 7.2 billions of cubic meters of methane were drained from the coal mines, and 32% of it was utilized in 2008. The slow advancement of technologies for the drainage and utilization of low-concentration methane from ventilation air hinders the progress of mitigation of atmospheric methane and the utilization of coal mine methane emissions.

Concentrations and fate of decamethylcyclopentasiloxane (D(5)) in the atmosphere.

Science.gov (United States)

McLachlan, Michael S; Kierkegaard, Amelie; Hansen, Kaj M; van Egmond, Roger; Christensen, Jesper H; Skjøth, Carsten A

2010-07-15

Decamethylcyclopentasiloxane (D(5)) is a volatile compound used in personal care products that is released to the atmosphere in large quantities. Although D(5) is currently under consideration for regulation, there have been no field investigations of its atmospheric fate. We employed a recently developed, quality assured method to measure D(5) concentration in ambient air at a rural site in Sweden. The samples were collected with daily resolution between January and June 2009. The D(5) concentration ranged from 0.3 to 9 ng m(-3), which is 1-3 orders of magnitude lower than previous reports. The measured data were compared with D(5) concentrations predicted using an atmospheric circulation model that included both OH radical and D(5) chemistry. The model was parametrized using emissions estimates and physical chemical properties determined in laboratory experiments. There was good agreement between the measured and modeled D(5) concentrations. The results show that D(5) is clearly subject to long-range atmospheric transport, but that it is also effectively removed from the atmosphere via phototransformation. Atmospheric deposition has little influence on the atmospheric fate. The good agreement between the model predictions and the field observations indicates that there is a good understanding of the major factors governing D(5) concentrations in the atmosphere.

Methane Recycling During Burial of Methane Hydrate-Bearing Sediments

Science.gov (United States)

You, K.; Flemings, P. B.

2017-12-01

We quantitatively investigate the integral processes of methane hydrate formation from local microbial methane generation, burial of methane hydrate with sedimentation, and methane recycling at the base of the hydrate stability zone (BHSZ) with a multiphase multicomponent numerical model. Methane recycling happens in cycles, and there is not a steady state. Each cycle starts with free gas accumulation from hydrate dissociation below the BHSZ. This free gas flows upward under buoyancy, elevates the hydrate saturation and capillary entry pressure at the BHSZ, and this prevents more free gas flowing in. Later as this layer with elevated hydrate saturation is buried and dissociated, the large amount of free gas newly released and accumulated below rapidly intrudes into the hydrate stability zone, drives rapid hydrate formation and creates three-phase (gas, liquid and hydrate) equilibrium above the BHSZ. The gas front retreats to below the BHSZ until all the free gas is depleted. The shallowest depth that the free gas reaches in one cycle moves toward seafloor as more and more methane is accumulated to the BHSZ with time. More methane is stored above the BHSZ in the form of concentrated hydrate in sediments with relatively uniform pore throat, and/or with greater compressibility. It is more difficult to initiate methane recycling in passive continental margins where the sedimentation rate is low, and in sediments with low organic matter content and/or methanogenesis reaction rate. The presence of a permeable layer can store methane for significant periods of time without recycling. In a 2D system where the seafloor dips rapidly, the updip gas flow along the BHSZ transports more methane toward topographic highs where methane gas and elevated hydrate saturation intrude deeper into the hydrate stability zone within one cycle. This could lead to intermittent gas venting at seafloor at the topographic highs. This study provides insights on many phenomenon associated with

Greenhouse effect contributions of US landfill methane

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Augenstein, D.

1991-01-01

The greenhouse effect has recently been receiving a great deal of scientific and popular attention. The term refers to a cause-and-effect relationship in which ''heat blanketing'' of the earth, due to trace gas increases in the atmosphere, is expected to result in global warming. The trace gases are increasing as the result of human activities. Carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) is the trace gas contributing most importantly to the ''heat blanketing'' and currently receives the most attention. Less widely recognized has been the high importance of methane (CH 4 ). Methane's contribution to the increased heat blanketing occurring since 1980 is estimated to be over a third as much as that of carbon dioxide. Gas from landfills has in turn been recognized to be a source of methane to the atmospheric buildup. However the magnitude of the landfill methane contribution, and the overall significance of landfill methane to the greenhouse phenomenon has been uncertain and the subject of some debate. (Author)

Methane and nitrous oxide emissions from a subtropical estuary (the Brisbane River estuary, Australia)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Musenze, Ronald S.; Werner, Ursula; Grinham, Alistair; Udy, James; Yuan, Zhiguo

2014-01-01

Methane (CH 4 ) and nitrous oxide (N 2 O) are two key greenhouse gases. Their global atmospheric budgeting is, however, flout with challenges partly due to lack of adequate field studies determining the source strengths. Knowledge and data limitations exist for subtropical and tropical regions especially in the southern latitudes. Surface water methane and nitrous oxide concentrations were measured in a subtropical estuarine system in the southern latitudes in an extensive field study from 2010 to 2012 and water–air fluxes estimated using models considering the effects of both wind and flow induced turbulence. The estuary was found to be a strong net source of both CH 4 and N 2 O all-year-round. Dissolved N 2 O concentrations ranged between 9.1 ± 0.4 to 45.3 ± 1.3 nM or 135 to 435% of atmospheric saturation level, while CH 4 concentrations varied between 31.1 ± 3.7 to 578.4 ± 58.8 nM or 1210 to 26,430% of atmospheric saturation level. These results compare well with measurements from tropical estuarine systems. There was strong spatial variability with both CH 4 and N 2 O concentrations increasing upstream the estuary. Strong temporal variability was also observed but there were no clear seasonal patterns. The degree of N 2 O saturation significantly increased with NO x concentrations (r 2 = 0.55). The estimated water–air fluxes varied between 0.1 and 3.4 mg N 2 O m −2 d −1 and 0.3 to 27.9 mg CH 4 m −2 d −1 . Total emissions (CO 2 -e) were N 2 O (64%) dominated, highlighting the need for reduced nitrogen inputs into the estuary. Choice of the model(s) for estimation of the gas transfer velocity had a big bearing on the estimated total emissions. - Highlights: • The estuary is a strong source of atmospheric methane and nitrous oxide. • Emissions had strong spatial-temporal variability with unclear seasonal patterns. • Dissolved gas saturation comparable to that in tropical rivers and polluted estuaries. • Emissions are dominated by N2O, which

Mars methane rises and falls with the seasons

Science.gov (United States)

Hand, Eric

2018-01-01

On Earth, atmospheric methane is a prominent sign of life. On Mars, the story is more complicated. Trace detections of methane, alongside glimpses of larger spikes, have fueled debates about biological and nonbiological sources of the gas. Now, NASA scientists have announced a new twist in the tale: Methane regularly rises to a peak in late northern summer in a seasonal pattern. The swings are larger than can be explained by the planet's seasonal freeze-thaw cycles. The wiggles are a mystery within a larger mystery: claims of methane spikes an order of magnitude or two higher than the background. Some scientists say meteor showers could be responsible, by depositing carbonaceous material in the atmosphere that reacts to form methane. A close encounter on 24 January with debris from a comet could provide a chance to test the hypothesis.

Intercomparison study of atmospheric methane and carbon dioxide concentrations measured at the Ebre River Delta Station

Science.gov (United States)

Occhipinti, Paola; Morguí, Josep Anton; Àgueda, Alba; Batet, Oscar; Borràs, Sílvia; Cañas, Lídia; Curcoll, Roger; Grossi, Claudia; Nofuentes, Manel; Vazquez, Eusebi; Rodó, Xavier

2015-04-01

In the framework of the ClimaDat project, IC3 has established a network of eight monitoring stations across the Iberian Peninsula and the Canarian Archipelago with the aim of studying climate processes. The monitoring station at the Ebre River Delta (DEC3) is located in the Ebre River Delta Natural Park (40° 44' N; 0° 47' E) and it is characterized by the typical North-Western Mediterranean climate. Since 2013, atmospheric greenhouse gases (GHG) and 222Rn tracer gas together with the meteorological parameters are continuously measured from a 10 m a.g.l. height tower. Atmospheric GHG (CO2, CH4, CO and N2O) concentrations are determined using a Picarro analyzer G2301 (CO2 and CH4) and a modified gas chromatograph (GC) Agilent 6890N (CO2, CH4, CO and N2O). Open data access is available from the www.climadat.es website. Data collected at the DEC3 station are also submitted to the InGOS platform since this station is part of the InGOS European infrastructure project. Researchers from the Laboratory of the Atmosphere and the Oceans (LAO) at IC3 have performed an intercomparison study at the DEC3 site between three different Picarro analyzers (two Picarro G2301 and one Picarro G2301M), a Los Gatos Research (LGR) analyzer and the GC system already installed at the station. The aim of this study is to compare and assess the measuring agreement between the four optical gas analyzers and the GC. In the first part of the experiment, all instruments have been calibrated using NOAA gases as primary standards analyzing five Praxair provided targets to evaluate the precision of the measuring instruments. Max Plank Institute (MPI) gases have been used as secondary standards for the GC whereas Praxair provided tanks are used as secondary standards for the Picarro and the LGR analyzers. In the second part of the experiment, atmospheric GHG were measured from natural atmospheric air taken from a 10 m a.g.l. inlet. Daily cycles of GHG measurements were carried out using different

Improved methane removal in exhaust gas from biogas upgrading process using immobilized methane-oxidizing bacteria.

Science.gov (United States)

Sun, Meng-Ting; Yang, Zhi-Man; Fu, Shan-Fei; Fan, Xiao-Lei; Guo, Rong-Bo

2018-05-01

Methane in exhaust gas from biogas upgrading process, which is a greenhouse gas, could cause global warming. The biofilter with immobilized methane-oxidizing bacteria (MOB) is a promising approach for methane removal, and the selections of inoculated MOB culture and support material are vital for the biofilter. In this work, five MOB consortia were enriched at different methane concentrations. The MOB-20 consortium enriched at the methane concentration of 20.0% (v/v) was then immobilized on sponge and two particle sizes of volcanic rock in biofilters to remove methane in exhaust gas from biogas upgrading process. Results showed that the immobilized MOB performed more admirable methane removal capacity than suspended cells. The immobilized MOB on sponge reached the highest methane removal efficiency (RE) of 35%. The rough surface, preferable hydroscopicity, appropriate pore size and particle size of support material might favor the MOB immobilization and accordingly methane removal. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Widespread Methane Leakage from the Seafloor on the Northern US Atlantic Margin

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — Methane emissions from the sea floor affect methane inputs into the atmosphere, ocean acidification and de-oxygenation, the distribution of chemosynthetic...

The effects of fire on biogenic emissions of methane and nitric oxide from wetlands

Science.gov (United States)

Levine, Joel S.; Cofer, Wesley R., III; Sebacher, Daniel I.; Rhinehart, Robert P.; Winstead, Edward L.; Sebacher, Shirley; Hinkle, C. Ross; Schmalzer, Paul A.; Koller, Albert M., Jr.

1990-01-01

Enhanced emissions of methane (CH4) and nitric oxide (NO) were measured following three controlled burns in a Florida wetlands in 1987 and 1988. Wetlands are the major global source of methane resulting from metabolic activity of methanogenic bacteria. Methanogens require carbon dioxide, acetate, or formate for their growth and the metabolic production of methane. All three water-soluble compounds are produced in large concentrations during biomass burning. Postfire methane emissions exceeded 0.15 g CH 4/sq m per day. Preburn and postburn measurements of soil nutrients indicate significant postburn increases in soil ammonium, from 8.35 to 13.49 parts per million (ppm) in the upper 5 cm of the Juncus marsh and from 8.83 to 23.75 ppm in the upper 5 cm of the Spartina marsh. Soil nitrate concentrations were found to decrease in both marshes after the fire. These measurements indicate that the combustion products of biomass burning exert an important 'fertilizing' effect on the biosphere and on the biogenic production of environmentally significant atmospheric gases.

Anaerobic methane oxidation rates at the sulfate-methane transition in marine sediments from Kattegat and Skagerrak (Denmark)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Iversen, N.; Jorgensen, B.B.

1985-01-01

Concomitant radiotracer measurements were made of in situ rates of sulfate reduction and anaerobic methane oxidation in 2-3-m-long sediment cores. Methane accumulated to high concentrations (> 1 mM CH 4 ) only below the sulfate zone, at 1 m or deeper in the sediment. Sulfate reduction showed a broad maximum below the sediment surface and a smaller, narrow maximum at the sulfate-methane transition. Methane oxidation was low (0.002-0.1 nmol CH 4 cm -3 d -1 ) throughout the sulfate zone and showed a sharp maximum at the sulfate-methane transition, coinciding with the sulfate reduction maximum. Total anaerobic methane oxidation at two stations was 0.83 and 1.16 mmol CH 4 m -2 d -1 , of which 96% was confined to the sulfate-methane transition. All the methane that was calculated to diffuse up into the sulfate-methane transition was oxidized in this zone. The methane oxidation was equivalent to 10% of the electron donor requirement for the total measured sulfate reduction. A third station showed high sulfate concentrations at all depths sampled and the total methane oxidation was only 0.013 mmol m -2 d -1 . From direct measurements of rates, concentration gradients, and diffusion coefficients, simple calculations were made of sulfate and methane fluxes and of methane production rates

Methane rising from the Deep: Hydrates, Bubbles, Oil Spills, and Global Warming

Science.gov (United States)

Leifer, I.; Rehder, G. J.; Solomon, E. A.; Kastner, M.; Asper, V. L.; Joye, S. B.

2011-12-01

Elevated methane concentrations in near-surface waters and the atmosphere have been reported for seepage from depths of nearly 1 km at the Gulf of Mexico hydrate observatory (MC118), suggesting that for some methane sources, deepsea methane is not trapped and can contribute to atmospheric greenhouse gas budgets. Ebullition is key with important sensitivity to the formation of hydrate skins and oil coatings, high-pressure solubility, bubble size and bubble plume processes. Bubble ROV tracking studies showed survival to near thermocline depths. Studies with a numerical bubble propagation model demonstrated that consideration of structure I hydrate skins transported most methane only to mid-water column depths. Instead, consideration of structure II hydrates, which are stable to far shallower depths and appropriate for natural gas mixtures, allows bubbles to survive to far shallower depths. Moreover, model predictions of vertical methane and alkane profiles and bubble size evolution were in better agreement with observations after consideration of structure II hydrate properties as well as an improved implementation of plume properties, such as currents. These results demonstrate the importance of correctly incorporating bubble hydrate processes in efforts to predict the impact of deepsea seepage as well as to understand the fate of bubble-transported oil and methane from deepsea pipeline leaks and well blowouts. Application to the DWH spill demonstrated the importance of deepsea processes to the fate of spilled subsurface oil. Because several of these parameters vary temporally (bubble flux, currents, temperature), sensitivity studies indicate the importance of real-time monitoring data.

Evaluation of the Effects of Iron Oxides on Soil Reducing Conditions and Methane Generation in Cambodian Wetland Rice Fields

Science.gov (United States)

Weaver, M.; Benner, S.; Fendorf, S.; Sampson, M.; Leng, M.

2007-12-01

Atmospheric concentrations of methane have been steadily increasing over the last 100 years, which has given rise to research of wetland rice fields, recently identified as a major anthropomorphic source of methane. Establishment of experimental soil pots, cultivating an aromatic early variety rice strain in the Kean Svay District of Cambodia, have recently been carried out to evaluate methods to minimize methane release by promoting redox buffering by iron oxides. In the first series of experiments, iron oxides were added to the soils and the rate of change in reducing conditions and methanogenesis onset was monitored. In the second series of experiments, plots are subject to periodic drying cycles to promote rejuvenation of buffering iron oxides. Initial results indicate a delay in the onset of methanogenesis, and overall methane generation, in plots where initial iron oxides concentrations are elevated.

Eddy Covariance Measurements of Methane Flux at a Tropical Peat Forest in Sarawak, Malaysian Borneo

Science.gov (United States)

Tang, Angela C. I.; Stoy, Paul C.; Hirata, Ryuichi; Musin, Kevin K.; Aeries, Edward B.; Wenceslaus, Joseph; Melling, Lulie

2018-05-01

Tropical biogenic sources are a likely cause of the recent increase in global atmospheric methane concentration. To improve our understanding of tropical methane sources, we used the eddy covariance technique to measure CH4 flux (FCH4) between a tropical peat forest ecosystem and the atmosphere in Malaysian Borneo over a 2-month period during the wet season. Mean daily FCH4 during the measurement period, on the order of 0.024 g C-CH4·m-2·day-1, was similar to eddy covariance FCH4 measurements from tropical rice agroecosystems and boreal fen ecosystems. A linear modeling analysis demonstrated that air temperature (Tair) was critical for modeling FCH4 before the water table breached the surface and that water table alone explained some 20% of observed FCH4 variability once standing water emerged. Future research should measure FCH4 on an annual basis from multiple tropical ecosystems to better constrain tropical biogenic methane sources.

The levels, variation characteristics, and sources of atmospheric non-methane hydrocarbon compounds during wintertime in Beijing, China

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

C. Liu

2017-09-01

Full Text Available Atmospheric non-methane hydrocarbon compounds (NMHCs were measured at a sampling site in Beijing city from 15 December 2015 to 14 January 2016 to recognize their pollution levels, variation characteristics, and sources. We quantified 53 NMHCs, and the proportions of alkanes, alkenes, acetylene, and aromatics to the total NMHCs were 49.8–55.8, 21.5–24.7, 13.5–15.9, and 9.3–10.7 %, respectively. The variation trends in the NMHC concentrations were basically identical and exhibited remarkable fluctuation, which was mainly ascribed to the variation in meteorological conditions, especially wind speed. The diurnal variations in NMHCs on clear days exhibited two peaks during the morning and evening rush hours, whereas the rush hours' peaks diminished or even disappeared on the haze days, implying that the relative contribution of the vehicular emissions to atmospheric NMHCs depended on the pollution status. Two evident peaks of the propane ∕ propene ratios appeared in the early morning before sun rise and at noontime on clear days, whereas only one peak occurred in the afternoon during the haze days, which were attributed to the relatively fast reactions of propene with OH, NO3, and O3. Based on the chemical kinetic equations, the daytime OH concentrations were calculated to be in the range of 3. 47 × 105–1. 04 × 106 molecules cm−3 on clear days and 6. 42 × 105–2. 35 × 106 molecules cm−3 on haze days. The nighttime NO3 concentrations were calculated to be in the range of 2. 82 × 109–4. 86 × 109 molecules cm−3 on clear days. The correlation coefficients of typical hydrocarbon pairs (benzene ∕ toluene, o-xylene ∕ m,p-xylene, isopentane ∕ n-pentane, etc. revealed that vehicular emissions and coal combustion were important sources for atmospheric NMHCs in Beijing during the wintertime. Five major emission sources for atmospheric NMHCs in Beijing during

Methane from shallow seep areas of the NW Svalbard Arctic margin does not reach the sea surface

Science.gov (United States)

Silyakova, Anna; Greinert, Jens; Jansson, Pär; Ferré, Bénédicte

2015-04-01

Methane, an important greenhouse gas, leaks from large areas of the Arctic Ocean floor. One overall question is how much methane passes from the seabed through the water column, potentially reaching the atmosphere. Transport of methane from the ocean floor into and through the water column depends on many factors such as distribution of gas seeps, microbial methane oxidation, and ambient oceanographic conditions, which may trigger a change in seep activity. From June-July 2014 we investigated dissolved methane in the water column emanating from the "Prins Karls Forland seeps" area offshore the NW Svalbard Arctic margin. Measurements of the spatial variability of dissolved methane in the water column included 65 CTD stations located in a grid covering an area of 30 by 15 km. We repeated an oceanographic transect twice in a week for time lapse studies, thus documenting significant temporal variability in dissolved methane above one shallow seep site (~100 m water depth). Analysis of both nutrient concentrations and dissolved methane in water samples from the same transect, reveal striking similarities in spatial patterns of both dissolved methane and nutrients indicating that microbial community is involved in methane cycling above the gas seepage. Our preliminary results suggest that although methane release can increase in a week's time, providing twice as much dissolved gas to the water column, no methane from a seep reaches the sea surface. Instead it spreads horizontally under the pycnocline. Yet microbial communities react rapidly to the methane supply above gas seepage areas and may also have an important role as an effective filter, hindering methane release from the ocean to the atmosphere during rapid methane ebullition. This study is funded by CAGE (Centre for Arctic Gas Hydrate, Environment and Climate), Norwegian Research Council grant no. 223259.

A record of aerobic methane oxidation in tropical Africa over the last 2.5 Ma

Science.gov (United States)

Spencer-Jones, Charlotte L.; Wagner, Thomas; Talbot, Helen M.

2017-12-01

Methane and CO2 are climatically active greenhouse gases (GHG) and are powerful drivers of rapid global warming. Comparable to the Arctic, the tropics store large volumes of labile sedimentary carbon that is vulnerable to climate change. However, little is known about this labile carbon reservoir, in particular the behaviour of high methane-producing environments (e.g. wetlands), and their role in driving or responding to past periods of global climate change. In this study, we use a microbial biomarker approach that traces continental aerobic methane oxidation (AMO) from sedimentary organic matter in deep-sea fan sediments off the Congo River to reconstruct the link between central African methane cycling and continental export during key periods of global Pleistocene warmth. We use 35-amino bacteriohopanepolyols (BHPs), specifically aminobacteriohopane-31,32,33,34-tetrol (aminotetrol) and 35-aminobacteriohopane-30,31,32,33,34-pentol (aminopentol) as diagnostic molecular markers for AMO (CH4 oxidation markers) and the prevalence of continental wetland environments. BHPs were analysed in sediments from the Congo fan (ODP 1075) dated to 2.5 Ma. High resolution studies of key warm marine isotope stages (MIS) 5, 11 and 13 are included to test the relationship between CH4 oxidation markers in sediments at different levels of elevated global atmospheric GHG. This study presents the oldest reported occurrence, to date, of 35-amino BHPs up to 200 m below sea floor (∼2.5 Ma) with no strong degradation signature observed. Low concentrations of CH4 oxidation markers identified between 1.7 Ma and 1 Ma suggest a reduction in wetland extent in tropical Africa in response to more arid environmental conditions. Correlation of high resolution CH4 oxidation marker signatures with global atmospheric GHG concentrations during MIS 5, 11 and 13 further emphasize periods of enhanced tropical C cycling. However, subsequent analysis would be required to further extrapolate the relative

Clumped isotope effects during OH and Cl oxidation of methane

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Whitehill, Andrew R.; Joelsson, Lars Magnus T.; Schmidt, Johan Albrecht

2017-01-01

A series of experiments were carried out to determine the clumped (13CH3D) methane kinetic isotope effects during oxidation of methane by OH and Cl radicals, the major sink reactions for atmospheric methane. Experiments were performed in a 100 L quartz photochemical reactor, in which OH was produ......A series of experiments were carried out to determine the clumped (13CH3D) methane kinetic isotope effects during oxidation of methane by OH and Cl radicals, the major sink reactions for atmospheric methane. Experiments were performed in a 100 L quartz photochemical reactor, in which OH...... effects for singly substituted species were consistent with previous experimental studies. For doubly substituted methane, 13CH3D, the observed kinetic isotope effects closely follow the product of the kinetic isotope effects for the 13C and deuterium substituted species (i.e., 13,2KIE = 13KIE × 2KIE...... reactions. In a closed system, however, this effect is overtaken by the large D/H isotope effect, which causes the residual methane to become anti-clumped relative to the initial methane. Based on these results, we demonstrate that oxidation of methane by OH, the predominant oxidant for tropospheric methane...

Controls on tree species stem transport and emission of methane from tropical peatlands

Science.gov (United States)

Van Haren, J. L. M.; Cadillo-Quiroz, H.

2016-12-01

Methane emissions from wetlands dominate the global budget and are most likely responsible for the annual variability in emissions. Methane is produced and consumed by microbial activity and then transported to the atmosphere. Plants have been shown to facilitate the transport of methane to significant amounts, but broad surveys across multiple sites have been lacking. We present data collected from multiple peatland and wetland sites south of Iquitos Peru and varzea sites from Santarem Brazil and compare our results to the limited literature of tree stem fluxes. The survey suggests that methane stem emissions might be conserved at the genera level, but not the family level. Large emitters exist in the Aracaceae, Euphorbiaceae, and Sapotaceae, however, other genera within the same families do not emit any methane. Certain genera are consistent pan-tropical methane emitters. The methane emission from the stems decreases generally with height, suggesting a diffusion constrained stem flux. Further constraints on the methane emissions from tree stems involve soil methane concentration and wood density, which is likely an indicator for stem conductivity. Diurnal cycles, flooding level and tree leaves appear to have less of an influence on the tree methane emissions though flooding can lead to a translocation of emissions up the stem to above the flooding level. Methane emissions and the plant transport pathways appear to be constrained at the genera level within wetlands.

Methane hydrate stability and anthropogenic climate change

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

D. Archer

2007-07-01

Full Text Available Methane frozen into hydrate makes up a large reservoir of potentially volatile carbon below the sea floor and associated with permafrost soils. This reservoir intuitively seems precarious, because hydrate ice floats in water, and melts at Earth surface conditions. The hydrate reservoir is so large that if 10% of the methane were released to the atmosphere within a few years, it would have an impact on the Earth's radiation budget equivalent to a factor of 10 increase in atmospheric CO₂.

Hydrates are releasing methane to the atmosphere today in response to anthropogenic warming, for example along the Arctic coastline of Siberia. However most of the hydrates are located at depths in soils and ocean sediments where anthropogenic warming and any possible methane release will take place over time scales of millennia. Individual catastrophic releases like landslides and pockmark explosions are too small to reach a sizable fraction of the hydrates. The carbon isotopic excursion at the end of the Paleocene has been interpreted as the release of thousands of Gton C, possibly from hydrates, but the time scale of the release appears to have been thousands of years, chronic rather than catastrophic.

The potential climate impact in the coming century from hydrate methane release is speculative but could be comparable to climate feedbacks from the terrestrial biosphere and from peat, significant but not catastrophic. On geologic timescales, it is conceivable that hydrates could release as much carbon to the atmosphere/ocean system as we do by fossil fuel combustion.

Atmospheric Methane Measurements from an Aircraft Based at NASA Ames: Five Years of Observations by the AJAX Project

Science.gov (United States)

Iraci, Laura

2016-01-01

The Alpha Jet Atmospheric eXperiment (AJAX) is a research project based at Moffett Field, CA, which collects airborne measurements of ozone, carbon dioxide, methane, water vapor, and formaldehyde, as well as 3-D winds, temperature, pressure, and location. Since its first science flight in 2011, AJAX has developed a wide a variety of mission types, combining vertical profiles (from approx. 8 km to near surface),boundary layer legs, and plume sampling as needed. With an ongoing five-year data set, the team has sampled over 160 vertical profiles, a dozen wildfires, and numerous stratospheric ozone intrusions. This talk will present an overview of our flights flown to date, with particular focus on methane observations in the San Francisco Bay Area, Sacramento, and the delta region.

Methane emission to the atmosphere from landfills in the Canary Islands

Science.gov (United States)

Hernández, Pedro A.; Asensio-Ramos, María; Rodríguez, Fátima; Alonso, Mar; García-Merino, Marta; Amonte, Cecilia; Melián, Gladys V.; Barrancos, José; Rodríguez-Delgado, Miguel A.; Hernández-Abad, Marta; Pérez, Erica; Alonso, Monica; Tassi, Franco; Raco, Brunella; Pérez, Nemesio M.

2017-04-01

Methane (CH4) is one of the most powerful greenhouse gases, and is increasing in the atmosphere by 0.6% each year (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, IPCC, 2013). This gas is produced in landfills in large quantities following the anaerobic degradation of organic matter. The IPCC has estimated that more than 10% of the total anthropogenic emissions of CH4 are originated in landfills. Even after years of being no operative (closed), a significant amount of landfill gas could be released to the atmosphere through its surface as diffuse or fugitive degassing. Many landfills currently report their CH4 emissions to the atmosphere using model-based methods, which are based on the rate of production of CH4, the oxidation rate of CH4 and the amount of CH4 recovered (Bingemer and Crutzen, 1987). This approach often involves large uncertainties due to inaccuracies of input data and many assumptions in the estimation. In fact, the estimated CH4 emissions from landfills in the Canary Islands published by the Spanish National Emission and Pollutant Sources Registration (PRTR-Spain) seem to be overestimated due to the use of protocols and analytical methodologies based on mathematical models. For this reason, direct measurements to estimate CH4 emissions in landfills are essential to reduce this uncertainty. In order to estimate the CH4 emissions to the atmosphere from landfills in the Canary Islands 23 surveys have been performed since 1999. Each survey implies hundreds of CO2and CH4 efflux measurements covering the landfill surface area. Surface landfill CO2 efflux measurements were carried out at each sampling site by means of a portable non-dispersive infrared spectrophotometer (NDIR) model LICOR Li800 following the accumulation chamber method. Samples of landfill gases were taken in the gas accumulated in the chamber and CO2 and CH4 were analyzed using a double channel VARIAN 4900 micro-GC. The CH4 efflux measurent was computed combining CO2 efflux and CH4/CO2 ratio

Screening method to assess the greenhouse gas mitigation potential of old landfills, based on downwind methane concentration measurements

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Fredenslund, Anders Michael; Mønster, J.; Kjeldsen, Peter

2017-01-01

A nationwide effort is taking place in Denmark to mitigate methane emissions from landfills, by using biocovers. A large number of older landfills were found to be potential candidates for biocover implementation, but very little information was available for these sites to help evaluate if signi......A nationwide effort is taking place in Denmark to mitigate methane emissions from landfills, by using biocovers. A large number of older landfills were found to be potential candidates for biocover implementation, but very little information was available for these sites to help evaluate...... if significant methane emissions occur. To assess these sites, we developed a low-cost and quick remote sensing methodology, whereby downwind methane concentrations from 91 landfills were measured using a mobile analytical platform, and emission rates were calculated using an inverse dispersion model. The method...

Effects of gas composition in headspace and bicarbonate concentrations in media on gas and methane production, degradability, and rumen fermentation using in vitro gas production techniques.

Science.gov (United States)

Patra, Amlan Kumar; Yu, Zhongtang

2013-07-01

Headspace gas composition and bicarbonate concentrations in media can affect methane production and other characteristics of rumen fermentation in in vitro gas production systems, but these 2 important factors have not been evaluated systematically. In this study, these 2 factors were investigated with respect to gas and methane production, in vitro digestibility of feed substrate, and volatile fatty acid (VFA) profile using in vitro gas production techniques. Three headspace gas compositions (N2+ CO2+ H2 in the ratio of 90:5:5, CO2, and N2) with 2 substrate types (alfalfa hay only, and alfalfa hay and a concentrate mixture in a 50:50 ratio) in a 3×2 factorial design (experiment 1) and 3 headspace compositions (N2, N2 + CO2 in a 50:50 ratio, and CO2) with 3 bicarbonate concentrations (80, 100, and 120 mM) in a 3×3 factorial design (experiment 2) were evaluated. In experiment 1, total gas production (TGP) and net gas production (NGP) was the lowest for CO2, followed by N2, and then the gas mixture. Methane concentration in headspace gas after fermentation was greater for CO2 than for N2 and the gas mixture, whereas total methane production (TMP) and net methane production (NMP) were the greatest for CO2, followed by the gas mixture, and then N2. Headspace composition did not affect in vitro digestibility or the VFA profile, except molar percentages of propionate, which were greater for CO2 and N2 than for the gas mixture. Methane concentration in headspace gas, TGP, and NGP were affected by the interaction of headspace gas composition and substrate type. In experiment 2, increasing concentrations of CO2 in the headspace decreased TGP and NGP quadratically, but increased the concentrations of methane, NMP, and in vitro fiber digestibility linearly, and TMP quadratically. Fiber digestibility, TGP, and NGP increased linearly with increasing bicarbonate concentrations in the medium. Concentrations of methane and NMP were unaffected by bicarbonate concentration, but

The Australian methane budget: Interpreting surface and train-borne measurements using a chemistry transport model

Science.gov (United States)

Fraser, Annemarie; Chan Miller, Christopher; Palmer, Paul I.; Deutscher, Nicholas M.; Jones, Nicholas B.; Griffith, David W. T.

2011-10-01

We investigate the Australian methane budget from 2005-2008 using the GEOS-Chem 3D chemistry transport model, focusing on the relative contribution of emissions from different sectors and the influence of long-range transport. To evaluate the model, we use in situ surface measurements of methane, methane dry air column average (XCH4) from ground-based Fourier transform spectrometers (FTSs), and train-borne surface concentration measurements from an in situ FTS along the north-south continental transect. We use gravity anomaly data from Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment to describe the spatial and temporal distribution of wetland emissions and scale it to a prior emission estimate, which better describes observed atmospheric methane variability at tropical latitudes. The clean air sites of Cape Ferguson and Cape Grim are the least affected by local emissions, while Wollongong, located in the populated southeast with regional coal mining, samples the most locally polluted air masses (2.5% of the total air mass versus Asia, accounting for ˜25% of the change in surface concentration above background. At Cape Ferguson and Cape Grim, emissions from ruminant animals are the largest source of methane above background, at approximately 20% and 30%, respectively, of the surface concentration. At Wollongong, emissions from coal mining are the largest source above background representing 60% of the surface concentration. The train data provide an effective way of observing transitions between urban, desert, and tropical landscapes.

Trends of atmospheric black carbon concentration over the United Kingdom

Science.gov (United States)

Singh, Vikas; Ravindra, Khaiwal; Sahu, Lokesh; Sokhi, Ranjeet

2018-04-01

The continuous observations over a period of 7 years (2009-2016) available at 7 locations show declining trend of atmospheric BC in the UK. Among all the locations, the highest decrease of 8 ± 3 percent per year was observed at the Marylebone road in London. The detailed analysis performed at 21 locations during 2009-2011 shows that average annual mean atmospheric BC concentration were 0.45 ± 0.10, 1.47 ± 0.58, 1.34 ± 0.31, 1.83 ± 0.46 and 9.72 ± 0.78 μgm-3 at rural, suburban, urban background, urban centre and kerbside sites respectively. Around 1 μgm-3 of atmospheric BC could be attributed to urban emission, whereas traffic contributed up to 8 μg m-3 of atmospheric BC near busy roads. Seasonal pattern was also observed at all locations except rural and kerbside location, with maximum concentrations (1.2-4 μgm-3) in winter. Further, minimum concentrations (0.3-1.2 μgm-3) were observed in summer and similar concentrations in spring and fall. At suburban and urban background locations, similar diurnal pattern were observed with atmospheric BC concentration peaks (≈1.8 μg m-3) in the morning (around 9 a.m.) and evening (7-9 p.m.) rush hours, whereas minimum concentrations were during late night hours (peak at 5 a.m.) and the afternoon hours (peak at 2 p.m.). The urban centre values show a similar morning pattern (peak at 9 a.m.; concentration - 2.5 μgm-3) in relation to background locations but only a slight decrease in concentration in the afternoon which remained above 2 μgm-3 till midnight. It is concluded that the higher flow of traffic at urban centre locations results in higher atmospheric BC concentrations throughout the day. Comparison of weekday and weekend daily averaged atmospheric BC showed maximum concentrations on Friday, having minimum levels on Sunday. This study will help to refine the atmospheric BC emission inventories and provide data for air pollution and climate change models evaluation, which are used to formulate air pollution

Mitigation and recovery of methane emissions from tropical hydroelectric dams

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bambace, L.A.W.; Ramos, F.M.; Lima, I.B.T.; Rosa, R.R. [Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas Espaciais (INPE), Sao Jose dos Campos (Brazil)

2007-06-15

Tropical hydroelectric reservoirs generally constitute an appreciable source of methane to the atmosphere. This paper proposes simple mitigation and recovery procedures to substantially reduce atmospheric methane emissions from hydroelectric reservoirs. We aim at transforming existing methane stocks of tropical reservoirs into a clean, renewable energy source. The recovered gas methane may be pumped to large consuming centers, stocked locally and burned in gas turbines to generate electricity during high demand periods, or even purified for transport applications. Our simulations show that the use of biogenic methane may increase considerably the energy supply in countries like Brazil. As a result, it would be possible to reduce the need of additional hydroelectric dams, protecting important pristine biomes, and avoiding the resettlement of villages and indigenous reserves. (author)

Low Upper Limit to Methane Abundance on Mars

Science.gov (United States)

Webster, Christopher R.; Mahaffy, Paul R.; Atreya, Sushil K.; Flesch, Gregory J.; Farley, Kenneth A.; Kemppinen, Osku; Bridges, Nathan; Johnson, Jeffrey R.; Minitti, Michelle; Cremers, David; Bell, James F.; Edgar, Lauren; Farmer, Jack; Godber, Austin; Wadhwa, Meenakshi; Wellington, Danika; McEwan, Ian; Newman, Claire; Richardson, Mark; Charpentier, Antoine; Peret, Laurent; King, Penelope; Blank, Jennifer; Weigle, Gerald; Schmidt, Mariek; Li, Shuai; Milliken, Ralph; Robertson, Kevin; Sun, Vivian; Baker, Michael; Edwards, Christopher; Ehlmann, Bethany; Farley, Kenneth; Griffes, Jennifer; Grotzinger, John; Miller, Hayden; Newcombe, Megan; Pilorget, Cedric; Rice, Melissa; Siebach, Kirsten; Stack, Katie; Stolper, Edward; Brunet, Claude; Hipkin, Victoria; Léveillé, Richard; Marchand, Geneviève; Sánchez, Pablo Sobrón; Favot, Laurent; Cody, George; Steele, Andrew; Flückiger, Lorenzo; Lees, David; Nefian, Ara; Martin, Mildred; Gailhanou, Marc; Westall, Frances; Israël, Guy; Agard, Christophe; Baroukh, Julien; Donny, Christophe; Gaboriaud, Alain; Guillemot, Philippe; Lafaille, Vivian; Lorigny, Eric; Paillet, Alexis; Pérez, René; Saccoccio, Muriel; Yana, Charles; Armiens-Aparicio, Carlos; Rodríguez, Javier Caride; Blázquez, Isaías Carrasco; Gómez, Felipe Gómez; Elvira, Javier Gómez; Hettrich, Sebastian; Malvitte, Alain Lepinette; Jiménez, Mercedes Marín; Martínez-Frías, Jesús; Soler, Javier Martín; Martín-Torres, F. Javier; Jurado, Antonio Molina; Mora-Sotomayor, Luis; Caro, Guillermo Muñoz; López, Sara Navarro; Peinado-González, Verónica; Pla-García, Jorge; Manfredi, José Antonio Rodriguez; Romeral-Planelló, Julio José; Fuentes, Sara Alejandra Sans; Martinez, Eduardo Sebastian; Redondo, Josefina Torres; Urqui-O'Callaghan, Roser; Mier, María-Paz Zorzano; Chipera, Steve; Lacour, Jean-Luc; Mauchien, Patrick; Sirven, Jean-Baptiste; Manning, Heidi; Fairén, Alberto; Hayes, Alexander; Joseph, Jonathan; Squyres, Steven; Sullivan, Robert; Thomas, Peter; Dupont, Audrey; Lundberg, Angela; Melikechi, Noureddine; Mezzacappa, Alissa; DeMarines, Julia; Grinspoon, David; Reitz, Günther; Prats, Benito; Atlaskin, Evgeny; Genzer, Maria; Harri, Ari-Matti; Haukka, Harri; Kahanpää, Henrik; Kauhanen, Janne; Kemppinen, Osku; Paton, Mark; Polkko, Jouni; Schmidt, Walter; Siili, Tero; Fabre, Cécile; Wray, James; Wilhelm, Mary Beth; Poitrasson, Franck; Patel, Kiran; Gorevan, Stephen; Indyk, Stephen; Paulsen, Gale; Gupta, Sanjeev; Bish, David; Schieber, Juergen; Gondet, Brigitte; Langevin, Yves; Geffroy, Claude; Baratoux, David; Berger, Gilles; Cros, Alain; d'Uston, Claude; Forni, Olivier; Gasnault, Olivier; Lasue, Jérémie; Lee, Qiu-Mei; Maurice, Sylvestre; Meslin, Pierre-Yves; Pallier, Etienne; Parot, Yann; Pinet, Patrick; Schröder, Susanne; Toplis, Mike; Lewin, Éric; Brunner, Will; Heydari, Ezat; Achilles, Cherie; Oehler, Dorothy; Sutter, Brad; Cabane, Michel; Coscia, David; Israël, Guy; Szopa, Cyril; Dromart, Gilles; Robert, François; Sautter, Violaine; Le Mouélic, Stéphane; Mangold, Nicolas; Nachon, Marion; Buch, Arnaud; Stalport, Fabien; Coll, Patrice; François, Pascaline; Raulin, François; Teinturier, Samuel; Cameron, James; Clegg, Sam; Cousin, Agnès; DeLapp, Dorothea; Dingler, Robert; Jackson, Ryan Steele; Johnstone, Stephen; Lanza, Nina; Little, Cynthia; Nelson, Tony; Wiens, Roger C.; Williams, Richard B.; Jones, Andrea; Kirkland, Laurel; Treiman, Allan; Baker, Burt; Cantor, Bruce; Caplinger, Michael; Davis, Scott; Duston, Brian; Edgett, Kenneth; Fay, Donald; Hardgrove, Craig; Harker, David; Herrera, Paul; Jensen, Elsa; Kennedy, Megan R.; Krezoski, Gillian; Krysak, Daniel; Lipkaman, Leslie; Malin, Michael; McCartney, Elaina; McNair, Sean; Nixon, Brian; Posiolova, Liliya; Ravine, Michael; Salamon, Andrew; Saper, Lee; Stoiber, Kevin; Supulver, Kimberley; Van Beek, Jason; Van Beek, Tessa; Zimdar, Robert; French, Katherine Louise; Iagnemma, Karl; Miller, Kristen; Summons, Roger; Goesmann, Fred; Goetz, Walter; Hviid, Stubbe; Johnson, Micah; Lefavor, Matthew; Lyness, Eric; Breves, Elly; Dyar, M. Darby; Fassett, Caleb; Blake, David F.; Bristow, Thomas; DesMarais, David; Edwards, Laurence; Haberle, Robert; Hoehler, Tori; Hollingsworth, Jeff; Kahre, Melinda; Keely, Leslie; McKay, Christopher; Wilhelm, Mary Beth; Bleacher, Lora; Brinckerhoff, William; Choi, David; Conrad, Pamela; Dworkin, Jason P.; Eigenbrode, Jennifer; Floyd, Melissa; Freissinet, Caroline; Garvin, James; Glavin, Daniel; Harpold, Daniel; Jones, Andrea; Mahaffy, Paul; Martin, David K.; McAdam, Amy; Pavlov, Alexander; Raaen, Eric; Smith, Michael D.; Stern, Jennifer; Tan, Florence; Trainer, Melissa; Meyer, Michael; Posner, Arik; Voytek, Mary; Anderson, Robert C.; Aubrey, Andrew; Beegle, Luther W.; Behar, Alberto; Blaney, Diana; Brinza, David; Calef, Fred; Christensen, Lance; Crisp, Joy A.; DeFlores, Lauren; Ehlmann, Bethany; Feldman, Jason; Feldman, Sabrina; Flesch, Gregory; Hurowitz, Joel; Jun, Insoo; Keymeulen, Didier; Maki, Justin; Mischna, Michael; Morookian, John Michael; Parker, Timothy; Pavri, Betina; Schoppers, Marcel; Sengstacken, Aaron; Simmonds, John J.; Spanovich, Nicole; Juarez, Manuel de la Torre; Vasavada, Ashwin R.; Webster, Christopher R.; Yen, Albert; Archer, Paul Douglas; Cucinotta, Francis; Jones, John H.; Ming, Douglas; Morris, Richard V.; Niles, Paul; Rampe, Elizabeth; Nolan, Thomas; Fisk, Martin; Radziemski, Leon; Barraclough, Bruce; Bender, Steve; Berman, Daniel; Dobrea, Eldar Noe; Tokar, Robert; Vaniman, David; Williams, Rebecca M. E.; Yingst, Aileen; Lewis, Kevin; Leshin, Laurie; Cleghorn, Timothy; Huntress, Wesley; Manhès, Gérard; Hudgins, Judy; Olson, Timothy; Stewart, Noel; Sarrazin, Philippe; Grant, John; Vicenzi, Edward; Wilson, Sharon A.; Bullock, Mark; Ehresmann, Bent; Hamilton, Victoria; Hassler, Donald; Peterson, Joseph; Rafkin, Scot; Zeitlin, Cary; Fedosov, Fedor; Golovin, Dmitry; Karpushkina, Natalya; Kozyrev, Alexander; Litvak, Maxim; Malakhov, Alexey; Mitrofanov, Igor; Mokrousov, Maxim; Nikiforov, Sergey; Prokhorov, Vasily; Sanin, Anton; Tretyakov, Vladislav; Varenikov, Alexey; Vostrukhin, Andrey; Kuzmin, Ruslan; Clark, Benton; Wolff, Michael; McLennan, Scott; Botta, Oliver; Drake, Darrell; Bean, Keri; Lemmon, Mark; Schwenzer, Susanne P.; Anderson, Ryan B.; Herkenhoff, Kenneth; Lee, Ella Mae; Sucharski, Robert; Hernández, Miguel Ángel de Pablo; Ávalos, Juan José Blanco; Ramos, Miguel; Kim, Myung-Hee; Malespin, Charles; Plante, Ianik; Muller, Jan-Peter; Navarro-González, Rafael; Ewing, Ryan; Boynton, William; Downs, Robert; Fitzgibbon, Mike; Harshman, Karl; Morrison, Shaunna; Dietrich, William; Kortmann, Onno; Palucis, Marisa; Sumner, Dawn Y.; Williams, Amy; Lugmair, Günter; Wilson, Michael A.; Rubin, David; Jakosky, Bruce; Balic-Zunic, Tonci; Frydenvang, Jens; Jensen, Jaqueline Kløvgaard; Kinch, Kjartan; Koefoed, Asmus; Madsen, Morten Bo; Stipp, Susan Louise Svane; Boyd, Nick; Campbell, John L.; Gellert, Ralf; Perrett, Glynis; Pradler, Irina; VanBommel, Scott; Jacob, Samantha; Owen, Tobias; Rowland, Scott; Atlaskin, Evgeny; Savijärvi, Hannu; Boehm, Eckart; Böttcher, Stephan; Burmeister, Sönke; Guo, Jingnan; Köhler, Jan; García, César Martín; Mueller-Mellin, Reinhold; Wimmer-Schweingruber, Robert; Bridges, John C.; McConnochie, Timothy; Benna, Mehdi; Franz, Heather; Bower, Hannah; Brunner, Anna; Blau, Hannah; Boucher, Thomas; Carmosino, Marco; Atreya, Sushil; Elliott, Harvey; Halleaux, Douglas; Rennó, Nilton; Wong, Michael; Pepin, Robert; Elliott, Beverley; Spray, John; Thompson, Lucy; Gordon, Suzanne; Newsom, Horton; Ollila, Ann; Williams, Joshua; Vasconcelos, Paulo; Bentz, Jennifer; Nealson, Kenneth; Popa, Radu; Kah, Linda C.; Moersch, Jeffrey; Tate, Christopher; Day, Mackenzie; Kocurek, Gary; Hallet, Bernard; Sletten, Ronald; Francis, Raymond; McCullough, Emily; Cloutis, Ed; ten Kate, Inge Loes; Kuzmin, Ruslan; Arvidson, Raymond; Fraeman, Abigail; Scholes, Daniel; Slavney, Susan; Stein, Thomas; Ward, Jennifer; Berger, Jeffrey; Moores, John E.

2013-10-01

By analogy with Earth, methane in the Martian atmosphere is a potential signature of ongoing or past biological activity. During the past decade, Earth-based telescopic observations reported “plumes” of methane of tens of parts per billion by volume (ppbv), and those from Mars orbit showed localized patches, prompting speculation of sources from subsurface bacteria or nonbiological sources. From in situ measurements made with the Tunable Laser Spectrometer (TLS) on Curiosity using a distinctive spectral pattern specific to methane, we report no detection of atmospheric methane with a measured value of 0.18 ± 0.67 ppbv corresponding to an upper limit of only 1.3 ppbv (95% confidence level), which reduces the probability of current methanogenic microbial activity on Mars and limits the recent contribution from extraplanetary and geologic sources.

A carbon dioxide/methane greenhouse atmosphere on early Mars

Science.gov (United States)

Brown, L. L.; Kasting, J. F.

1993-01-01

One explanation for the formation of fluvial surface features on early Mars is that the global average surface temperature was maintained at or above the freezing point of water by the greenhouse warming of a dense CO2 atmosphere; however, Kasting has shown that CO2 alone is insufficient because the formation of CO2 clouds reduces the magnitude of the greenhouse effect. It is possible that other gases, such as NH3 and CH4, were present in the early atmosphere of Mars and contributed to the greenhouse effect. Kasting et al. investigated the effect of NH3 in a CO2 atmosphere and calculated that an NH3 mixing ratio of approximately 5 x 10 (exp -4) by volume, combined with a CO2 partial pressure of 4-5 bar, could generate a global average surface temperature of 273 K near 3.8 b.y. ago when the fluvial features are believed to have formed. Atmospheric NH3 is photochemically converted to N2 by ultraviolet radiation at wavelengths shortward of 230 nm; maintenance of sufficient NH3 concentrations would therefore require a source of NH3 to balance the photolytic destruction. We have used a one-dimensional photochemical model to estimate the magnitude of the NH3 source required to maintain a given NH3 concentration in a dense CO2 atmosphere. We calculate that an NH3 mixing ratio of 10(exp -4) requires a flux of NH3 on the order of 10(exp 12) molecules /cm-s. This figure is several orders of magnitude greater than estimates of the NH3 flux on early Mars; thus it appears that NH3 with CO2 is not enough to keep early Mars warm.

Atmospheric tritium concentration in the different chemical forms

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Akata, Naofumi; Kakiuchi, Hideki; Hisamatsu, Shun'ichi; Shima, Nagayoshi

2012-01-01

This study aimed at obtaining background tritium concentrations in air at Rokkasho where the first commercial spent nuclear fuel reprocessing plant in Japan has been under construction. Atmospheric tritium was operationally separated into HTO, HT and hydrocarbon (CH 3 T) fractions, and analyzed for the samples collected every 3 d to 14 d during fiscal year 2005. The HT concentration was the highest among the chemical forms analyzed, followed by the HTO and CH 3 T concentrations. The HT and CH 3 T concentrations did not have clear seasonal variation patterns through the HTO concentrations in spring were higher than those in summer. The HT concentration followed the decline previously reported by Mason and Östlund with an apparent half-life of 4.8 y. The apparent and environmental half-lives of CH 3 T were estimated as 9.2 y and 36.5 y, respectively, by combining the present data with literature data. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change used the atmospheric lifetime of 12 y for CH 4 to estimate global warming in its 2007 report. The longer environmental half-life of CH 3 T suggested its supply from other sources than past nuclear weapon testing in the atmosphere. (author)

Natural sources of gaseous pollutants in the atmosphere

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Altshuller, A P

1958-01-01

Various gaseous pollutants including ozone, nitrous oxide, nitric oxide, nitrogen dioxide, methane, hydrogen, formaldehyde, ammonia, hydrogen sulfide, mercaptans, chlorine compounds and free radicals can be formed by natural processes such as ultraviolet photochemical processes in the upper atmosphere and microbiological processes. The modes of formation and destruction of these gases, especially of their concentrations in the atmosphere, and the various reactions in which these gases can participate with each other are discussed in detail. 114 references.

Atmospheric concentration of 210Pb in East Asia

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Doi, T.; Sato, S.; Sato, J.

2003-01-01

Concentrations of 210 Pb and 7 Be in the surface air were measured at Tsukuba, Japan. The air concentrations of 210 Pb and 7 Be ranged from 0.2 to 0.7 mBq/m 3 and from 1 to 6 mBq/m 3 , respectively. Seasonal variation of 210 Pb concentration was similar to that of 7 Be, showing a 'two-peak' variation pattern: high concentrations appeared in spring and fall. Atmospheric concentrations of 210 Pb and their variations over Urumqi, Lanzhou and Baotou, cities located inland area of the Eurasian Continent, were observed. The monthly average concentrations ranged from 0.27 to 4.57 mBq/m 3 . The concentrations over these cities in winter were several times higher than that observed at Tsukuba, and the range of variation was also larger. The variations in concentration over the 3 localities resembled well with each other, showing the similar seasonal variation pattern: low concentration appeared in summer and high in winter. This variation pattern was different from that observed at Tsukuba. The variations in concentration over the Eurasian Continent, where precipitation is extremely smaller than that of Japan, inversely correlated quite well with the variation in the precipitation. The atmospheric concentrations of 210 Pb ranged from 0.9 to 4.6 mBq/m 3 at Beijing and from 1.4 to 7.8 mBq/m 3 at Chengdu and from 0.5 to 4.9 mBq/m 3 at Seoul, respectively, which were in the similar level to those observed previously in the inland area of the Eurasian Continent. Seasonal variations of the 210 Pb concentration showed the 'one-peak' variation pattern: the maximum levels were recorded in winter season. Small additional rises in the atmospheric 210 Pb concentrations observed in the period from spring to fall seasons may be due to complicated meteorology with high pressure systems at Beijing and Seoul and due to the topographical situation at Chengdu. Long range transport from the Eurasian Continent to the Japanese Islands was also assessed. The air mass from continent reached the

Observations of Concentration and δ D of Atmospheric H2 in an Alaskan Boreal Forest

Science.gov (United States)

Rahn, T.; Kitchen, N.; Fessenden, J.; Randerson, J. T.; Eiler, J. M.

2001-12-01

Molecular hydrogen is the second most abundant reduced gas in the atmosphere with a seasonally dependent mixing ratio averaging ~ 0.5 ppmv; the budget is thought to be controlled by sources from photo-oxidation of hydrocarbons, biomass burning and anthropogenic emissions and sinks dominated by soil uptake and oxidation by OH radicals. We are examining the isotopic signatures of these processes using a new method of H2 recovery and mass spectrometry on sub-liter-sized air samples (i.e., vigorous H2 uptake and were negatively correlated with respiring CO2 (-0.8 to -1.2 ppb H2/ppm CO2). Decreases in H2 concentration are correlated with increases in δ D, indicating that one or more steps in the process of hydrogen consumption (presumably either diffusion into the soil or microbial utilization) is isotopically fractionating. Based on these data, we derive a fractionation factor, α = D/Hresidual/D/Hconsumed = 0.96±0.01. This value is within the range of previous flux-chamber experiments [Gerst and Quay, 2001]. Data from the 24 hour time series yielded a similar nighttime draw down of H2 and elevated CO2 (observable even above canopy) and comparable fractionation factors for D/H. Unexpectedly, samples collected during daylight hours when the canopy was well flushed (evidenced by background CO2 levels) exhibited a modest positive correlation between hydrogen concentration and its deuterium content. We speculate that these enrichments may be the first observational verification of photochemically induced enrichment during oxidation of methane and non-methane hydrocarbons such as that proposed by Gerst and Quay [2001]. Gerst, S. and P. Quay, J. Geophys. Res., 106, 5021-5031, 2001.

A New Appraisal of Northern Peatlands and Global Atmospheric Methane Over the Holocene

Science.gov (United States)

MacDonald, G. M.; Holmquist, J. R.; Kremenetski, K.; Loisel, J.

2015-12-01

Use of large databases of peat cores to examine linkages between northern peatlands and atmospheric CH4 over the Holocene has been prone to uncertainties regarding 1. comparability of radiocarbon techniques and material dated, 2. appropriate summed probability distributions, 3. spatial representativeness of the sites, particularly in capturing sites south of the subarctic, 4. potential impacts of local lateral peatland expansion versus continental-scale peatland initiation, particularly in the late Holocene, and 5. impacts of changes in the proportion of high methane-producing fens vs Sphagnum bogs. We present a comparison of radiocarbon measurements from conventional counts, atomic mass spectrometry and differing peat materials to demonstrate a general compatibility of the various types of dates. We compare and apply several summed probability distribution methods to minimize any statistical bias in our analysis. We then present our analysis of a new data set of 7571 peatland cores from 4420 sites that extend into the temperate zone. Of these, 3732 cores inform on lateral expansion and 329 dates constrain the timing of fen-bog transition. Based on these data in original and gridded form we show that widespread peat initiation commenced at 16 kcal yr BP and reached a maximum rate at 11-8 kcal yr BP. Most sites began as fens, and peak transition to bogs occurred between 5 and 3 kcal yr BP, with a 1000 year lag between Eurasia and North America. There is no global late Holocene increase in lateral expansion. Based on modeled northern peatland area and ratio of fen/bog sites, CH4 production from northern peatlands increased rapidly from 11 to 9 cal yr BP, followed by slower increase until reaching a maximum at 5 kcal yr BP at 25 Tg per yr. From 4 kcal yr BP to Present, bogs become a dominant feature in the northern peatland landscape and CH4 production decreased to reach modern-day levels at about 20 Tg per yr. Northern peatlands have been a key infleunce on global

Determination of dissolved methane in natural waters using headspace analysis with cavity ring-down spectroscopy

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Roberts, Hannah M.; Shiller, Alan M., E-mail: alan.shiller@usm.edu

2015-01-26

Highlights: • A method for determining low nanomolar dissolved CH{sub 4} was developed. • The methane detection utilizes cavity ring-down spectroscopy (CRDS). • Use of CRDS requires less time, materials and labor than typical of GC analysis. • Relative standard deviations of ∼4% were achieved at low nM CH{sub 4}. • Applications to seawater and river water are presented. - Abstract: Methane (CH{sub 4}) is the third most abundant greenhouse gas (GHG) but is vastly understudied in comparison to carbon dioxide. Sources and sinks to the atmosphere vary considerably in estimation, including sources such as fresh and marine water systems. A new method to determine dissolved methane concentrations in discrete water samples has been evaluated. By analyzing an equilibrated headspace using laser cavity ring-down spectroscopy (CRDS), low nanomolar dissolved methane concentrations can be determined with high reproducibility (i.e., 0.13 nM detection limit and typical 4% RSD). While CRDS instruments cost roughly twice that of gas chromatographs (GC) usually used for methane determination, the process presented herein is substantially simpler, faster, and requires fewer materials than GC methods. Typically, 70-mL water samples are equilibrated with an equivalent amount of zero air in plastic syringes. The equilibrated headspace is transferred to a clean, dry syringe and then drawn into a Picarro G2301 CRDS analyzer via the instrument’s pump. We demonstrate that this instrument holds a linear calibration into the sub-ppmv methane concentration range and holds a stable calibration for at least two years. Application of the method to shipboard dissolved methane determination in the northern Gulf of Mexico as well as river water is shown. Concentrations spanning nearly six orders of magnitude have been determined with this method.

What drove the methane cycle in the past - evidence from carbon isotopic data of methane enclosed in polar ice cores

OpenAIRE

Möller, Lars

2013-01-01

During the last glacial cycle, greenhouse gas concentrations fluctuated on decadal and longer timescales. Concentrations of methane, as measured in polar ice cores, show a close connection with Northern Hemisphere temperature variability, but the contribution of the various methane sources and sinks to changes in concentration is still a matter of debate. This thesis assess changes in methane cycling over the past 160,000 years by measurements of the carbon isotopic composition d13C of methan...

Concentrations of tritium in atmospheric moisture and precipitation of Mt. Hakkoda

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kimura, Hideki; Kon, Takezumi; Sasaki, Mamoru

2000-01-01

A large-scale spent nuclear fuel reprocessing plant in Japan is now under construction in Rokkasho Village, Aomori Prefecture. The 3 H will be one of the major radionuclides released from the plant. To grasp the behavior of 3 H in the environment in Aomori Prefecture, we surveyed 3 H concentrations in the atmospheric moisture and the precipitation samples at Mt. Hakkoda. Additional atmospheric moisture samples were collected at Rokkasho Village and Aomori City. The relatively high 3 H concentration in the atmospheric moisture and the precipitation samples at Mt. Hakkoda were observed from spring to summer. The 3 H concentrations in the precipitation were similar to those in the atmospheric moisture. The temporal variation patterns of 3 H concentrations in the atmospheric moisture were similar in relatively wide region that covers from Mt. Hakkoda to Aomori City and Rokkasho Village. The 3 H concentration in atmospheric moisture at the top of Mt. Hakkoda positively correlated with the ozone concentration. It suggested that 3 H originated from the stratosphere, and showed that ozone might be used as an indictor of background 3 H. (author)

Methane production from cheese whey

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yan, J Q; Liao, P H; Lo, K V

1988-01-01

Cheese whey was treated in a 17.5-litre laboratory-scale up-flow anaerobic sludge blanket reactor operated over a range of hydraulic retention times and organic loading rates. The reactor performance was determined in terms of methane production, volatile fatty acids conversion and chemical oxygen demand (COD) reduction. At a constant influent strength, the methane production rate decreased with decreasing hydraulic retention time. At constant hydraulic retention time the methane production rate increased as the influent strength was increased up to a concentration of 28.8 g COD litre/sup -1/. The methane production rate was similar for two influent concentrations studied at hydraulic retention times longer than 10 days. The effect of short hydraulic retention times on methane production rate was more pronounced for the higher influent concentration than for the lower influent concentration. The highest methane production rate of 9.57 litres CH/sub 4/ litre/sup -1/ feed day/sup -1/ was obtained at a loading rate of 5.96 g/sup -1/ COD litre/sup -1/ and an influent concentration of 28.8 g COD litre/sup -1/. A high treatment efficiency in terms of chemical oxygen demand reduction was obtained. In general, over 98% removal of chemical oxygen demand was achieved. The results indicated that anaerobic digestion of cheese whey using an upflow sludge blanket reactor could reduce pollution strength and produce energy for a cheese plant.

Analysis of Influence of Goaf Sealing from Tailgate On the Methane Concentration at the Outlet from the Longwall

Science.gov (United States)

Tutak, Magdalena; Brodny, Jaroslaw

2017-12-01

One of the most common and most dangerous gas hazards in underground coal mine is methane hazard. Formation of dangerous, explosive concentrations of methane occurs the most often in the region of crossing of longwall with the ventilation gallery. Particularly it applies to longwalls ventilated in „U from bounds” system. Outflow of gases from the goaf to the tailgate takes place through the boundary surfaces of this sidewalk with goaf. Main cause of this process is a phenomenon of air filtration through the goaf with caving. This filtration is a result of migration of the part of ventilation air stream supplied to the longwall. This air is released into the goaf on the entire longwall length; however, its greater amount gets to the goaf with caving space at the crossing of maingate with exploitation longwall. Albeit, the biggest outflow of air mixture and gases from the goaf occurs in top gate in upper corner of the longwall. This is a result of pressure difference in this region. This phenomenon causes that to the space of heading besides the air also other gases present in the goaf, mainly methane, are released. Methane is an explosive gas. Most often boundaries of explosive mixtures of methane, air and inert gases are described by the so-called Coward triangle explosion. Within the limits of the occurrence of the concentration of explosive methane explosion initials may be endogenous fire, blasting or sparks arising from friction of moving lumps of rock. Therefore, in order to decrease its concertation in this region, by limiting its outflow from the goaf with caving different actions are taken. One of such action is sealing of goaf from top gate side. Analysis of impact of sealing of these goaf on the methane concentration at the outlet of longwall is main aim of studies researches. Model of tested region, together with boundary conditions (including parameters of flowing air and the methane content) was developed on the base of real data from one of the

Australian methane fluxes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Williams, D.J.

1990-01-01

Estimates are provided for the amount of methane emitted annually into the atmosphere in Australia for a variety of sources. The sources considered are coal mining, landfill, motor vehicles, natural gas suply system, rice paddies, bushfires, termites, wetland and animals. This assessment indicates that the major sources of methane are natural or agricultural in nature and therefore offer little scope for reduction. Nevertheless the remainder are not trival and reduction of these fluxes could play a significant part in any Australian action on the greenhouse problem. 19 refs., 7 tabs., 1 fig

Effect of concentrate feed level on methane emissions from grazing dairy cows.

Science.gov (United States)

Jiao, H P; Dale, A J; Carson, A F; Murray, S; Gordon, A W; Ferris, C P

2014-11-01

Although the effect of nutrition on enteric methane (CH4) emissions from confined dairy cattle has been extensively examined, less information is available on factors influencing CH4 emissions from grazing dairy cattle. In the present experiment, 40 Holstein-Friesian dairy cows (12 primiparous and 28 multiparous) were used to examine the effect of concentrate feed level (2.0, 4.0, 6.0, and 8.0 kg/cow per day; fresh basis) on enteric CH4 emissions from cows grazing perennial ryegrass-based swards (10 cows per treatment). Methane emissions were measured on 4 occasions during the grazing period (one 4-d measurement period and three 5-d measurement periods) using the sulfur hexafluoride technique. Milk yield, liveweight, and milk composition for each cow was recorded daily during each CH4 measurement period, whereas daily herbage dry matter intake (DMI) was estimated for each cow from performance data, using the back-calculation approach. Total DMI, milk yield, and energy-corrected milk (ECM) yield increased with increasing concentrate feed level. Within each of the 4 measurement periods, daily CH4 production (g/d) was unaffected by concentrate level, whereas CH4/DMI decreased with increasing concentrate feed level in period 4, and CH4/ECM yield decreased with increasing concentrate feed level in periods 2 and 4. When emissions data were combined across all 4 measurement periods, concentrate feed level (2.0, 4.0, 6.0, and 8.0 kg/d; fresh basis) had no effect on daily CH4 emissions (287, 273, 272, and 277 g/d, respectively), whereas CH4/DMI (20.0, 19.3, 17.7, and 18.1g/kg, respectively) and CH4-E/gross energy intake (0.059, 0.057, 0.053, and 0.054, respectively) decreased with increasing concentrate feed levels. A range of prediction equations for CH4 emissions were developed using liveweight, DMI, ECM yield, and energy intake, with the strongest relationship found between ECM yield and CH4/ECM yield (coefficient of determination = 0.50). These results demonstrate that

Quantification of seep-related methane gas emissions at Tommeliten, North Sea

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Schneider von Deimling, J.S.; Rehder, G.; Greinert, J.; McGinnnis, D.F.; Boetius, A.; Linke, P.

2011-01-01

Tommeliten is a prominent methane seep area in the Central North Sea. Previous surveys revealed shallow gas-bearing sediments and methane gas ebullition into the water column. In this study, the in situ methane flux at Tommeliten is re-assessed and the potential methane transport to the atmosphere

Methanation of Carbon Dioxide

OpenAIRE

Goodman, Daniel Jacob

2013-01-01

The emission of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere has been linked to global warming. Carbon dioxide's (CO2) one of the most abundant greenhouse gases. Natural gas, mainly methane, is the cleanest fossil fuel for electricity production helping meet the United States ever growing energy needs. The methanation of CO2 has the potential to address both of these problems if a catalyst can be developed that meets the activity, economic and environmental requirements to industrialize the process. ...

Mars methane detection and variability at Gale crater

Science.gov (United States)

Webster, Christopher R.; Mahaffy, Paul R.; Atreya, Sushil K.; Flesch, Gregory J.; Mischna, Michael A.; Meslin, Pierre-Yves; Farley, Kenneth A.; Conrad, Pamela G.; Christensen, Lance E.; Pavlov, Alexander A.; Martín-Torres, Javier; Zorzano, María-Paz; McConnochie, Timothy H.; Owen, Tobias; Eigenbrode, Jennifer L.; Glavin, Daniel P.; Steele, Andrew; Malespin, Charles A.; Archer, P. Douglas; Sutter, Brad; Coll, Patrice; Freissinet, Caroline; McKay, Christopher P.; Moores, John E.; Schwenzer, Susanne P.; Bridges, John C.; Navarro-Gonzalez, Rafael; Gellert, Ralf; Lemmon, Mark T.; MSL Science Team; Abbey, William; Achilles, Cherie; Agard, Christophe; Alexandre Alves Verdasca, José; Anderson, Dana; Anderson, Robert C.; Anderson, Ryan B.; Appel, Jan Kristoffer; Archer, Paul Douglas; Arevalo, Ricardo; Armiens-Aparicio, Carlos; Arvidson, Raymond; Atlaskin, Evgeny; Atreya, Andrew Sushil; Azeez, Aubrey Sherif; Baker, Burt; Baker, Michael; Balic-Zunic, Tonci; Baratoux, David; Baroukh, Julien; Barraclough, Bruce; Battalio, Michael; Beach, Michael; Bean, Keri; Beck, Pierre; Becker, Richard; Beegle, Luther; Behar, Alberto; Belgacem, Inès; Bell, James F., III; Bender, Steven; Benna, Mehdi; Bentz, Jennifer; Berger, Jeffrey; Berger, Thomas; Berlanga, Genesis; Berman, Daniel; Bish, David; Blacksberg, Jordana; Blake, David F.; José Blanco, Juan; Blaney, Ávalos Diana; Blank, Jennifer; Blau, Hannah; Bleacher, Lora; Boehm, Eckart; Bonnet, Jean-Yves; Botta, Oliver; Böttcher, Stephan; Boucher, Thomas; Bower, Hannah; Boyd, Nick; Boynton, William; Braswell, Shaneen; Breves, Elly; Bridges, John C.; Bridges, Nathan; Brinckerhoff, William; Brinza, David; Bristow, Thomas; Brunet, Claude; Brunner, Anna; Brunner, Will; Buch, Arnaud; Bullock, Mark; Burmeister, Sönke; Burton, John; Buz, Jennifer; Cabane, Michel; Calef, Fred; Cameron, James; Campbell, John L.; Cantor, Bruce; Caplinger, Michael; Clifton, Carey, Jr.; Caride Rodríguez, Javier; Carmosino, Marco; Carrasco Blázquez, Isaías; Cavanagh, Patrick; Charpentier, Antoine; Chipera, Steve; Choi, David; Christensen, Lance; Clark, Benton; Clegg, Sam; Cleghorn, Timothy; Cloutis, Ed; Cody, George; Coll, Patrice; Coman, Ecaterina I.; Conrad, Pamela; Coscia, David; Cousin, Agnès; Cremers, David; Crisp, Joy A.; Cropper, Kevin; Cros, Alain; Cucinotta, Francis; d'Uston, Claude; Davis, Scott; Day, Mackenzie; Daydou, Yves; DeFlores, Lauren; Dehouck, Erwin; Delapp, Dorothea; DeMarines, Julia; Dequaire, Tristan; Des Marais, David; Desrousseaux, Roch; Dietrich, William; Dingler, Robert; Domagal-Goldman, Shawn; Donny, Christophe; Downs, Robert; Drake, Darrell; Dromart, Gilles; Dupont, Audrey; Duston, Brian; Dworkin, Jason P.; Dyar, M. Darby; Edgar, Lauren; Edgett, Kenneth; Edwards, Christopher S.; Edwards, Laurence; Edwards, Peter; Ehlmann, Bethany; Ehresmann, Bent; Eigenbrode, Jennifer; Elliott, Beverley; Elliott, Harvey; Ewing, Ryan; Fabre, Cécile; Fairén, Alberto; Fairén, Alberto; Farley, Kenneth; Farmer, Jack; Fassett, Caleb; Favot, Laurent; Fay, Donald; Fedosov, Fedor; Feldman, Jason; Fendrich, Kim; Fischer, Erik; Fisk, Martin; Fitzgibbon, Mike; Flesch, Gregory; Floyd, Melissa; Flückiger, Lorenzo; Forni, Olivier; Fox, Valerie; Fraeman, Abigail; Francis, Raymond; François, Pascaline; Franz, Heather; Freissinet, Caroline; French, Katherine Louise; Frydenvang, Jens; Garvin, James; Gasnault, Olivier; Geffroy, Claude; Gellert, Ralf; Genzer, Maria; Getty, Stephanie; Glavin, Daniel; Godber, Austin; Goesmann, Fred; Goetz, Walter; Golovin, Dmitry; Gómez Gómez, Felipe; Gómez-Elvira, Javier; Gondet, Brigitte; Gordon, Suzanne; Gorevan, Stephen; Graham, Heather; Grant, John; Grinspoon, David; Grotzinger, John; Guillemot, Philippe; Guo, Jingnan; Gupta, Sanjeev; Guzewich, Scott; Haberle, Robert; Halleaux, Douglas; Hallet, Bernard; Hamilton, Victoria; Hand, Kevin; Hardgrove, Craig; Hardy, Keian; Harker, David; Harpold, Daniel; Harri, Ari-Matti; Harshman, Karl; Hassler, Donald; Haukka, Harri; Hayes, Alexander; Herkenhoff, Kenneth; Herrera, Paul; Hettrich, Sebastian; Heydari, Ezat; Hipkin, Victoria; Hoehler, Tori; Hollingsworth, Jeff; Hudgins, Judy; Huntress, Wesley; Hurowitz, Joel; Hviid, Stubbe; Iagnemma, Karl; Indyk, Stephen; Israël, Guy; Jackson, Ryan Steele; Jacob, Samantha; Jakosky, Bruce; Jean-Rigaud, Laurent; Jensen, Elsa; Kløvgaard Jensen, Jaqueline; Johnson, Jeffrey R.; Johnson, Micah; Johnstone, Stephen; Jones, Andrea; Jones, John H.; Joseph, Jonathan; Joulin, Mélissa; Jun, Insoo; Kah, Linda C.; Kahanpää, Henrik; Kahre, Melinda; Kaplan, Hannah; Karpushkina, Natalya; Kashyap, Srishti; Kauhanen, Janne; Keely, Leslie; Kelley, Simon; Kempe, Fabian; Kemppinen, Osku; Kennedy, Megan R.; Keymeulen, Didier; Kharytonov, Alexander; Kim, Myung-Hee; Kinch, Kjartan; King, Penelope; Kirk, Randolph; Kirkland, Laurel; Kloos, Jacob; Kocurek, Gary; Koefoed, Asmus; Köhler, Jan; Kortmann, Onno; Kotrc, Benjamin; Kozyrev, Alexander; Krau, Johannes; Krezoski, ß. Gillian; Kronyak, Rachel; Krysak, Daniel; Kuzmin, Ruslan; Lacour, Jean-Luc; Lafaille, Vivian; Langevin, Yves; Lanza, Nina; Lapôtre, Mathieu; Larif, Marie-France; Lasue, Jérémie; Le Deit, Laetitia; Le Mouélic, Stéphane; Lee, Ella Mae; Lee, Qiu-Mei; Lee, Rebekka; Lees, David; Lefavor, Matthew; Lemmon, Mark; Lepinette, Alain; Lepore, Malvitte Kate; Leshin, Laurie; Léveillé, Richard; Lewin, Éric; Lewis, Kevin; Li, Shuai; Lichtenberg, Kimberly; Lipkaman, Leslie; Lisov, Denis; Little, Cynthia; Litvak, Maxim; Liu, Lu; Lohf, Henning; Lorigny, Eric; Lugmair, Günter; Lundberg, Angela; Lyness, Eric; Madsen, Morten Bo; Magee, Angela; Mahaffy, Paul; Maki, Justin; Mäkinen, Teemu; Malakhov, Alexey; Malespin, Charles; Malin, Michael; Mangold, Nicolas; Manhes, Gerard; Manning, Heidi; Marchand, Geneviève; Marín Jiménez, Mercedes; Martín García, César; Martin, David K.; Martin, Mildred; Martin, Peter; Martínez Martínez, Germán; Martínez-Frías, Jesús; Martín-Sauceda, Jaime; Martín-Soler, Martín Javier; Martín-Torres, F. Javier; Mason, Emily; Matthews, Tristan; Matthiä, Daniel; Mauchien, Patrick; Maurice, Sylvestre; McAdam, Amy; McBride, Marie; McCartney, Elaina; McConnochie, Timothy; McCullough, Emily; McEwan, Ian; McKay, Christopher; McLain, Hannah; McLennan, Scott; McNair, Sean; Melikechi, Noureddine; Mendaza de Cal, Teresa; Merikallio, Sini; Merritt, Sean; Meslin, Pierre-Yves; Meyer, Michael; Mezzacappa, Alissa; Milkovich, Sarah; Millan, Maëva; Miller, Hayden; Miller, Kristen; Milliken, Ralph; Ming, Douglas; Minitti, Michelle; Mischna, Michael; Mitchell, Julie; Mitrofanov, Igor; Moersch, Jeffrey; Mokrousov, Maxim; Molina, Antonio; Moore, Jurado Casey; Moores, John E.; Mora-Sotomayor, Luis; Moreno, Gines; Morookian, John Michael; Morris, Richard V.; Morrison, Shaunna; Mousset, Valérie; Mrigakshi, Alankrita; Mueller-Mellin, Reinhold; Muller, Jan-Peter; Muñoz Caro, Guillermo; Nachon, Marion; Nastan, Abbey; Navarro López, Sara; Navarro González, Rafael; Nealson, Kenneth; Nefian, Ara; Nelson, Tony; Newcombe, Megan; Newman, Claire; Newsom, Horton; Nikiforov, Sergey; Nikitczuk, Matthew; Niles, Paul; Nixon, Brian; Noblet, Audrey; Noe, Eldar; Nolan, Dobrea Thomas; Oehler, Dorothy; Ollila, Ann; Olson, Timothy; Orthen, Tobias; Owen, Tobias; Ozanne, Marie; de Pablo Hernández, Miguel Ángel; Pagel, Hannah; Paillet, Alexis; Pallier, Etienne; Palucis, Marisa; Parker, Timothy; Parot, Yann; Parra, Alex; Patel, Kiran; Paton, Mark; Paulsen, Gale; Pavlov, Alexander; Pavri, Betina; Peinado-González, Verónica; Pepin, Robert; Peret, Laurent; Pérez, René; Perrett, Glynis; Peterson, Joseph; Pilorget, Cedric; Pinet, Patrick; Pinnick, Veronica; Pla-García, Jorge; Plante, Ianik; Poitrasson, Franck; Polkko, Jouni; Popa, Radu; Posiolova, Liliya; Posner, Arik; Pradler, Irina; Prats, Benito; Prokhorov, Vasily; Raaen, Eric; Radziemski, Leon; Rafkin, Scot; Ramos, Miguel; Rampe, Elizabeth; Rapin, William; Raulin, François; Ravine, Michael; Reitz, Günther; Ren, Jun; Rennó, Nilton; Rice, Melissa; Richardson, Mark; Ritter, Birgit; Rivera-Hernández, Frances; Robert, François; Robertson, Kevin; Rodriguez Manfredi, José Antonio; José Romeral-Planelló, Julio; Rowland, Scott; Rubin, David; Saccoccio, Muriel; Said, David; Salamon, Andrew; Sanin, Anton; Sans Fuentes, Sara Alejandra; Saper, Lee; Sarrazin, Philippe; Sautter, Violaine; Savijärvi, Hannu; Schieber, Juergen; Schmidt, Mariek; Schmidt, Walter; Scholes, Daniel; Schoppers, Marcel; Schröder, Susanne; Schwenzer, Susanne P.; Sciascia Borlina, Cauê; Scodary, Anthony; Sebastián Martínez, Eduardo; Sengstacken, Aaron; Shechet, Jennifer Griffes; Shterts, Ruslan; Siebach, Kirsten; Siili, Tero; Simmonds, John J.; Sirven, Jean-Baptiste; Slavney, Susan; Sletten, Ronald; Smith, Michael D.; Sobron Sanchez, Pablo; Spanovich, Nicole; Spray, John; Spring, Justin; Squyres, Steven; Stack, Katie; Stalport, Fabien; Starr, Richard; Stein, Andrew Steele Thomas; Stern, Jennifer; Stewart, Noel; Stewart, Wayne; Stipp, Svane Susan Louise; Stoiber, Kevin; Stolper, Edward; Sucharski, Robert; Sullivan, Robert; Summons, Roger; Sumner, Dawn Y.; Sun, Vivian; Supulver, Kimberley; Sutter, Brad; Szopa, Cyril; Tan, Florence; Tate, Christopher; Teinturier, Samuel; ten Kate, Inge Loes; Thomas, Alicia; Thomas, Peter; Thompson, Lucy; Thuillier, Franck; Thulliez, Emmanual; Tokar, Robert; Toplis, Michael; de la Torre Juárez, Manuel; Torres Redondo, Josefina; Trainer, Melissa; Treiman, Allan; Tretyakov, Vladislav; Ullán-Nieto, Aurora; Urqui-O'Callaghan, Roser; Valentín-Serrano, Patricia; Van Beek, Jason; Van Beek, Tessa; VanBommel, Scott; Vaniman, David; Varenikov, Alexey; Vasavada, Ashwin R.; Vasconcelos, Paulo; de Vicente-Retortillo Rubalcaba, Álvaro; Vicenzi, Edward; Vostrukhin, Andrey; Voytek, Mary; Wadhwa, Meenakshi; Ward, Jennifer; Watkins, Jessica; Webster, Christopher R.; Weigle, Gerald; Wellington, Danika; Westall, Frances; Wiens, Roger; Wilhelm, Mary Beth; Williams, Amy; Williams, Joshua; Williams, Rebecca; Williams, Richard B.; Williford, Kenneth; Wilson, Michael A.; Wilson, Sharon A.; Wimmer-Schweingruber, Robert; Wolff, Michael; Wong, Michael; Wray, James; Yana, Charles; Yen, Albert; Yingst, Aileen; Zeitlin, Cary; Zimdar, Robert; Zorzano Mier, María-Paz

2015-01-01

Reports of plumes or patches of methane in the martian atmosphere that vary over monthly time scales have defied explanation to date. From in situ measurements made over a 20-month period by the tunable laser spectrometer of the Sample Analysis at Mars instrument suite on Curiosity at Gale crater, we report detection of background levels of atmospheric methane of mean value 0.69 ± 0.25 parts per billion by volume (ppbv) at the 95% confidence interval (CI). This abundance is lower than model estimates of ultraviolet degradation of accreted interplanetary dust particles or carbonaceous chondrite material. Additionally, in four sequential measurements spanning a 60-sol period (where 1 sol is a martian day), we observed elevated levels of methane of 7.2 ± 2.1 ppbv (95% CI), implying that Mars is episodically producing methane from an additional unknown source.

Nitrogen as a regulatory factor of methane oxidation in soils and sediments

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Bodelier, P.L.E.; Laanbroek, H.J.

2004-01-01

The oxidation of methane by methane-oxidising microorganisms is an important link in the global methane budget. Oxic soils are a net sink while wetland soils are a net source of atmospheric methane. It has generally been accepted that the consumption of methane in upland as well as lowland systems

Atmospheric Inverse Estimates of Methane Emissions from Central California

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhao, Chuanfeng; Andrews, Arlyn E.; Bianco, Laura; Eluszkiewicz, Janusz; Hirsch, Adam; MacDonald, Clinton; Nehrkorn, Thomas; Fischer, Marc L.

2008-11-21

Methane mixing ratios measured at a tall-tower are compared to model predictions to estimate surface emissions of CH{sub 4} in Central California for October-December 2007 using an inverse technique. Predicted CH{sub 4} mixing ratios are calculated based on spatially resolved a priori CH{sub 4} emissions and simulated atmospheric trajectories. The atmospheric trajectories, along with surface footprints, are computed using the Weather Research and Forecast (WRF) coupled to the Stochastic Time-Inverted Lagrangian Transport (STILT) model. An uncertainty analysis is performed to provide quantitative uncertainties in estimated CH{sub 4} emissions. Three inverse model estimates of CH{sub 4} emissions are reported. First, linear regressions of modeled and measured CH{sub 4} mixing ratios obtain slopes of 0.73 {+-} 0.11 and 1.09 {+-} 0.14 using California specific and Edgar 3.2 emission maps respectively, suggesting that actual CH{sub 4} emissions were about 37 {+-} 21% higher than California specific inventory estimates. Second, a Bayesian 'source' analysis suggests that livestock emissions are 63 {+-} 22% higher than the a priori estimates. Third, a Bayesian 'region' analysis is carried out for CH{sub 4} emissions from 13 sub-regions, which shows that inventory CH{sub 4} emissions from the Central Valley are underestimated and uncertainties in CH{sub 4} emissions are reduced for sub-regions near the tower site, yielding best estimates of flux from those regions consistent with 'source' analysis results. The uncertainty reductions for regions near the tower indicate that a regional network of measurements will be necessary to provide accurate estimates of surface CH{sub 4} emissions for multiple regions.

The potential for biologically catalyzed anaerobic methane oxidation on ancient Mars.

Science.gov (United States)

Marlow, Jeffrey J; Larowe, Douglas E; Ehlmann, Bethany L; Amend, Jan P; Orphan, Victoria J

2014-04-01

This study examines the potential for the biologically mediated anaerobic oxidation of methane (AOM) coupled to sulfate reduction on ancient Mars. Seven distinct fluids representative of putative martian groundwater were used to calculate Gibbs energy values in the presence of dissolved methane under a range of atmospheric CO2 partial pressures. In all scenarios, AOM is exergonic, ranging from -31 to -135 kJ/mol CH4. A reaction transport model was constructed to examine how environmentally relevant parameters such as advection velocity, reactant concentrations, and biomass production rate affect the spatial and temporal dependences of AOM reaction rates. Two geologically supported models for ancient martian AOM are presented: a sulfate-rich groundwater with methane produced from serpentinization by-products, and acid-sulfate fluids with methane from basalt alteration. The simulations presented in this study indicate that AOM could have been a feasible metabolism on ancient Mars, and fossil or isotopic evidence of this metabolic pathway may persist beneath the surface and in surface exposures of eroded ancient terrains.

Methane-steam reforming by molten salt - membrane reactor using concentrated solar thermal energy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Watanuki, K.; Nakajima, H.; Hasegawa, N.; Kaneko, H.; Tamaura, Y.

2006-01-01

By utilization of concentrated solar thermal energy for steam reforming of natural gas, which is an endothermic reaction, the chemical energy of natural gas can be up-graded. The chemical system for steam reforming of natural gas with concentrated solar thermal energy was studied to produce hydrogen by using the thermal storage with molten salt and the membrane reactor. The original steam reforming module with hydrogen permeable palladium membrane was developed and fabricated. Steam reforming of methane proceeded with the original module with palladium membrane below the decomposition temperature of molten salt (around 870 K). (authors)

Methane and nitrous oxide emissions from a subtropical estuary (the Brisbane River estuary, Australia)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Musenze, Ronald S.; Werner, Ursula [Advanced Water Management Centre (AWMC), the University of Queensland, Brisbane, Qld 4072 (Australia); Grinham, Alistair [Advanced Water Management Centre (AWMC), the University of Queensland, Brisbane, Qld 4072 (Australia); School of Civil Engineering, the University of Queensland, Brisbane, Qld 4072 (Australia); Udy, James [Healthy Waterways Ltd, P.O. Box 13086, George Street, Brisbane, Qld 4003 (Australia); Yuan, Zhiguo, E-mail: z.yuan@awmc.uq.edu.au [Advanced Water Management Centre (AWMC), the University of Queensland, Brisbane, Qld 4072 (Australia)

2014-02-01

Methane (CH{sub 4}) and nitrous oxide (N{sub 2}O) are two key greenhouse gases. Their global atmospheric budgeting is, however, flout with challenges partly due to lack of adequate field studies determining the source strengths. Knowledge and data limitations exist for subtropical and tropical regions especially in the southern latitudes. Surface water methane and nitrous oxide concentrations were measured in a subtropical estuarine system in the southern latitudes in an extensive field study from 2010 to 2012 and water–air fluxes estimated using models considering the effects of both wind and flow induced turbulence. The estuary was found to be a strong net source of both CH{sub 4} and N{sub 2}O all-year-round. Dissolved N{sub 2}O concentrations ranged between 9.1 ± 0.4 to 45.3 ± 1.3 nM or 135 to 435% of atmospheric saturation level, while CH{sub 4} concentrations varied between 31.1 ± 3.7 to 578.4 ± 58.8 nM or 1210 to 26,430% of atmospheric saturation level. These results compare well with measurements from tropical estuarine systems. There was strong spatial variability with both CH{sub 4} and N{sub 2}O concentrations increasing upstream the estuary. Strong temporal variability was also observed but there were no clear seasonal patterns. The degree of N{sub 2}O saturation significantly increased with NO{sub x} concentrations (r{sup 2} = 0.55). The estimated water–air fluxes varied between 0.1 and 3.4 mg N{sub 2}O m{sup −2} d{sup −1} and 0.3 to 27.9 mg CH{sub 4} m{sup −2} d{sup −1}. Total emissions (CO{sub 2}-e) were N{sub 2}O (64%) dominated, highlighting the need for reduced nitrogen inputs into the estuary. Choice of the model(s) for estimation of the gas transfer velocity had a big bearing on the estimated total emissions. - Highlights: • The estuary is a strong source of atmospheric methane and nitrous oxide. • Emissions had strong spatial-temporal variability with unclear seasonal patterns. • Dissolved gas saturation comparable to that

Anaerobic membrane bioreactors and the influence of space velocity and biomass concentration on methane production for liquid dairy manure

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wallace, James M.; Safferman, Steven I.

2014-01-01

Two pilot-scale anaerobic membrane bioreactors (AnMBRs) and a control completely mixed digester (CMD) were constructed to evaluate the influence of space velocity and biomass concentration on methane production for sand separated dairy manure. A negative impact on methane production resulted with operating the AnMBR system at 972 μHz–2960 μHz but no impact was found when operating at 69 μHz and 312 μHz. Operating at 69 μHz–350 μHz is realistic for a field installation. Despite the higher biomass concentration, the methane production of the AnMBRs was nearly equal to the CMD. An AnMBR with 69 μHz was operated equivalent to a CMD by returning all permeate to the digester tank and removing excess biomass directly from the reactor tank resulting in a hydraulic retention time (HRT) equal to the solids retention time (SRT). When using sand separated dairy manure and an HRT (and equal SRT) of 12 d, both systems produced methane at an equal rate, suggesting that the pump/membrane system did not influence methane production. The most likely reason was mass transfer limitations of hydrolytic enzymes. Based on methane production and volatile fatty acids analysis, it appears the fermentable substrate available for degradation was similar. The AnMBR proved to have benefit as part of an integrated nutrient management system that produced water that is virtually free of particulate nutrients, especially phosphorus. This enables the irrigation of the water to crops that need nitrogen and the efficient movement of phosphorus, as a solid, to needed locations. - Highlights: • Manure AnMBRs with a high space velocity inhibit methane production. • Manure AnMBRs with a low space velocity perform similar to conventional digesters. • Decoupled HRT and SRT in manure AnMBRs do not increase methane production. • Ultrafiltration membranes effectively partitioned manure nutrients from the liquid. • Manure does not foul ultrafiltration membranes and require mild

Quantification of strong emissions of methane in the Arctic using spectral measurements from TANSO-FTS and IASI

Science.gov (United States)

Bourakkadi, Zakia; Payan, Sébastien; Bureau, Jérôme

2015-04-01

Methane is the second most important greenhouse gas after the carbon dioxide but it is 25 times more effective in contributing to the radiative forcing than the carbon dioxide(1). Since the pre-industrial times global methane concentration have more than doubled in the atmosphere. This increase is generally caused by anthropogenic activities like the massif use and extraction of fossil fuel, rice paddy agriculture, emissions from landfills... In recent years, several studies show that climate warming and thawing of permafrost act on the mobilization of old stored carbon in Arctic causing a sustained release of methane to the atmosphere(2),(3),(4). The methane emissions from thawing permafrost and methane hydrates in the northern circumpolar region will become potentially important in the end of the 21st centry because they could increase dramatically due to the rapid climate warming of the Artic and the large carbon pools stored there. The objective of this study is to evaluate and quantify methane strong emissions in this region of the globe using spectral measurements from the Thermal And Near Infrared Sensor for carbon Observations-Fourier Transform Spectrometer (TANSO-FTS) and the Infrared Atmospheric Sounding Interferometer (IASI). We use also the LMDZ-PYVAR model to simulate methane fluxes and to estimate how they could be observed by Infrared Sounders from space. To select spectra with high values of methane we developed a statistical approach based on the singular value decomposition. Using this approach we can identify spectra over the important emission sources of methane and we can by this way reduce the number of spectra to retrieve by an line-by-line radiative transfer model in order to focus on those which contain high amount of methane. In order to estimate the capacity of TANSO-FTS and IASI to detect peaks of methane emission with short duration at quasi-real time, we used data from MACC (Monitoring Atmospheric Composition and Climate) simulations

Impact of a global warming on biospheric sources of methane and its climatic consequences

Science.gov (United States)

Hameed, S.; Cess, R. D.

1980-01-01

Most of atmospheric methane originates by bacterial processes in anaerobic environments within the soil which are found to become more productive with increases in ambient temperature. A warming of climate, due to increasing levels of industrial gases resulting from fossil fuel burning, is thus likely to increase methane abundance within the atmosphere. This may lead to further heating of the atmosphere, since both methane and ozone (which is generated in the troposphere from reactions of methane) have greenhouse effects. This feedback mechanism has been explored with the use of a coupled climate-chemical model of the troposphere, by the calculation of the impact of the predicted global warming due to increased emissions of carbon dioxide and other industrial gases on the biospheric sources of methane.

Methane from the East Siberian Arctic shelf

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Petrenko...[], Vasilii V.; Etheridge, David M.

2010-01-01

In their Report “Extensive methane venting to the atmosphere from sediments of the East Siberian Arctic Shelf” (5 March, p. 1246), N. Shakhova et al. write that methane (CH4) release resulting from thawing Arctic permafrost “is a likely positive feedback to climate warming.” They add...

Methane flux from boreal peatlands

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Crill, P.; Bartlett, K.; Roulet, N.

1992-01-01

The peatlands in the boreal zone (roughly 45 deg - 60 degN) store a significant reservoir of carbon, much of which is potentially available for exchange with the atmosphere. The anaerobic conditions that cause these soils to accumulate carbon also makes wet, boreal peatlands significant sources of methane to the global troposphere. It is estimated that boreal wetlands contribute approximately 19.5 Tg methane per year. The data available on the magnitude of boreal methane emissions have rapidly accumulated in the past twenty years. This paper offers a short review of the flux measured (with range roughly 1 - 2000 mg methane/m2d), considers environmental controls of the flux and briefly discusses how climate change might affect future fluxes

Diffusive flux of methane from warm wetlands

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Barber, T.R.; Burke, R.A.; Sackett, W.M. (Univ. of South Florida, St. Petersburg (USA))

1988-12-01

Diffusion of methane across the air-water interface from several wetland environments in south Florida was estimated from measured surface water concentrations using an empirically derived gas exchange model. The flux from the Everglades sawgrass marsh system varied widely, ranging from 0.18 + or{minus}0.21 mol CH{sub 4}/sq m/yr for densely vegetated regions to 2.01 + or{minus}0.88 for sparsely vegetated, calcitic mud areas. Despite brackish salinities, a strong methane flux, 1.87 + or{minus}0.63 mol CH{sub 4}/sq m/yr, was estimated for an organic-rich mangrove pond near Florida Bay. The diffusive flux accounted for 23, 36, and 13% of the total amount of CH{sub 4} emitted to the atmosphere from these environments, respectively. The average dissolved methane concentration for an organic-rich forested swamp was the highest of any site at 12.6 microM; however, the calculated diffusive flux from this location, 2.57 + or{minus}1.88 mol CH{sub 4}/sq m/yr, was diminished by an extensive plant canopy that sheltered the air-water interface from the wind. The mean diffusive flux from four freshwater lakes, 0.77 + or{minus}0.73 mol CH{sub 4}/sq m/yr, demonstrated little temperature dependence. The mean diffusive flux for an urbanized, subtropical estuary was 0.06 + or{minus}0.05 mol CH{sub 4}/sq m/yr.

Interactions between nitrogenous fertilizers and methane cycling in wetland and upland soils

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Bodelier, P.L.E.

2011-01-01

Recent dynamics and uncertainties in global methane budgets necessitate research of controls of sources and sinks of atmospheric methane. Production of methane by methanogenic archaea in wetlands is a major source while consumption by methane oxidizing bacteria in upland soils is a major sink.

Influence of emissions on regional atmospheric mercury concentrations

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bieser J.

2013-04-01

Full Text Available Mercury is a global pollutant that is rapidly transported in the atmosphere. Unlike the majority of air pollutants the background concentrations of mercury play a major role for the atmospheric concentrations on a hemispheric scale. In this study the influence of regional anthropogenic emissions in comparison to the global emissions on mercury concentrations over Europe are investigated. For this purpose an advanced threedimensional model system is used that consists of three components. The emission model SMOKE-EU, the meteorological model COSMO-CLM, and the chemistry transport model (CTM CMAQ. A variety of sensitivity runs is performed in order to determine the influence of different driving factors (i.e. boundary conditions, anthropogenic and natural emissions, emission factors, meteorological fields on the atmoshperic concentrations of different mercury species. This study is part of the European FP7 project GMOS (Global Mercury Observation System. The aim is to identify the most important drivers for atmospheric mercury in order to optimize future regional modelling studies in the course of the GMOS project. Moreover, the model results are used to determine areas of interest for air-plane based in-situ measurements which are also part of GMOS.

Attribution of changes in global wetland methane emissions from pre-industrial to present using CLM4.5-BGC

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Paudel, Rajendra; Mahowald, Natalie M; Hess, Peter G M; Meng, Lei; Riley, William J

2016-01-01

An understanding of potential factors controlling methane emissions from natural wetlands is important to accurately project future atmospheric methane concentrations. Here, we examine the relative contributions of climatic and environmental factors, such as precipitation, temperature, atmospheric CO 2 concentration, nitrogen deposition, wetland inundation extent, and land-use and land-cover change, on changes in wetland methane emissions from preindustrial to present day (i.e., 1850–2005). We apply a mechanistic methane biogeochemical model integrated in the Community Land Model version 4.5 (CLM4.5), the land component of the Community Earth System Model. The methane model explicitly simulates methane production, oxidation, ebullition, transport through aerenchyma of plants, and aqueous and gaseous diffusion. We conduct a suite of model simulations from 1850 to 2005, with all changes in environmental factors included, and sensitivity studies isolating each factor. Globally, we estimate that preindustrial methane emissions were higher by 10% than present-day emissions from natural wetlands, with emissions changes from preindustrial to the present of +15%, −41%, and −11% for the high latitudes, temperate regions, and tropics, respectively. The most important change is due to the estimated change in wetland extent, due to the conversion of wetland areas to drylands by humans. This effect alone leads to higher preindustrial global methane fluxes by 33% relative to the present, with the largest change in temperate regions (+80%). These increases were partially offset by lower preindustrial emissions due to lower CO 2 levels (10%), shifts in precipitation (7%), lower nitrogen deposition (3%), and changes in land-use and land-cover (2%). Cooler temperatures in the preindustrial regions resulted in our simulations in an increase in global methane emissions of 6% relative to present day. Much of the sensitivity to these perturbations is mediated in the model by

Anthropogenic Methane Emissions in California's San Joaquin Valley: Characterizing Large Point Source Emitters

Science.gov (United States)

Hopkins, F. M.; Duren, R. M.; Miller, C. E.; Aubrey, A. D.; Falk, M.; Holland, L.; Hook, S. J.; Hulley, G. C.; Johnson, W. R.; Kuai, L.; Kuwayama, T.; Lin, J. C.; Thorpe, A. K.; Worden, J. R.; Lauvaux, T.; Jeong, S.; Fischer, M. L.

2015-12-01

Methane is an important atmospheric pollutant that contributes to global warming and tropospheric ozone production. Methane mitigation could reduce near term climate change and improve air quality, but is hindered by a lack of knowledge of anthropogenic methane sources. Recent work has shown that methane emissions are not evenly distributed in space, or across emission sources, suggesting that a large fraction of anthropogenic methane comes from a few "super-emitters." We studied the distribution of super-emitters in California's southern San Joaquin Valley, where elevated levels of atmospheric CH4 have also been observed from space. Here, we define super-emitters as methane plumes that could be reliably detected (i.e., plume observed more than once in the same location) under varying wind conditions by airborne thermal infrared remote sensing. The detection limit for this technique was determined to be 4.5 kg CH4 h-1 by a controlled release experiment, corresponding to column methane enhancement at the point of emissions greater than 20% above local background levels. We surveyed a major oil production field, and an area with a high concentration of large dairies using a variety of airborne and ground-based measurements. Repeated airborne surveys (n=4) with the Hyperspectral Thermal Emission Spectrometer revealed 28 persistent methane plumes emanating from oil field infrastructure, including tanks, wells, and processing facilities. The likelihood that a given source type was a super-emitter varied from roughly 1/3 for processing facilities to 1/3000 for oil wells. 11 persistent plumes were detected in the dairy area, and all were associated with wet manure management. The majority (11/14) of manure lagoons in the study area were super-emitters. Comparing to a California methane emissions inventory for the surveyed areas, we estimate that super-emitters comprise a minimum of 9% of inventoried dairy emissions, and 13% of inventoried oil emissions in this region.

Methane sources in gas hydrate-bearing cold seeps: Evidence from radiocarbon and stable isotopes

Science.gov (United States)

Pohlman, J.W.; Bauer, J.E.; Canuel, E.A.; Grabowski, K.S.; Knies, D.L.; Mitchell, C.S.; Whiticar, Michael J.; Coffin, R.B.

2009-01-01

Fossil methane from the large and dynamic marine gas hydrate reservoir has the potential to influence oceanic and atmospheric carbon pools. However, natural radiocarbon (14C) measurements of gas hydrate methane have been extremely limited, and their use as a source and process indicator has not yet been systematically established. In this study, gas hydrate-bound and dissolved methane recovered from six geologically and geographically distinct high-gas-flux cold seeps was found to be 98 to 100% fossil based on its 14C content. Given this prevalence of fossil methane and the small contribution of gas hydrate (??? 1%) to the present-day atmospheric methane flux, non-fossil contributions of gas hydrate methane to the atmosphere are not likely to be quantitatively significant. This conclusion is consistent with contemporary atmospheric methane budget calculations. In combination with ??13C- and ??D-methane measurements, we also determine the extent to which the low, but detectable, amounts of 14C (~ 1-2% modern carbon, pMC) in methane from two cold seeps might reflect in situ production from near-seafloor sediment organic carbon (SOC). A 14C mass balance approach using fossil methane and 14C-enriched SOC suggests that as much as 8 to 29% of hydrate-associated methane carbon may originate from SOC contained within the upper 6??m of sediment. These findings validate the assumption of a predominantly fossil carbon source for marine gas hydrate, but also indicate that structural gas hydrate from at least certain cold seeps contains a component of methane produced during decomposition of non-fossil organic matter in near-surface sediment.

Characterizing the Upper Atmosphere of Titan using the Titan Global Ionosphere- Thermosphere Model: Nitrogen and Methane.

Science.gov (United States)

Bell, J. M.; Waite, J. H.; Bar-Nun, A.; Bougher, S. W.; Ridley, A. J.; Magee, B.

2008-12-01

Recently, a great deal of effort has been put forth to explain the Cassini Ion-Neutral Mass Spectrometer (Waite et al [2004]) in-situ measurements of Titan's upper atmosphere (e.g. Muller-Wodarg [2008], Strobel [2008], Yelle et al [2008]). Currently, the community seems to agree that large amounts of CH4 are escaping from Titan's upper atmosphere at a rate of roughly 2.0 x 1027 molecules of CH4/s (3.33 x 1028 amu/s), representing a significant mass source to the Kronian Magnetosphere. However, such large escape fluxes from Titan are currently not corroborated by measurements onboard the Cassini Spacecraft. Thus, we posit another potential scenario: Aerosol depletion of atmospheric methane. Using the three-dimensional Titan Global Ionosphere-Thermosphere Model (T-GITM) (Bell et al [2008]), we explore the possible removal mechanisms of atmospheric gaseous constituents by these aerosols. Titan simulations are directly compared against Cassini Ion-Neutral Mass Spectrometer in-situ densities of N2 and CH4. From this work, we can then compare and contrast this aerosol depletion scenario against the currently posited hydrodynamic escape scenario, illustrating the merits and shortcomings of both.

Time-series analysis for the episodic production and transport of methane from the Glacial Lake Agassiz peatlands, northern Minnesota. Final report

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Siegel, D.I.

1998-01-01

The large peat basins of North America are an important reservoir in the global carbon cycle and a significant source of atmospheric methane. The authors investigated carbon cycling in the Glacial Lake Agassiz peatlands (GLAP) of Minnesota. Initially in 1990, they identified a dramatic change in the concentration of methane in the pore-waters of the raised bogs in the GLAP during an extreme drought. This methane dissipated when the drought broke in 1991 and the occurrence of deep methane is related to changes in the direction of groundwater flow in the peat column. The production of methane and its diffusive loss to the atmosphere was modeled and was about 10 times less than that measured directly in chambers at the land surface. It is clear from the reversals in hydraulic heat, changes in pore-water chemical composition over time, and paleostratigraphic markers, that regional ground water flow systems that are controlled by climate change are unexpectedly a major control over methanogenesis and carbon cycling in GLAP. Seismic profiles made showed that buried bedrock ridges particularly deflect regional groundwater flow upwards towards the land surface and towards raised bog landforms. In addition, high-resolution GPS measurements from data stations funded by this DOE project have shown this year that the peakland land surface elevation changes daily on a scale of cms, and seasonally on a scale of 10s of cm. This most recent observation is exciting because it may reflect episodic degassing of free phase methane from the peat column to the atmosphere, a source for methane previously unaccounted for by methane researchers.

Field Results from Three Campaigns to Validate the Performance of the Miniaturized Laser Heterodyne Radiometer (Mini-LHR) for Measuring Carbon Dioxide and Methane in the Atmospheric Column

Science.gov (United States)

Miller, J. Houston; Clarke, Greg B.; Melroy, Hilary; Ott, Lesley; Steel, Emily Wilson

2014-01-01

In a collaboration between NASA GSFC and GWU, a low-cost, surface instrument is being developed that can continuously monitor key carbon cycle gases in the atmospheric column: carbon dioxide (CO2) and methane (CH4). The instrument is based on a miniaturized, laser heterodyne radiometer (LHR) using near infrared (NIR) telecom lasers. Despite relatively weak absorption line strengths in this spectral region, spectrallyresolved atmospheric column absorptions for these two molecules fall in the range of 60-80% and thus sensitive and precise measurements of column concentrations are possible. In the last year, the instrument was deployed for field measurements at Park Falls, Wisconsin; Castle Airport near Atwater, California; and at the NOAA Mauna Loa Observatory in Hawaii. For each subsequent campaign, improvement in the figures of merit for the instrument has been observed. In the latest work the absorbance noise is approaching 0.002 optical density (OD) noise on a 1.8 OD signal. An overview of the measurement campaigns and the data retrieval algorithm for the calculation of column concentrations will be presented. For light transmission through the atmosphere, it is necessary to account for variation of pressure, temperature, composition, and refractive index through the atmosphere that are all functions of latitude, longitude, time of day, altitude, etc. For temperature, pressure, and humidity profiles with altitude we use the Modern-Era Retrospective Analysis for Research and Applications (MERRA) data. Spectral simulation is accomplished by integrating short-path segments along the trajectory using the SpecSyn spectral simulation suite developed at GW. Column concentrations are extracted by minimizing residuals between observed and modeled spectrum using the Nelder-Mead simplex algorithm. We will also present an assessment of uncertainty in the reported concentrations from assumptions made in the meteorological data, LHR instrument and tracker noise, and radio

Free atmospheric phosphine concentrations and fluxes in different wetland ecosystems, China

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Han Chao; Geng Jinju; Hong Yuning; Zhang Rui; Gu Xueyuan; Wang Xiaorong; Gao Shixiang; Glindemann, Dietmar

2011-01-01

Atmospheric phosphine (PH 3 ) fluxes from typical types of wetlands and PH 3 concentrations in adjacent atmospheric air were measured. The seasonal distribution of PH 3 in marsh and paddy fields were observed. Positive PH 3 fluxes are significantly related to high air temperature (summer season) and increased vegetation. It is concluded that vegetation speeds up the liberation of PH 3 from soils, while water coverage might function as a diffusion barrier from soils or sediments to the atmosphere. The concentrations of atmospheric PH 3 (ng m -3 ) above different wetlands decrease in the order of paddy fields (51.8 ± 3.1) > marsh (46.5 ± 20.5) > lake (37.0 ± 22.7) > coastal wetland (1.71 ± 0.73). Highest atmospheric PH 3 levels in marsh are found in summer. In paddy fields, atmospheric PH 3 concentrations in flourishing stages are higher than those in slowly growing stages. - Research highlights: → P could migrate as PH 3 gas in different wetland ecosystems. → Wetlands act as a source and sink of atmospheric PH 3 . → Positive PH 3 fluxes are significantly related to high temperature and increased vegetation. → Environmental PH 3 concentrations in China are generally higher. - Environmental PH 3 concentrations in China are generally higher compared to other parts of the world.

Microbial methane oxidation processes and technologies for mitigation of landfill gas emissions

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Scheutz, Charlotte; Kjeldsen, Peter; Bogner, J.E.

2009-01-01

Landfill gas containing methane is produced by anaerobic degradation of organic waste. Methane is a strong greenhouse gas and landfills are one of the major anthropogenic sources of atmospheric methane. Landfill methane may be oxidized by methanotrophic microorganisms in soils or waste materials...... to predict methane emissions from landfills. Additional research and technology development is needed before methane mitigation technologies utilizing microbial methane oxidation processes can become commercially viable and widely deployed....

Assessing methane oxidation under landfill covers and its contribution to the above atmospheric CO2 levels: The added value of the isotope (δ13C and δ18O CO2; δ13C and δD CH4) approach

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Widory, D.; Proust, E.; Bellenfant, G.; Bour, O.

2012-01-01

Highlights: ► Comparison of the isotope and mass balance approaches to evaluate the level of methane oxidation within a landfill. ► The level of methane oxidation is not homogenous under the landfill cover and is strongly correlated to the methane flux. ► Isotope tracking of the contribution of the methane oxidation to the CO 2 concentrations in the ambient air. - Abstract: We are presenting here a multi-isotope approach (δ 13 C and δ 18 O of CO 2 ; δ 13 C and δD of CH 4 ) to assess (i) the level(s) of methane oxidation during waste biodegradation and its migration through a landfill cover in Sonzay (France), and (ii) its contribution to the atmospheric CO 2 levels above the surface. The isotope approach is compared to the more conventional mass balance approach. Results from the two techniques are comparable and show that the CH 4 oxidation under the landfill cover is heterogenous, with low oxidation percentages in samples showing high biogas fluxes, which was expected in clay covers presenting fissures, through which CH 4 is rapidly transported. At shallow depth, more immobile biogas pockets show a higher level of CH 4 oxidation by the methanotrophic bacteria. δ 13 C of CO 2 samples taken at different heights (from below the cover up to 8 m above the ground level) were also used to identify and assess the relative contributions of its main sources both under the landfill cover and in the surrounding atmosphere.

Effect of Aqueous Ammonia Soaking on the methane yield and composition of digested manure fibers applying different ammonia concentrations and treatment durations

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Mirtsou-Xanthopoulou, Chrysoula; Jurado, Esperanza; Skiadas, Ioannis

2014-01-01

, their economical profitable operation relies on increasing the methane yield from manure, and especially of its solid fraction which is not so easily degradable. In the present study, Aqueous Ammonia Soaking (AAS) in six different concentrations in ammonia (5%, 10%, 15%, 20%, 25% and 32%) and for 1, 3 and 5 days...... at 22°C was applied on digested fibers separated from the effluent of a manure-fed, full-scale anaerobic digester. A methane yield increase from 76% to 104% was achieved during the first series of experiments, while the difference in reagent concentration did not considerably affect the methane yield...... is a very promising treatment resulting to an overall increase of the methane yield of digested manure fibers from 76 to 265% depending on the conditions and the batch of digested fibers used (an even higher increase of 190-265% was achieved during the 2nd series of experiments, where different AAS...

Validation of landfill methane measurements from an unmanned aerial system

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Allen, Grant; Williams, Paul; Ricketts, hugo

Landfill gas is made up of roughly equal amounts of methane and carbon dioxide. Modern UK landfills capture and use much of the methane gas as a fuel. But some methane escapes and is emitted to the atmosphere. Methane is an important greenhouse gas and controls on methane emissions are a part...... of international and national strategies to limit climate change. Better estimates of methane emissions from landfills and other similar sources would allow the UK to improve the quantification and control of greenhouse gas emissions. This project tested the accuracy of methane measurement using an unmanned aerial...

Direct Activation Of Methane

KAUST Repository

Basset, Jean-Marie

2013-07-15

Heteropolyacids (HPAs) can activate methane at ambient temperature (e.g., 20.degree. C.) and atmospheric pressure, and transform methane to acetic acid, in the absence of any noble metal such as Pd). The HPAs can be, for example, those with Keggin structure: H.sub.4SiW.sub.12O.sub.40, H.sub.3PW.sub.12O.sub.40, H.sub.4SiMo.sub.12O.sub.40, or H.sub.3PMo.sub.12O.sub.40, can be when supported on silica.

Methane emissions from a freshwater marsh in response to experimentally simulated global warming and nitrogen enrichment

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Flury, Sabine; McGinnis, Daniel Frank; Gessner, Mark O.

2010-01-01

We determined methane (CH4) emissions in a field enclosure experiment in a littoral freshwater marsh under the influence of experimentally simulated warming and enhanced nitrogen deposition. Methane emissions by ebullition from the marsh composed of Phragmites australis were measured with funnel ...... to the atmosphere, even when they occupy only relatively small littoral areas. More detailed investigations are clearly needed to assess whether global warming and nitrogen deposition can have climate feedbacks by altering methane fluxes from these wetlands.  ......We determined methane (CH4) emissions in a field enclosure experiment in a littoral freshwater marsh under the influence of experimentally simulated warming and enhanced nitrogen deposition. Methane emissions by ebullition from the marsh composed of Phragmites australis were measured with funnel...... traps deployed in a series of enclosures for two 3 week periods. Diffusive fluxes were estimated on the basis of measured CH4 concentrations and application of Fick's law. Neither diffusive nor ebullitive fluxes of methane were significantly affected by warming or nitrate enrichment, possibly because...

DETERMINATION OF THE ZONE ENDANGERED BY METHANE EXPLOSION IN GOAF WITH CAVING OF LONGWALLS VENTILATED ON „Y” SYSTEM

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jarosław BRODNY

2016-10-01

Full Text Available One of the most dangerous and most commonly present risks in hard coal mines is methane hazard. During exploitation by longwall system with caving, methane is emitted to mine heading from the mined coal and coal left in a pile. A large amount of methane also flows from neighboring seams through cracks and fissures formed in rock mass. In a case of accumulation of explosive methane concentration in goaf zone and with appropriate oxygen concentration and occur-rence of initials (e.g. spark or endogenous fire, it may come to the explosion of this gas. In the paper there are present-ed results of numerical analysis of mixture of air and methane streams flow through the real heading system of a mine, characterized by high methane hazard. The aim of the studies was to analyze the ventilation system of considered head-ing system and determination of braking zones in goaf zone, in which dangerous and explosive concertation of methane can occur with sufficient oxygen concentration equal to at least 12%. Determination of position of these zones is neces-sary for the selection of appropriate parameters of the ventilation system to ensure safety of the crew. Analysis of the scale of methane hazard allows to select such a ventilation system of exploitation and neighboring headings that ensures chemical composition of mining atmosphere required by regulation, and required efficiency of methane drainage. The obtained results clearly show that numerical methods, combined with the results of tests in real conditions can be suc-cessfully used for the analysis of variants of processes related to ventilation of underground mining, and also in the anal-ysis of emergency states.

Titan through Time: Evolution of Titan's Atmosphere and its Hydrocarbon Cycle on the Surface

Science.gov (United States)

Gilliam, Ashley E.

The Introduction and Appendix i-A outline briefly the history of Titan exploration since its discovery by Christiaan Huygens in 1675 through the recent International Mission of Cassini-Huygens.. Chapter 1: This chapter discusses two possible pathways of loss of the two main gases from Titan's post-accretional atmosphere, methane (CH 4) and ammonia (NH3), by the mechanisms of thermal escape and emission from the interior coupled with thermal escape. Chapter 2: In this chapter, a simple photolysis model is created, where the second most abundant component of the present-day Titan atmosphere, methane (CH4), can either escape the atmosphere or undergo photolytic conversion to ethane (C2H6). Chapter 3: This chapter examines different fluvial features on Titan, identified by the Cassini spacecraft, and evaluates the possibilities of channel formation by two mechanisms: dissolution of ice by a concentrated solution of ammonium sulfate, and by mechanical erosion by flow of liquid ammonia and liquid ethane. Chapter 4: This chapter presents: (1) new explicit mathematical solutions of mixed 1st and 2nd order chemical reactions, represented by ordinary differential first-degree and Riccati equations; (2) the computed present-day concentrations of the three gases in Titan's scale atmosphere, treated as at near-steady state; and (3) an analysis of the reported and computed atmospheric concentrations of CH4, CH 3, and C2H6 on Titan, based on the reaction rate parameters of the species, the rate parameters taken as constants representative of their mean values. Chapter 5: This chapter examines the possible reactions of methane formation in terms of the thermodynamic relationships of the reactions that include pure carbon as graphite, the gases H2, CO2, H2 O, and serpentinization and magnetite formation from olivine fayalite. (Abstract shortened by ProQuest.).

Identification of urban gas leaks and evaluation of methane emission inventories using mobile measurements

Science.gov (United States)

Zazzeri, Giulia; Lowry, Dave; Fisher, Rebecca E.; France, James L.; Butler, Dominique; Lanoisellé, Mathias; Nisbet, Euan G.

2017-04-01

Leakages from the natural gas distribution network, power plants and refineries account for the 10% of national methane emissions in the UK (http://naei.defra.gov.uk/), and are identified as a major source of methane in big conurbations (e.g. Townsend-Small et al., 2012; Phillips et al., 2013). The National Atmospheric Emission Inventories (NAEI) website provides a list of gas installations, but emissions from gas leakage, which in the inventories are estimated on the basis of the population distribution, are difficult to predict, which makes their estimation highly uncertain. Surveys with a mobile measurement system (Zazzeri et al., 2015) were carried out in the London region for detection of fugitive natural gas and in other sites in the UK (i.e. Bacton, Southampton, North Yorkshire) to identify emissions from various gas installations. The methane isotopic analysis of air samples collected during the surveys, using the methodology in Zazzeri et al. (2015), allows the calculation of the δ13C signature characterising natural gas in the UK. The isotopic value of the natural gas supply to SE London has changed a little in recent years, being close to -34 ‰ over 1998-99 period (Lowry et al., 2001) and close to -36 ‰ since at least 2002. Emissions from gas installations, such as pumping stations in NE England (-41 ± 2 ‰ ) were detected, but some of them were not listed in the inventories. Furthermore, the spatial distribution of the gas leaks identified during the surveys in the London region does not coincide with the distribution suggested by the inventories. By locating both small gas leaks and emissions from large gas installations, we can verify how these methane sources are targeted by national emission inventories. Lowry, D., Holmes, C.W., Rata, N.D., O'Brien, P., and Nisbet, E.G., 2001, London methane emissions: Use of diurnal changes in concentration and δ13C to identify urban sources and verify inventories: Journal of Geophysical Research

Methane concentration in water column and in pore water of a coastal lagoon (Cabiúnas lagoon, Macaé, RJ, Brazil

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

André Luiz dos Santos Fonseca

2004-06-01

Full Text Available The aim of this study was to evaluate methane concentration in water column and pore water at limnetic and littoral regions of a coastal lagoon. At the littoral region samples were taken from three monospecific macrophytes stands (Typha domingensis, Eleocharis interstincta and Potamogeton stenostachys. The methane concentration in the pore water at the littoral region was higher than the concentration found at the limnetic region in each fraction of the sediment. The higher methane concentration in the superficial fraction of the sediment (0-2 cm was shown at the P. stenostachys stand (3.7 mM. It was the only significantly different (p0.05. It could be concluded that there was a high influence of aquatic macrophytes on the pore water methane concentration.O objetivo dessa pesquisa foi determinar a concentração de metano na coluna d'água e na água intersticial do sedimento nas regiões limnética e litorânea de uma lagoa costeira (Lagoa Cabiúnas, Macaé, RJ. Na região litorânea as amostras foram coletadas em três estandes de macrófitas (Typha domingensis, Eleocharis interstincta e Potamogeton stenostachys. A concentração de metano na água intersticial na região litorânea foi maior do que aquela encontrada na região limnética em cada fração do sedimento. A maior concentração de metano na fração superficial do sedimento (0-2 cm foi observada no estande de P. stenostachys (3.7 mM. Este resultado foi o único significativamente diferente (p0.05. Os resultados sugerem que há uma considerável influência das macrófitas aquáticas estudadas na concentração de metano na água intersticial do sedimento.

Atmospheric radon daughters concentration inside and outside of cloud

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nishikawa, Tsuguo; Okabe, Shigeru; Aoki, Masayoshi; Imamura, Takakazu; Iwata, Yoshitomo; Tamura, Yukihide; Tsuboguchi, Masayasu

1987-01-01

The measurements of the atmospheric radon daughters concentration in and out of the cloud were carried out on the top of the mountain, and in the upper air of the sea by using the airplane. The difference of the concentrations between inside and outside of the stratus measured on the top of the mountain was not clear. The atmospheric radon daughters concentration at the top of the mountain decreased when the amount of precipitation at that point was large. Concerning the cumulus investigated by using the airplane, the concentration in the cloud was a little higher than the concentration out of the cloud. Results of the measurements show that the cloud seems to be constructed of the various air masses whose radon daughters concentrations are different from each other even though it appears to be uniform. (author)

ISLSCP II Globalview: Atmospheric CO2 Concentrations

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — The GlobalView Carbon Dioxide (CO2) data product contains synchronized and smoothed time series of atmospheric CO2 concentrations at selected sites that were created...

Microseepage of methane to the atmosphere from the Dawanqi oil-gas field, Tarim Basin, China

Science.gov (United States)

Tang, Junhong; Xu, Yue; Wang, Guojian; Etiope, Giuseppe; Han, Wei; Yao, Zhitong; Huang, Jingang

2017-04-01

The microseepage of natural gas from subsurface hydrocarbon reservoirs is a widespread process in petroleum basins. On a global scale, microseepage represents an important natural source of atmospheric methane (CH4). To date, microseepage CH4 flux data have been obtained from 20 petroleum systems in North America, Europe, and Asia. While the seasonal variations of gas flux due to soil methanotrophic activity are known, the role of geological factors in controlling gas fluxes has been poorly investigated. Here we present new microseepage data from the Dawanqi oil-gas field located within the Tarim Basin (China), a petroleum system characterized by intense faulting and shallow (petroleum fields with active tectonics. Our results confirm that dry soil over petroleum fields can be a net source of atmospheric CH4 and its flux is primarily controlled by faulting, and reservoir depth and pressure. These factors shall be considered in global bottom-up seepage emission estimates.

Abundant carbon substrates drive extremely high sulfate reduction rates and methane fluxes in Prairie Pothole Wetlands.

Science.gov (United States)

Dalcin Martins, Paula; Hoyt, David W; Bansal, Sheel; Mills, Christopher T; Tfaily, Malak; Tangen, Brian A; Finocchiaro, Raymond G; Johnston, Michael D; McAdams, Brandon C; Solensky, Matthew J; Smith, Garrett J; Chin, Yu-Ping; Wilkins, Michael J

2017-08-01

Inland waters are increasingly recognized as critical sites of methane emissions to the atmosphere, but the biogeochemical reactions driving such fluxes are less well understood. The Prairie Pothole Region (PPR) of North America is one of the largest wetland complexes in the world, containing millions of small, shallow wetlands. The sediment pore waters of PPR wetlands contain some of the highest concentrations of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and sulfur species ever recorded in terrestrial aquatic environments. Using a suite of geochemical and microbiological analyses, we measured the impact of sedimentary carbon and sulfur transformations in these wetlands on methane fluxes to the atmosphere. This research represents the first study of coupled geochemistry and microbiology within the PPR and demonstrates how the conversion of abundant labile DOC pools into methane results in some of the highest fluxes of this greenhouse gas to the atmosphere ever reported. Abundant DOC and sulfate additionally supported some of the highest sulfate reduction rates ever measured in terrestrial aquatic environments, which we infer to account for a large fraction of carbon mineralization in this system. Methane accumulations in zones of active sulfate reduction may be due to either the transport of free methane gas from deeper locations or the co-occurrence of methanogenesis and sulfate reduction. If both respiratory processes are concurrent, any competitive inhibition of methanogenesis by sulfate-reducing bacteria may be lessened by the presence of large labile DOC pools that yield noncompetitive substrates such as methanol. Our results reveal some of the underlying mechanisms that make PPR wetlands biogeochemical hotspots, which ultimately leads to their critical, but poorly recognized role in regional greenhouse gas emissions. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Abundant carbon substrates drive extremely high sulfate reduction rates and methane fluxes in Prairie Pothole Wetlands

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dalcin Martins, Paula [Microbiology Department, The Ohio State University, Columbus OH 43210 USA; Hoyt, David W. [Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory, Richland WA 99350 USA; Bansal, Sheel [United States Geological Survey - Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center, Jamestown ND 58401 USA; Mills, Christopher T. [United States Geological Survey, Crustal Geophysics and Geochemistry Science Center, Building 20, Denver Federal Center Denver CO 80225 USA; Tfaily, Malak [Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory, Richland WA 99350 USA; Tangen, Brian A. [United States Geological Survey - Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center, Jamestown ND 58401 USA; Finocchiaro, Raymond G. [United States Geological Survey - Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center, Jamestown ND 58401 USA; Johnston, Michael D. [School of Earth Sciences, The Ohio State University, Columbus OH 43210 USA; McAdams, Brandon C. [School of Earth Sciences, The Ohio State University, Columbus OH 43210 USA; Solensky, Matthew J. [United States Geological Survey - Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center, Jamestown ND 58401 USA; Smith, Garrett J. [Microbiology Department, The Ohio State University, Columbus OH 43210 USA; Chin, Yu-Ping [School of Earth Sciences, The Ohio State University, Columbus OH 43210 USA; Wilkins, Michael J. [Microbiology Department, The Ohio State University, Columbus OH 43210 USA; School of Earth Sciences, The Ohio State University, Columbus OH 43210 USA

2017-02-23

Inland waters are increasingly recognized as critical sites of methane emissions to the atmosphere, but the biogeochemical reactions driving such fluxes are less well understood. The Prairie Pothole Region (PPR) of North America is one of the largest wetland complexes in the world, containing millions of small, shallow wetlands. The sediment pore waters of PPR wetlands contain some of the highest concentrations of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and sulfur species ever recorded in terrestrial aquatic environments. Using a suite of geochemical and microbiological analyses we measured the impact of sedimentary carbon and sulfur transformations in these wetlands on methane fluxes to the atmosphere. This research represents the first study of coupled geochemistry and microbiology within the PPR, and demonstrates how the conversion of abundant labile DOC pools into methane results in some of the highest fluxes of this greenhouse gas to the atmosphere ever reported. Abundant DOC and sulfate additionally supported some of the highest sulfate reduction rates ever measured in terrestrial aquatic environments, which we infer to account for a large fraction of carbon mineralization in this system. Methane accumulations in zones of active sulfate reduction may be due to either the transport of free methane gas from deeper locations, or the co-occurrence of methanogenesis and sulfate reduction. If both respiratory processes are concurrent, any competitive inhibition of methanogenesis by sulfate-reducing bacteria may be lessened by the presence of large labile DOC pools that yield non-competitive substrates such as methanol. Our results reveal some of the underlying mechanisms that make PPR wetlands biogeochemical hotspots, which ultimately leads to their critical, but poorly recognized role in regional greenhouse gas emissions.

Mobile measurement of methane emissions from natural gas developments in northeastern British Columbia, Canada

Science.gov (United States)

Atherton, Emmaline; Risk, David; Fougère, Chelsea; Lavoie, Martin; Marshall, Alex; Werring, John; Williams, James P.; Minions, Christina

2017-10-01

North American leaders recently committed to reducing methane emissions from the oil and gas sector, but information on current emissions from upstream oil and gas developments in Canada are lacking. This study examined the occurrence of methane plumes in an area of unconventional natural gas development in northwestern Canada. In August to September 2015 we completed almost 8000 km of vehicle-based survey campaigns on public roads dissecting oil and gas infrastructure, such as well pads and processing facilities. We surveyed six routes 3-6 times each, which brought us past over 1600 unique well pads and facilities managed by more than 50 different operators. To attribute on-road plumes to oil- and gas-related sources we used gas signatures of residual excess concentrations (anomalies above background) less than 500 m downwind from potential oil and gas emission sources. All results represent emissions greater than our minimum detection limit of 0.59 g s-1 at our average detection distance (319 m). Unlike many other oil and gas developments in the US for which methane measurements have been reported recently, the methane concentrations we measured were close to normal atmospheric levels, except inside natural gas plumes. Roughly 47 % of active wells emitted methane-rich plumes above our minimum detection limit. Multiple sites that pre-date the recent unconventional natural gas development were found to be emitting, and we observed that the majority of these older wells were associated with emissions on all survey repeats. We also observed emissions from gas processing facilities that were highly repeatable. Emission patterns in this area were best explained by infrastructure age and type. Extrapolating our results across all oil and gas infrastructure in the Montney area, we estimate that the emission sources we located (emitting at a rate > 0.59 g s-1) contribute more than 111 800 t of methane annually to the atmosphere. This value exceeds reported bottom

Production of methane by co-digestion of cassava pulp with various concentrations of pig manure

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Panichnumsin, Pornpan [The Joint Graduate School of Energy and Environment, King Mongkut' s University of Technology Thonburi, Thungkru, Bangkok 10140 (Thailand); Excellent Center of Waste Utilization and Management, National Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology, Bangkhuntien, Bangkok 10150 (Thailand); Nopharatana, Annop [Pilot Plant Development and Training Institute, King Mongkut' s University of Technology Thonburi, Bangkhuntien, Bangkok 10150 (Thailand); Ahring, Birgitte [AAU, Copenhagen Institute of Technology, Lautrupvang 15, 2750 Ballerup (Denmark); Chaiprasert, Pawinee [School of Bioresources and Technology, King Mongkut' s University of Technology Thonburi, Bangkhuntien, Bangkok 10150 (Thailand)

2010-08-15

Cassava pulp is a major by-product produced in a cassava starch factory, containing 50-60% of starch (dry basis). Therefore, in this study we are considering its potential as a raw material substrate for the production of methane. To ensure sufficient amounts of nutrients for the anaerobic digestion process, the potential of co-digestion of cassava pulp (CP) with pig manure (PM) was further examined. The effect of the co-substrate mixture ratio was carried out in a semi-continuously fed stirred tank reactor (CSTR) operated under mesophilic condition (37 C) and at a constant OLR of 3.5 kg VS m{sup -3} d{sup -1} and a HRT of 15 days. The results showed that co-digestion resulted in higher methane production and reduction of volatile solids (VS) but lower buffering capacity. Compared to the digestion of PM alone, the specific methane yield increased 41% higher when co-digested with CP in concentrations up to 60% of the incoming VS. This was probably due to an increase in available easily degradable carbohydrates as the CP ratio in feedstock increased. The highest methane yield and VS removal of 306 mL g{sup -1} VS{sub added} and 61%, respectively, were achieved with good process stability (VFA:Alkalinity ratio < 0.1) when CP accounted for 60% of the feedstock VS. A further increase of CP of the feedstock led to a decrease in methane yield and solid reductions. This appeared to be caused by an extremely high C:N ratio of the feedstock resulting in a deficiency of ammonium nitrogen for microbial growth and buffering capacity. (author)

Production of methane by co-digestion of cassava pulp with various concentrations of pig manure

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Panichnumsin, Pornpan; Nopharatana, Annop; Ahring, Birgitte; Chaiprasert, Pawinee

2010-01-01

Cassava pulp is a major by-product produced in a cassava starch factory, containing 50-60% of starch (dry basis). Therefore, in this study we are considering its potential as a raw material substrate for the production of methane. To ensure sufficient amounts of nutrients for the anaerobic digestion process, the potential of co-digestion of cassava pulp (CP) with pig manure (PM) was further examined. The effect of the co-substrate mixture ratio was carried out in a semi-continuously fed stirred tank reactor (CSTR) operated under mesophilic condition (37 o C) and at a constant OLR of 3.5 kg VS m -3 d -1 and a HRT of 15 days. The results showed that co-digestion resulted in higher methane production and reduction of volatile solids (VS) but lower buffering capacity. Compared to the digestion of PM alone, the specific methane yield increased 41% higher when co-digested with CP in concentrations up to 60% of the incoming VS. This was probably due to an increase in available easily degradable carbohydrates as the CP ratio in feedstock increased. The highest methane yield and VS removal of 306 mL g -1 VS added and 61%, respectively, were achieved with good process stability (VFA:Alkalinity ratio < 0.1) when CP accounted for 60% of the feedstock VS. A further increase of CP of the feedstock led to a decrease in methane yield and solid reductions. This appeared to be caused by an extremely high C:N ratio of the feedstock resulting in a deficiency of ammonium nitrogen for microbial growth and buffering capacity.

Stimulation by ammonium-based fertilizers of methane oxidation in soil around rice roots

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Bodelier, P.L.E.; Roslev, P.; Henckel, T.; Frenzel, P.

2000-01-01

Methane is involved in a number of chemical and physical processes in the Earths atmosphere, including global warming(1), Atmospheric methane originates mainly from biogenic sources, such as rice paddies and natural wetlands; the former account for at least 30% of the global annual emission of

Fodder shrubs and fatty acids: strategies to reduce enteric methane production in cattle.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Juan Leonardo Cardona-Iglesias

2016-12-01

Full Text Available The aim of this study was to analyze the use of fodder shrubs and polyunsaturated fatty acids as a nutritional strategy to mitigate enteric methane production in cattle. Special emphasis was made on the use of Tithonia diversifolia (Hemsl. A. Gray (Mexican sun ower, as a species with antimethanogenic potential. Bibliographic information for this review was obtained between July and September 2015 by using key words. Methane is a powerful greenhouse gas (GHG, the increase of its atmospheric concentration is caused mainly by emissions from agriculture and industry, but it is also estimated that a proportion of methane is emitted by ruminants as a product of enteric and anaerobic fermentation of diet. This causes an environmental and productive problem in livestock production systems worldwide. Although there is controversy about the real contribution of methane by ruminants and its impact on environmental issues, the amount of emissions should try to be reduced.This document emphasizes the search for nutritional strategies such as supplementation with forage shrubs and sources of polyunsaturated fatty acids, which have shown potential to maintain animal production ef ciency and decrease enteric methane synthesis.

Methane oxidation in an intensively cropped tropical rice field soil under long-term application of organic and mineral fertilizers.

Science.gov (United States)

Nayak, D R; Babu, Y Jagadeesh; Datta, A; Adhya, T K

2007-01-01

Methane (CH4) oxidation is the only known biological sink process for mitigating atmospheric and terrestrial emissions of CH4, a major greenhouse gas. Methane oxidation in an alluvial soil planted to rice (Oryza sativa L.) under long-term application of organic (compost with a C/N ratio of 21.71), and mineral fertilizers was measured in a field-cum-laboratory incubation study. Oxidation rates were quantified in terms of decrease in the concentration of CH4 in the headspace of incubation vessels and expressed as half-life (t(1)2) values. Methane oxidation rates significantly differed among the treatments and growth stages of the rice crop. Methane oxidation rates were high at the maximum tillering and maturity stages, whereas they were low at grain-filling stage. Methane oxidation was low (t(1)2) = 15.76 d) when provided with low concentration of CH4. On the contrary, high concentration of CH4 resulted in faster oxidation (t(1)2) = 6.67 d), suggesting the predominance of "low affinity oxidation" in rice fields. Methane oxidation was stimulated following the application of mineral fertilizers or compost implicating nutrient limitation as one of the factors affecting the process. Combined application of compost and mineral fertilizer, however, inhibited CH4 oxidation probably due to N immobilization by the added compost. The positive effect of mineral fertilizer on CH4 oxidation rate was evident only at high CH4 concentration (t(1)2 = 4.80 d), while at low CH4 concentration their was considerable suppression (t(1) = 17.60 d). Further research may reveal that long-term application of fertilizers, organic or inorganic, may not inhibit CH4 oxidation.

Patterns of in-soil methane production and atmospheric emission among different land covers of a Lake Erie estuarine wetland

Science.gov (United States)

Rey Sanchez, C.; Morin, T. H.; Stefanik, K. C.; Angle, J.; Wrighton, K. C.; Bohrer, G.

2017-12-01

Wetland soils store a great amount of carbon, but also accumulate and emit methane (CH4), a powerful greenhouse gas. To better understand the vertical and horizontal spatial variability of CH4 emissions, we monitored production and fluxes of CH4 in Old Woman Creek, an estuarine wetland of Lake Erie, Ohio, during the growing seasons of 2015 and 2016. Our combined observation methods targeted three different scales: 1) the eddy covariance technique provided continuous high frequency observations integrated over a large spatial footprint; 2) monthly chamber measurements provided sparse point measurements of fluxes in four distinct land-cover types in the wetland: open water, emergent vegetation (Typha spp.), floating vegetation (Nelumbo spp.) and mud flats; and 3) in-situ porewater dialysis samplers, "peepers", provided vertical CH4 concentration data in the soil at the same locations and temporal time steps as the chambers. In addition, we studied gene transcripts to quantify methanogenesis activity along the vertical soil profile. Using integrated chamber and EC measurements, we found an average surface emission rate from Typha, the most abundant vegetated land cover, of 219.4 g CH4-C m-2 y-1, which was much higher than rates reported in similar emergent vegetation types in other wetlands. There was large spatial variation of flux rates, with mud flats having the highest rates of CH4 emission, followed by Nelumbo and Typha patches, and with open water having the lowest emissions. Within the soil column, we applied a numerical model to convert soil methane concentrations to emissions rates. We found that, contrary to current ideas of methane production, most methane was being produced in the well-oxygenated surface soils, probably in anoxic microsites within the oxic layer. Our metatranscriptomic data supported these findings, clearly showing nine times greater methanogenic activity in oxic surface soils relative to deeper anoxic soils. Combined, our results provide

Formation of methane and nitrous oxide in plants

Science.gov (United States)

Keppler, Frank; Lenhart, Katharina

2017-04-01

Methane, the second important anthropogenic greenhouse gas after carbon dioxide, is the most abundant reduced organic compound in the atmosphere and plays a central role in atmospheric chemistry. The global atmospheric methane budget is determined by many natural and anthropogenic terrestrial and aquatic surface sources, balanced primarily by one major sink (hydroxyl radicals) in the atmosphere. Natural sources of atmospheric methane in the biosphere have until recently been attributed to originate solely from strictly anaerobic microbial processes in wetland soils and rice paddies, the intestines of termites and ruminants, human and agricultural waste, and from biomass burning, fossil fuel mining and geological sources including mud volcanoes and seeps. However, recent studies suggested that terrestrial vegetation, fungi and mammals may also produce methane without the help of methanogens and under aerobic conditions (e.g. Keppler et al. 2009, Wang et al. 2013). These novel sources have been termed "aerobic methane production" to distinguish them from the well-known anaerobic methane production pathway. Nitrous oxide is another important greenhouse gas and major source of ozone-depleting nitric oxide. About two thirds of nitrous oxide emissions are considered to originate from anthropogenic and natural terrestrial sources, and are almost exclusively related to microbial processes in soils and sediments. However, the global nitrous oxide budget still has major uncertainties since it is unclear if all major sources have been identified but also the emission estimates of the know sources and stratospheric sink are afflicted with high uncertainties. Plants contribute, although not yet quantified, to nitrous oxide emissions either indirectly as conduits of soil derived nitrous oxide (Pihlatie et al. 2005), or directly via generation of nitrous oxide in leaves (Dean & Harper 1986) or on the leaf surface induced by UV irradiation (Bruhn et al. 2014). Moreover, lichens

Methane storage capacity of the early martian cryosphere

Science.gov (United States)

Lasue, Jeremie; Quesnel, Yoann; Langlais, Benoit; Chassefière, Eric

2015-11-01

Methane is a key molecule to understand the habitability of Mars due to its possible biological origin and short atmospheric lifetime. Recent methane detections on Mars present a large variability that is probably due to relatively localized sources and sink processes yet unknown. In this study, we determine how much methane could have been abiotically produced by early Mars serpentinization processes that could also explain the observed martian remanent magnetic field. Under the assumption of a cold early Mars environment, a cryosphere could trap such methane as clathrates in stable form at depth. The extent and spatial distribution of these methane reservoirs have been calculated with respect to the magnetization distribution and other factors. We calculate that the maximum storage capacity of such a clathrate cryosphere is about 2.1 × 1019-2.2 × 1020 moles of CH4, which can explain sporadic releases of methane that have been observed on the surface of the planet during the past decade (∼1.2 × 109 moles). This amount of trapped methane is sufficient for similar sized releases to have happened yearly during the history of the planet. While the stability of such reservoirs depends on many factors that are poorly constrained, it is possible that they have remained trapped at depth until the present day. Due to the possible implications of methane detection for life and its influence on the atmospheric and climate processes on the planet, confirming the sporadic release of methane on Mars and the global distribution of its sources is one of the major goals of the current and next space missions to Mars.

Comparison of Landfill Methane Oxidation Measured Using Stable Isotope Analysis and CO2/CH4 Fluxes Measured by the Eddy Covariance Method

Science.gov (United States)

Xu, L.; Chanton, J.; McDermitt, D. K.; Li, J.; Green, R. B.

2015-12-01

Methane plays a critical role in the radiation balance and chemistry of the atmosphere. Globally, landfill methane emission contributes about 10-19% of the anthropogenic methane burden into the atmosphere. In the United States, 18% of annual anthropogenic methane emissions come from landfills, which represent the third largest source of anthropogenic methane emissions, behind enteric fermentation and natural gas and oil production. One uncertainty in estimating landfill methane emissions is the fraction of methane oxidized when methane produced under anaerobic conditions passes through the cover soil. We developed a simple stoichiometric model to estimate methane oxidation fraction when the anaerobic CO2 / CH4 production ratio is known, or can be estimated. The model predicts a linear relationship between CO2 emission rates and CH4 emission rates, where the slope depends on anaerobic CO2 / CH4 production ratio and the fraction of methane oxidized, and the intercept depends on non-methane-dependent oxidation processes. The model was tested using carbon dioxide emission rates (fluxes) and methane emission rates (fluxes) measured using the eddy covariance method over a one year period at the Turkey Run landfill in Georgia, USA. The CO2 / CH4 production ratio was estimated by measuring CO2 and CH4 concentrations in air sampled under anaerobic conditions deep inside the landfill. We also used a mass balance approach to independently estimate fractional oxidation based on stable isotope measurements (δ13C of methane) of gas samples taken from deep inside the landfill and just above the landfill surface. Results from the two independent methods agree well. The model will be described and methane oxidation will be discussed in relation to wind direction, location at the landfill, and age of the deposited refuse.

CH4 fluxes across the seafloor at three district gas hydrate fields: Impacts on ocean and atmosphere chemistry

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kastner, M.; Bartlett, D.; MacDonald, I.; Solomon, E.

2005-07-01

The role of methane hydrate in the global methane budget is poorly documented because relatively little is known about the transport of methane through the seafloor into the ocean and atmosphere, and the extent of en route water-column methanotrophy. Pore fluids and water column samples within and adjacent to methane plumes were analyzed for methane, dissolved inorganic C (DIC), sulfide/sulfate, alkalinity, and major element concentrations, and for delta{sup 13}C-CH4 and DIC, at three distinct gas hydrate environments. The three environments are: Bush Hill (BH) in the northern Gulf of Mexico (GOM), Eel River (ER) offshore Northern California, and North and South Hydrate Ridges (HR), Cascadia, Oregon margin. The methane source at these sites ranges from mostly thermogenic at GOM to primarily biogenic at HR. At these three distinct gas hydrate environments, at all the sites a significant enrichment in {sup 13}C-CH4 along isopycnals away from the methane plumes is observed, indicating extensive aerobic bacterial methane oxidation in the water column, and correspondingly of oxygen consumption. This is principally pronounced in the mostly biogenic methane setting. The delta{sup 13}C-CH4 values range from approx. 12 to -67 , PDB, at the Hydrate Ridges, from approx. 34 to -52 at Eel River, and from approx. 41 to -67 at Bush Hill. The large variation in methane C isotope ranges between the sites suggests that major differences exist in both the rates of aerobic methane oxidation and system openness at the studied locations. Methane fluxes across the sediment/seawater interface were measured, with a flux meter, MOSQUITO (Multiple Orifice Sampler and Quantitative Injection Tracer Observers) only at BH (Solomon et al., 2005). Water column methane concentrations are on average lower at HR than at ER and GOM. Preliminary estimates suggests that aerobic oxidation is nearly complete, consumes most to all of the water column methane at HR, but at the GOM only approx. 80% to a

Use of the HadGEM2 climate-chemistry model to investigate interannual variability in methane sources

Science.gov (United States)

Hayman, Garry; O'Connor, Fiona; Clark, Douglas; Huntingford, Chris; Gedney, Nicola

2013-04-01

The global mean atmospheric concentration of methane (CH4) has more than doubled during the industrial era [1] and now constitutes ? 20% of the anthropogenic climate forcing by greenhouse gases [2]. The globally-averaged CH4 growth rate, derived from surface measurements, has fallen significantly from a high of 16 ppb yr-1 in the late 1970s/early 1980s and was close to zero between 1999 and 2006 [1]. This overall period of declining or low growth was however interspersed with years of positive growth-rate anomalies (e.g., in 1991-1992, 1998-1999 and 2002-2003). Since 2007, renewed growth has been evident [1, 3], with the largest increases observed over polar northern latitudes and the Southern Hemisphere in 2007 and in the tropics in 2008. The observed inter-annual variability in atmospheric methane concentrations and the associated changes in growth rates have variously been attributed to changes in different methane sources and sinks [1, 4]. In this paper, we report results from runs of the HadGEM2 climate-chemistry model [5] using year- and month-specific emission datasets. The HadGEM2 model includes the comprehensive atmospheric chemistry and aerosol package, the UK Chemistry Aerosol community model (UKCA, http://www.ukca.ac.uk/wiki/index.php). The Standard Tropospheric Chemistry scheme was selected for this work. This chemistry scheme simulates the Ox, HOx and NOx chemical cycles and the oxidation of CO, methane, ethane and propane. Year- and month-specific emission datasets were generated for the period from 1997 to 2009 for the emitted species in the chemistry scheme (CH4, CO, NOx, HCHO, C2H6, C3H8, CH3CHO, CH3CHOCH3). The approach adopted varied depending on the source sector: Anthropogenic: The emissions from anthropogenic sources were based on decadal-averaged emission inventories compiled by [6] for the Coupled Carbon Cycle Climate Model Intercomparison Project (C4MIP). These were then used to derive year-specific emission datasets by scaling the

Concentration of elements in atmospheric aerosol in Bratislava

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Meresova, J.; Florek, M.; Holy, K.; Sykora, I.; Frontasyeva, M.V.; Pavlov, S.S.

2006-01-01

The concentrations of 41 chemical elements (heavy metals, rare earths, and actinides) were determined in atmospheric aerosol using nuclear and related analytical techniques. The sampling location in Bratislava (Slovak Republic). The main goal of this study is the quantification of the atmospheric pollution and its trend. The elemental content in filters was measured using instrumental neutron activation analysis at IBR-2 reactor in JINR Dubna and by atomic absorption spectrometry in Bratislava. The obtained results confirm the decreasing trend of pollution by most of the heavy metals in Bratislava atmosphere, and they are compared with the contents of pollutants in atmosphere of other cities. We determined also the composition of clear filter materials. (Authors)

Martian Methane From a Cometary Source: A Hypothesis

Science.gov (United States)

Fries, M.; Christou, A.; Archer, D.; Conrad, P.; Cooke, W.; Eigenbrode, J.; ten Kate, I. L.; Matney, M.; Niles, P.; Sykes, M.;

Trace elements controlling the atmospheric circulation. Atmospheric environmental research as part of future FhG research

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

1986-11-01

Atmospheric trace substances such as methane (CH/sub 4/), ozone and nitrogen oxides (NO/sub x/) essentially influence the biosphere. FhG research work will be consisting in the long-term measurement of trace substance concentrations in different places (e.g. South Africa, Italy, Thailand or China). An air container packed with measuring instruments and data storage equipment was sent to South America with scientists on board measuring the distribution of trace substances over the northern and southern hemisphere.

Activity and diversity of methane-oxidizing bacteria in glacier forefields on siliceous and calcareous bedrock

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

P. A. Nauer

2012-06-01

Full Text Available The global methane (CH₄ cycle is largely driven by methanogenic archaea and methane-oxidizing bacteria (MOB, but little is known about their activity and diversity in pioneer ecosystems. We conducted a field survey in forefields of 13 receding Swiss glaciers on both siliceous and calcareous bedrock to investigate and quantify CH₄ turnover based on soil-gas CH₄ concentration profiles, and to characterize the MOB community by sequencing and terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism (T-RFLP analysis of pmoA. Methane turnover was fundamentally different in the two bedrock categories. Of the 36 CH₄ concentration profiles from siliceous locations, 11 showed atmospheric CH₄ consumption at concentrations of ~1–2 μL L⁻¹ with soil-atmosphere CH₄ fluxes of –0.14 to –1.1 mg m⁻² d⁻¹. Another 11 profiles showed no apparent activity, while the remaining 14 exhibited slightly increased CH₄ concentrations of ~2–10 μL L⁻¹ , most likely due to microsite methanogenesis. In contrast, all profiles from calcareous sites suggested a substantial, yet unknown CH₄ source below our sampling zone, with soil-gas CH₄ concentrations reaching up to 1400 μL L⁻¹. Remarkably, most soils oxidized ~90 % of the deep-soil CH₄, resulting in soil-atmosphere fluxes of 0.12 to 31 mg m⁻² d⁻¹. MOB showed limited diversity in both siliceous and calcareous forefields: all identified pmoA sequences formed only 5 operational taxonomic units (OTUs at the species level and, with one exception, could be assigned to either Methylocystis or the as-yet-uncultivated Upland Soil Cluster γ (USCγ. The latter dominated T-RFLP patterns of all siliceous and most calcareous samples, while Methylocystis dominated in 4 calcareous samples. Members of Upland Soil

Fluxes of methane and nitrous oxide from an Indian mangrove

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Krithika, K.; Purvaja, R.; Ramesh, R. [Anna Univ., Chennai (India). Institute for Ocean Management

2008-01-25

Methane and nitrous oxide are atmospheric trace gases and contribute about 15 and 6% respectively to the greenhouse effect. Both have a long atmospheric residence time of about 114 and 12 years respectively and since they are key compounds in the chemical reaction cycles of the troposphere and the stratosphere, their potential to directly or indirectly influence global climate is high. Fluxes of greenhouse gases, methane (CH{sub 4}) and nitrous oxide (N{sub 2}O), were measured from a mangrove ecosystem of the Cauvery delta (Muthupet) in South India. CH{sub 4} emissions were in the range between 18.99 and 37.53 mg/sq. m/d, with an average of 25.21 mg/sq. m/d, whereas N{sub 2}O emission ranged between 0.41 and 0.80 mg/sq. m/d (average of 0.62 mg/sq. m/d). The emission of CH{sub 4} and N{sub 2}O correlated positively with the number of pneumatophores. In addition to the flux measurements, different parts of the roots of Avicennia marina were quantified for CH{sub 4} concentration. Invariably in all the seasons, measured CH{sub 4} concentrations were high in the cable roots, with gradual decrease through the pneumatophores below water level and the above water level. This clearly indicates the transport of CH{sub 4} through the roots. We were able to establish that CH{sub 4} was released passively through the mangrove pneumatophores and is also a source to the atmosphere. We present some additional information on transport mechanisms of CH{sub 4} through the pneumatophores and bubble release from the mangrove ecosystems.

Low ambient temperature elevates plasma triiodothyronine concentrations while reducing digesta mean retention time and methane yield in sheep.

Science.gov (United States)

Barnett, M C; McFarlane, J R; Hegarty, R S

2015-06-01

Ruminant methane yield (MY) is positively correlated with mean retention time (MRT) of digesta. The hormone triiodothyronine (T3 ), which is negatively correlated with ambient temperature, is known to influence MRT. It was hypothesised that exposing sheep to low ambient temperatures would increase plasma T3 concentration and decrease MRT of digesta within the rumen of sheep, resulting in a reduction of MY. To test this hypothesis, six Merino sheep were exposed to two different ambient temperatures (cold treatment, 9 ± 1 °C; warm control 26 ± 1 °C). The effects on MY, digesta MRT, plasma T3 concentration, CO2 production, DM intake, DM digestibility, change in body weight (BW), rumen volatile fatty acid (VFA) concentrations, estimated microbial protein output, protozoa abundance, wool growth, water intake, urine output and rectal temperature were studied. Cold treatment resulted in a reduction in MY (p < 0.01); digesta MRT in rumen (p < 0.01), hindgut (p = 0.01) and total digestive tract (p < 0.01); protozoa abundance (p < 0.05); and water intake (p < 0.001). Exposure to cold temperature increased plasma T3 concentration (p < 0.05), CO2 production (p = 0.01), total VFA concentrations (p = 0.03) and estimated microbial output from the rumen (p = 0.03). The rate of wool growth increased (p < 0.01) due to cold treatment, but DM intake, DM digestibility and BW change were not affected. The results suggest that exposure of sheep to cold ambient temperatures reduces digesta retention time in the gastrointestinal tract, leading to a reduction in enteric methane yield. Further research is warranted to determine whether T3 could be used as an indirect selection tool for genetic selection of low enteric methane-producing ruminants. Journal of Animal Physiology and Animal Nutrition © 2014 Blackwell Verlag GmbH.

Laboratory Studies of Methane and Its Relationship to Prebiotic Chemistry.

Science.gov (United States)

Kobayashi, Kensei; Geppert, Wolf D; Carrasco, Nathalie; Holm, Nils G; Mousis, Olivier; Palumbo, Maria Elisabetta; Waite, J Hunter; Watanabe, Naoki; Ziurys, Lucy M

2017-08-01

To examine how prebiotic chemical evolution took place on Earth prior to the emergence of life, laboratory experiments have been conducted since the 1950s. Methane has been one of the key molecules in these investigations. In earlier studies, strongly reducing gas mixtures containing methane and ammonia were used to simulate possible reactions in the primitive atmosphere of Earth, producing amino acids and other organic compounds. Since Earth's early atmosphere is now considered to be less reducing, the contribution of extraterrestrial organics to chemical evolution has taken on an important role. Such organic molecules may have come from molecular clouds and regions of star formation that created protoplanetary disks, planets, asteroids, and comets. The interstellar origin of organics has been examined both experimentally and theoretically, including laboratory investigations that simulate interstellar molecular reactions. Endogenous and exogenous organics could also have been supplied to the primitive ocean, making submarine hydrothermal systems plausible sites of the generation of life. Experiments that simulate such hydrothermal systems where methane played an important role have consequently been conducted. Processes that occur in other Solar System bodies offer clues to the prebiotic chemistry of Earth. Titan and other icy bodies, where methane plays significant roles, are especially good targets. In the case of Titan, methane is both in the atmosphere and in liquidospheres that are composed of methane and other hydrocarbons, and these have been studied in simulation experiments. Here, we review the wide range of experimental work in which these various terrestrial and extraterrestrial environments have been modeled, and we examine the possible role of methane in chemical evolution. Key Words: Methane-Interstellar environments-Submarine hydrothermal systems-Titan-Origin of life. Astrobiology 17, 786-812.

Methane Emissions from Natural Gas in the Urban Region of Boston, Massachusetts

Science.gov (United States)

McKain, K.; Down, A.; Raciti, S. M.; Budney, J.; Hutyra, L.; Floerchinger, C. R.; Herndon, S. C.; Zahniser, M. S.; Nehrkorn, T.; Jackson, R. B.; Phillips, N. G.; Wofsy, S. C.

2014-12-01

Methane emissions from the natural gas supply chain must be quantified to assess environmental impacts of natural gas and to develop emission reduction strategies. We report natural gas emission rates for one year in the urban region of Boston, MA, using an atmospheric measurement and modeling framework. Continuous methane observations from four stations are combined with a high-resolution transport model to quantify the regional average emission rate, 20.6 ± 1.7 (95 % CI) g CH4 m-2 yr-1. Simultaneous observations of atmospheric ethane, compared with the ethane to methane ratio in pipeline gas, demonstrate that natural gas accounted for 58 - 100 % of methane emissions, depending on season. Using government statistics and geospatial data on energy consumption, we estimate the fractional loss rate to the atmosphere from all downstream components of the natural gas system, including transmission, distribution, and end-use, was 2.9 ± 0.3 % in the Boston urban region, compared to 1.1 % inferred by the Massachusetts greenhouse gas inventory.

Estimates of methane and ethane emissions from the Texas Barnett Shale

Science.gov (United States)

Karion, A.; Sweeney, C.; Yacovitch, T.; Petron, G.; Wolter, S.; Conley, S. A.; Hardesty, R. M.; Brewer, A.; Kofler, J.; Newberger, T.; Herndon, S.; Miller, B. R.; Montzka, S. A.; Rella, C.; Crosson, E.; Tsai, T.; Tans, P. P.

2013-12-01

The recent development of horizontal drilling technology by the oil and gas industry has dramatically increased onshore U.S. natural gas and oil production in the last several years. This production boom has led to wide-spread interest from the policy and scientific communities in quantifying the climate impact of the use of natural gas as a replacement for coal. Because the primary component of natural gas is methane, a powerful greenhouse gas, natural gas leakage into the atmosphere affects its climate impact. Several recent scientific field studies have focused on using atmospheric measurements to estimate this leakage in different producing basins. Methane can be measured precisely with commercial analyzers, and deployment of such analyzers on aircraft, coupled with meteorological measurements, can allow scientists to estimate emissions from regions of concentrated production. Ethane and other light hydrocarbons, also components of raw gas, can be used as tracers for differentiating natural gas emissions from those of other methane sources, such as agriculture or landfills, which do not contain any non-methane hydrocarbons such as ethane. Here we present results from one such field campaign in the Barnett Shale near Fort Worth, Texas, in March 2013. Several 4-hour flights were conducted over the natural gas and oil production region with a small single-engine aircraft instrumented with analyzers for measuring ambient methane, carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, and ethane at high frequencies (0.3-1Hz). The aircraft also measured horizontal winds, temperature, humidity, and pressure, and collected whole air samples in flasks analyzed later for several light hydrocarbons. In addition to the aircraft, a ground-based High-Resolution Doppler Lidar was deployed in the basin to measure profiles of horizontal winds and estimate the boundary layer height 24 hours a day over the campaign period. The aircraft and lidar measurements are used together to estimate methane and

Photosynthesis in Hydrogen-Dominated Atmospheres

Science.gov (United States)

Bains, William; Seager, Sara; Zsom, Andras

2014-01-01

The diversity of extrasolar planets discovered in the last decade shows that we should not be constrained to look for life in environments similar to early or present-day Earth. Super-Earth exoplanets are being discovered with increasing frequency, and some will be able to retain a stable, hydrogen-dominated atmosphere. We explore the possibilities for photosynthesis on a rocky planet with a thin H2-dominated atmosphere. If a rocky, H2-dominated planet harbors life, then that life is likely to convert atmospheric carbon into methane. Outgassing may also build an atmosphere in which methane is the principal carbon species. We describe the possible chemical routes for photosynthesis starting from methane and show that less energy and lower energy photons could drive CH4-based photosynthesis as compared with CO2-based photosynthesis. We find that a by-product biosignature gas is likely to be H2, which is not distinct from the hydrogen already present in the environment. Ammonia is a potential biosignature gas of hydrogenic photosynthesis that is unlikely to be generated abiologically. We suggest that the evolution of methane-based photosynthesis is at least as likely as the evolution of anoxygenic photosynthesis on Earth and may support the evolution of complex life. PMID:25411926

Photosynthesis in Hydrogen-Dominated Atmospheres

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

William Bains

2014-11-01

Full Text Available The diversity of extrasolar planets discovered in the last decade shows that we should not be constrained to look for life in environments similar to early or present-day Earth. Super-Earth exoplanets are being discovered with increasing frequency, and some will be able to retain a stable, hydrogen-dominated atmosphere. We explore the possibilities for photosynthesis on a rocky planet with a thin H2-dominated atmosphere. If a rocky, H2-dominated planet harbors life, then that life is likely to convert atmospheric carbon into methane. Outgassing may also build an atmosphere in which methane is the principal carbon species. We describe the possible chemical routes for photosynthesis starting from methane and show that less energy and lower energy photons could drive CH4-based photosynthesis as compared with CO2-based photosynthesis. We find that a by-product biosignature gas is likely to be H2, which is not distinct from the hydrogen already present in the environment. Ammonia is a potential biosignature gas of hydrogenic photosynthesis that is unlikely to be generated abiologically. We suggest that the evolution of methane-based photosynthesis is at least as likely as the evolution of anoxygenic photosynthesis on Earth and may support the evolution of complex life.

DEVELOPING ATMOSPHERIC RETRIEVAL METHODS FOR DIRECT IMAGING SPECTROSCOPY OF GAS GIANTS IN REFLECTED LIGHT. I. METHANE ABUNDANCES AND BASIC CLOUD PROPERTIES

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lupu, Roxana E. [BAER Institute/NASA Ames Research Center, Moffet Field, CA 94035 (United States); Marley, Mark S.; Zahnle, Kevin [NASA Ames Research Center, Moffet Field, CA 94035 (United States); Lewis, Nikole [Space Telescope Science Institute, 3700 San Martin Drive, Baltimore, MD 21218 (United States); Line, Michael [Univ. California at Santa Cruz, 1156 High Street, Santa Cruz, CA 95064 (United States); Traub, Wesley A., E-mail: Roxana.E.Lupu@nasa.gov [Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, 4800 Oak Grove Drive, Pasadena, CA 91109 (United States)

2016-12-01

Upcoming space-based coronagraphic instruments in the next decade will perform reflected light spectroscopy and photometry of cool directly imaged extrasolar giant planets. We are developing a new atmospheric retrieval methodology to help assess the science return and inform the instrument design for such future missions, and ultimately interpret the resulting observations. Our retrieval technique employs a geometric albedo model coupled with both a Markov chain Monte Carlo Ensemble Sampler ( emcee ) and a multimodal nested sampling algorithm ( MultiNest ) to map the posterior distribution. This combination makes the global evidence calculation more robust for any given model and highlights possible discrepancies in the likelihood maps. As a proof of concept, our current atmospheric model contains one or two cloud layers, methane as a major absorber, and a H{sub 2}–He background gas. This 6-to-9 parameter model is appropriate for Jupiter-like planets and can be easily expanded in the future. In addition to deriving the marginal likelihood distribution and confidence intervals for the model parameters, we perform model selection to determine the significance of methane and cloud detection as a function of expected signal-to-noise ratio in the presence of spectral noise correlations. After internal validation, the method is applied to realistic spectra of Jupiter, Saturn, and HD 99492c, a model observing target. We find that the presence or absence of clouds and methane can be determined with high confidence, while parameter uncertainties are model dependent and correlated. Such general methods will also be applicable to the interpretation of direct imaging spectra of cloudy terrestrial planets.

Laboratory Studies of Methane and Its Relationship to Prebiotic Chemistry

Science.gov (United States)

Kobayashi, Kensei; Geppert, Wolf D.; Carrasco, Nathalie; Holm, Nils G.; Mousis, Olivier; Palumbo, Maria Elisabetta; Waite, J. Hunter; Watanabe, Naoki; Ziurys, Lucy M.

2017-08-01

To examine how prebiotic chemical evolution took place on Earth prior to the emergence of life, laboratory experiments have been conducted since the 1950s. Methane has been one of the key molecules in these investigations. In earlier studies, strongly reducing gas mixtures containing methane and ammonia were used to simulate possible reactions in the primitive atmosphere of Earth, producing amino acids and other organic compounds. Since Earth's early atmosphere is now considered to be less reducing, the contribution of extraterrestrial organics to chemical evolution has taken on an important role. Such organic molecules may have come from molecular clouds and regions of star formation that created protoplanetary disks, planets, asteroids, and comets. The interstellar origin of organics has been examined both experimentally and theoretically, including laboratory investigations that simulate interstellar molecular reactions. Endogenous and exogenous organics could also have been supplied to the primitive ocean, making submarine hydrothermal systems plausible sites of the generation of life. Experiments that simulate such hydrothermal systems where methane played an important role have consequently been conducted. Processes that occur in other Solar System bodies offer clues to the prebiotic chemistry of Earth. Titan and other icy bodies, where methane plays significant roles, are especially good targets. In the case of Titan, methane is both in the atmosphere and in liquidospheres that are composed of methane and other hydrocarbons, and these have been studied in simulation experiments. Here, we review the wide range of experimental work in which these various terrestrial and extraterrestrial environments have been modeled, and we examine the possible role of methane in chemical evolution.

Opportunities to reduce methane emissions in the natural gas industry

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Cowgill, R.M. [Radian Corporation, Austin, TX (United States)

1995-12-31

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Gas Research Institute (GRI) cofunded a project to quantify methane (CH{sub 4}) emissions from the U.S. natural gas industry. Methane, the major constituent of natural gas, is a potent greenhouse gas that is believed to increase the effect of global warming when released to the atmosphere. Reducing emissions from natural gas systems would lessen the greenhouse gas effect attributable to atmospheric CH{sub 4}. Further, mitigation methods to reduce emissions of natural gas, a marketable resource, could save money and increase energy efficiency. This presentation summarizes the major sources and quantity of methane being emitted to the atmosphere for all segments of the U.S. gas industry: production; processing; storage; transmission; and distribution. A description of how those emissions were determined is included here, as well as a discussion of which sources are potential candidates for reducing emissions. (author)

Opportunities to reduce methane emissions in the natural gas industry

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Cowgill, R M [Radian Corporation, Austin, TX (United States)

1996-12-31

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Gas Research Institute (GRI) cofunded a project to quantify methane (CH{sub 4}) emissions from the U.S. natural gas industry. Methane, the major constituent of natural gas, is a potent greenhouse gas that is believed to increase the effect of global warming when released to the atmosphere. Reducing emissions from natural gas systems would lessen the greenhouse gas effect attributable to atmospheric CH{sub 4}. Further, mitigation methods to reduce emissions of natural gas, a marketable resource, could save money and increase energy efficiency. This presentation summarizes the major sources and quantity of methane being emitted to the atmosphere for all segments of the U.S. gas industry: production; processing; storage; transmission; and distribution. A description of how those emissions were determined is included here, as well as a discussion of which sources are potential candidates for reducing emissions. (author)

Opportunities to reduce methane emissions in the natural gas industry

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cowgill, R.M.

1995-01-01

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Gas Research Institute (GRI) cofunded a project to quantify methane (CH 4 ) emissions from the U.S. natural gas industry. Methane, the major constituent of natural gas, is a potent greenhouse gas that is believed to increase the effect of global warming when released to the atmosphere. Reducing emissions from natural gas systems would lessen the greenhouse gas effect attributable to atmospheric CH 4 . Further, mitigation methods to reduce emissions of natural gas, a marketable resource, could save money and increase energy efficiency. This presentation summarizes the major sources and quantity of methane being emitted to the atmosphere for all segments of the U.S. gas industry: production; processing; storage; transmission; and distribution. A description of how those emissions were determined is included here, as well as a discussion of which sources are potential candidates for reducing emissions. (author)

Interference-free mid-IR laser absorption detection of methane

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pyun, Sung Hyun; Cho, Jungwan; Davidson, David F; Hanson, Ronald K

2011-01-01

A novel, mid-IR scanned-wavelength laser absorption diagnostic was developed for time-resolved, interference-free, absorption measurement of methane concentration. A differential absorption (peak minus valley) scheme was used that takes advantage of the structural differences of the absorption spectrum of methane and other hydrocarbons. A peak and valley wavelength pair was selected to maximize the differential cross-section (σ peak minus valley ) of methane for the maximum signal-to-noise ratio, and to minimize that of the interfering absorbers. Methane cross-sections at the peak and valley wavelengths were measured over a range of temperatures, 1000 to 2000 K, and pressures 1.3 to 5.4 atm. The cross-sections of the interfering absorbers were assumed constant over the small wavelength interval between the methane peak and valley features. Using this diagnostic, methane concentration time histories during n-heptane pyrolysis were measured behind reflected shock waves in a shock tube. The differential absorption scheme efficiently rejected the absorption interference and successfully recovered the vapor-phase methane concentration. These measurements allowed the comparison with methane concentration time-history simulations derived from a current n-heptane reaction mechanism (Sirjean et al 2009 A high-temperature chemical kinetic model of n-alkane oxidation JetSurF version 1.0)

Methane Flux and Authigenic Carbonate in Shallow Sediments Overlying Methane Hydrate Bearing Strata in Alaminos Canyon, Gulf of Mexico

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Joseph P. Smith

2014-09-01

Full Text Available In June 2007 sediment cores were collected in Alaminos Canyon, Gulf of Mexico across a series of seismic data profiles indicating rapid transitions between the presence of methane hydrates and vertical gas flux. Vertical profiles of dissolved sulfate, chloride, calcium, magnesium, and dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC concentrations in porewaters, headspace methane, and solid phase carbonate concentrations were measured at each core location to investigate the cycling of methane-derived carbon in shallow sediments overlying the hydrate bearing strata. When integrated with stable carbon isotope ratios of DIC, geochemical results suggest a significant fraction of the methane flux at this site is cycled into the inorganic carbon pool. The incorporation of methane-derived carbon into dissolved and solid inorganic carbon phases represents a significant sink in local carbon cycling and plays a role in regulating the flux of methane to the overlying water column at Alaminos Canyon. Targeted, high-resolution geochemical characterization of the biogeochemical cycling of methane-derived carbon in shallow sediments overlying hydrate bearing strata like those in Alaminos Canyon is critical to quantifying methane flux and estimating methane hydrate distributions in gas hydrate bearing marine sediments.

Reducing methane emissions from ruminant animals

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mathison, G.W.; Okine, E.K.; McAllister, T.A.; Dong, Y.; Galbraith, J.; Dmytruk, O.I.N. [University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB (Canada). Dept. of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Science

1998-09-01

In 1992 it was estimated that 30 x 10{sup 12}g more methane was emitted into the atmosphere than was removed, with animals being considered the largest single anthropogenic source. Ruminants produce 97% of the methane generated in enteric fermentation by animals. Estimates for methane emissions from animal wastes vary between 6 and 31% of that produced directly by the animal, with the most likely value being between 5 and 10% globally. Methane inhibitors can reduce methane emissions to zero in the short term but due to microbial adaptation the effects of these compounds are quickly neutralized and feed intake is often depressed. Methane emissions per unit of feed consumed from sheep and cattle fed hay diets appear to be quite similar but differences between other ruminants have been measured. The most practical way of influencing methane emissions per unit product is to increase productivity level since the proportion of feed energy required to just maintain the animal will be reduced, methane production falls with increased intake level, and the animal may go to market sooner. The most promising avenues for future research for reducing methanogenesis are the development of new products for reducing protozoal numbers in the rumen and the use of bacterocins or other compounds which specifically target methanogenic bacteria.

Carbon dioxide reforming of methane by atmospheric pressure pulsed glow discharge: The effect of pulse compression

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ghorbanzadeh, A.; Modarresi, H.

2006-01-01

Methane reforming by carbon dioxide in atmospheric pressure pulsed glow discharge was examined. The pulse duration of plasma was compressed to ∼50 ns or lower. This compression allowed working at higher frequencies, more than 3 k Hz, without glow to arc transition. The main outlet gases were synthetic gases (H 2 , CO) and C 2 (ethylene, ethane, and acetylene) products. At equal reactants proportion CO 2 /CH 4 =1, about 42 p ercent o f plasma energy went to chemical dissociation while reactant conversions were relatively high, i.e. near 55 p ercent % (CH 4 ) and 42 p ercent ( CO 2 ). At this point, the energy expenditure was less than 3.8 eV per each converted molecule. The reactor energy performance even gets better at higher CO 2 /CH 4 proportions. At CO 2 /CH 4 =5, The conversions of about 65 p ercent a nd 45 p ercent w ere obtained for methane and carbon dioxide respectively, while energy efficiency reached near 45 p ercent . It is discussed that high nonequilibrium state of vibrational energy at short pulses, especially in carbon dioxide, leads to this improvement.

Wave-induced release of methane : littoral zones as a source of methane in lakes

OpenAIRE

Hofmann, Hilmar; Federwisch, Luisa; Peeters, Frank

2010-01-01

This study investigates the role of surface waves and the associated disturbance of littoral sediments for the release and later distribution of dissolved methane in lakes. Surface wave field, wave-induced currents, acoustic backscatter strength, and the concentration and distribution of dissolved methane were measured simultaneously in Lake Constance, Germany. The data indicate that surface waves enhance the release of dissolved methane in the shallow littoral zone via burst-like releases of...

Relationship between carbon-14 concentrations in tree-ring cellulose and atmospheric CO2

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yamada, Yoshimune; Yasuike, Kaeko; Komura, Kazuhisa

2008-01-01

Concentrations of organically-bound 14 C in the tree-ring cellulose of a Japanese Cedar (Cryptomeria japonica) grown in a rural region of Kanazawa, Ishikawa prefecture, Japan (36.5degN, 136.7degE), were measured for the ring-years from 1989 to 1998 to study relationship between 14 C concentrations in tree-ring cellulose and atmospheric CO 2 in a narrow region. An interesting result in comparing our data of tree-ring cellulose with those of atmospheric CO 2 is that the 14 C concentration in tree-ring cellulose was close to the corresponding average from mid-June to early September of 14 C concentrations in atmospheric CO 2 . Furthermore, the 14 C concentrations in tree-ring cellulose were found to be merely influenced by the drastic decrease of 14 C concentrations in atmospheric CO 2 in winter, which might be caused by air pollution from the Asian continent and additional local fossil fuel contribution. These results suggest that the 14 C concentration in tree-ring cellulose for a given growing year reflects the 14 C concentrations of atmospheric CO 2 during the warm summer months. (author)

Methane hydrates in quaternary climate change

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kennett, J. P.; Hill, T. M.; Behl, R. J.

2005-01-01

The hydrate reservoir in marine sediments is known to contain a large volume of exchangeable carbon stored as solid methane hydrate and associated free gas. This reservoir has been shown to be potentially unstable in response to changing intermediate water temperature and sea level (pressure). Evidence continues to grow for past episodes of major methane release at times of climatic warming. Yet few studies of late Quaternary climate change include methane hydrates as an integral part of the global climate system, in spite of the largest known oscillations at this time in sea level and upper ocean temperature changes for the Cenozoic or earlier, conditions that favor instability of the methane hydrate reservoir. Abrupt increases in atmospheric methane recorded in polar ice cores are widely believed to have resulted, not from ocean-floor methane degassing, but instead from continental wetland activation, a hypothesis thus far unsupported by geological data. Furthermore, as part of this Wetland Methane Hypothesis, the abrupt methane increases have been seen as a response to climatic warming rather than contributing significantly to the change. An alternative view (formulated as the Clathrate Gun Hypothesis) is that the speed, magnitude and timing of abrupt climate change in the recent geologic past are consistent with the process of major degassing of methane hydrates. We summarize aspects of this hypothesis here and needs to test this hypothesis. (Author)

Influence of ship emission on atmospheric pollutant concentration around Osaka Bay, Japan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kondo, A.; Yamaguchi, K.; Nishikawa, E.

1999-01-01

Marine traffic in Osaka Bay is very intensified and much atmosphere pollutant (SO x and NO x ) from ships is released but there is no regulation about the ship emission. In this paper, we investigated the emission amounts of SO x NO x and HC from car, factory and ships in Osaka bay area and estimated the influence of the ship emission on the atmospheric pollutant concentration, using both the meteorological prediction model and the atmospheric pollutant concentration prediction model including the dry deposition and the chemical reaction. In Osaka bay area, the emission amounts of SO x and NO x from ships were about 30% of the total emission amounts, respectively. Using these emission data, the atmospheric pollutant concentration was simulated on a summer fine day when high oxidant concentration was measured at several observatories and was compared with the observed data. Though some differences were seen between the simulated results and the observed data, the diurnal variation agreed reasonably. The second simulation was carried out except for the ship emission and we estimated the influence of the ship emission on the atmospheric pollutant concentration. It was found that the ship emission raised SO 2 , NO 2 and NO concentration not only in shore area but also in 40km inland. (Author)

Mathematical modeling of atmospheric fine particle-associated primary organic compound concentrations

Science.gov (United States)

Rogge, Wolfgang F.; Hildemann, Lynn M.; Mazurek, Monica A.; Cass, Glen R.; Simoneit, Bernd R. T.

1996-08-01

An atmospheric transport model has been used to explore the relationship between source emissions and ambient air quality for individual particle phase organic compounds present in primary aerosol source emissions. An inventory of fine particulate organic compound emissions was assembled for the Los Angeles area in the year 1982. Sources characterized included noncatalyst- and catalyst-equipped autos, diesel trucks, paved road dust, tire wear, brake lining dust, meat cooking operations, industrial oil-fired boilers, roofing tar pots, natural gas combustion in residential homes, cigarette smoke, fireplaces burning oak and pine wood, and plant leaf abrasion products. These primary fine particle source emissions were supplied to a computer-based model that simulates atmospheric transport, dispersion, and dry deposition based on the time series of hourly wind observations and mixing depths. Monthly average fine particle organic compound concentrations that would prevail if the primary organic aerosol were transported without chemical reaction were computed for more than 100 organic compounds within an 80 km × 80 km modeling area centered over Los Angeles. The monthly average compound concentrations predicted by the transport model were compared to atmospheric measurements made at monitoring sites within the study area during 1982. The predicted seasonal variation and absolute values of the concentrations of the more stable compounds are found to be in reasonable agreement with the ambient observations. While model predictions for the higher molecular weight polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) are in agreement with ambient observations, lower molecular weight PAH show much higher predicted than measured atmospheric concentrations in the particle phase, indicating atmospheric decay by chemical reactions or evaporation from the particle phase. The atmospheric concentrations of dicarboxylic acids and aromatic polycarboxylic acids greatly exceed the contributions that

Biologically Produced Methane as a Renewable Energy Source.

Science.gov (United States)

Holmes, D E; Smith, J A

2016-01-01

Methanogens are a unique group of strictly anaerobic archaea that are more metabolically diverse than previously thought. Traditionally, it was thought that methanogens could only generate methane by coupling the oxidation of products formed by fermentative bacteria with the reduction of CO 2 . However, it has recently been observed that many methanogens can also use electrons extruded from metal-respiring bacteria, biocathodes, or insoluble electron shuttles as energy sources. Methanogens are found in both human-made and natural environments and are responsible for the production of ∼71% of the global atmospheric methane. Their habitats range from the human digestive tract to hydrothermal vents. Although biologically produced methane can negatively impact the environment if released into the atmosphere, when captured, it can serve as a potent fuel source. The anaerobic digestion of wastes such as animal manure, human sewage, or food waste produces biogas which is composed of ∼60% methane. Methane from biogas can be cleaned to yield purified methane (biomethane) that can be readily incorporated into natural gas pipelines making it a promising renewable energy source. Conventional anaerobic digestion is limited by long retention times, low organics removal efficiencies, and low biogas production rates. Therefore, many studies are being conducted to improve the anaerobic digestion process. Researchers have found that addition of conductive materials and/or electrically active cathodes to anaerobic digesters can stimulate the digestion process and increase methane content of biogas. It is hoped that optimization of anaerobic digesters will make biogas more readily accessible to the average person. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The determinants of atmospheric SO2 concentrations. Reconsidering the environmental Kuznets curve

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kaufmann, Robert K.; Davidsdottir, Brynhildur; Garnham, Sophie; Pauly, Peter

1998-01-01

This analysis explores the effects of income and the spatial intensity of economic activity on the atmospheric concentration of sulfur dioxide. The results indicate that there is a U-shaped relation between income and atmospheric concentration of SO 2 and an inverted U-shaped relation between the spatial intensity of economic activity and SO 2 concentrations. These results suggest that the spatial intensity of economic activity, rather than income, provides the impetus for policies and technologies that reduce SO 2 emissions. Based on this result, the atmospheric concentration of SO 2 in developing nations may decline faster than indicated by previous analyses. The potential for this decline depends on the rate at which income grows relative to population. The trade-off between the effects of income gains and the spatial intensity of economic activity on the atmospheric concentration of SO 2 is consistent with the notion that environmental problems can be ameliorated by slowing population growth and increasing income levels

A post-Cassini view of Titan's methane-based hydrologic cycle

Science.gov (United States)

Hayes, Alexander G.; Lorenz, Ralph D.; Lunine, Jonathan I.

2018-05-01

The methane-based hydrologic cycle on Saturn's largest moon, Titan, is an extreme analogue to Earth's water cycle. Titan is the only planetary body in the Solar System, other than Earth, that is known to have an active hydrologic cycle. With a surface pressure of 1.5 bar and temperatures of 90 to 95 K, methane and ethane condense out of a nitrogen-based atmosphere and flow as liquids on the moon's surface. Exchange processes between atmospheric, surface and subsurface reservoirs produce methane and ethane cloud systems, as well as erosional and depositional landscapes that have strikingly similar forms to their terrestrial counterparts. Over its 13-year exploration of the Saturn system, the Cassini-Huygens mission revealed that Titan's hydrocarbon-based hydrology is driven by nested methane cycles that operate over a range of timescales, including geologic, orbital (for example, Croll-Milankovitch cycles), seasonal and that of a single convective storm. In this Review Article, we describe the dominant exchange processes that operate over these timescales and present a post-Cassini view of Titan's methane-based hydrologic system.

A biomimetic methane-oxidising catalyst

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dalton, H [Warwick Univ., Coventry (United Kingdom). Dept. of Biological Sciences

1997-12-31

The diminishing resources of petroleum oil has meant that there has been considerable efforts in recent years to find a suitable substitute for gasoline as a transportation fuel. Methanol has been identified as a suitable substitute since it is a readily combustible fuel which can be manufactured from a number of different sources. Methane is commonly used as a starting material for the production of synthesis gas (CO + H{sub 2}) and hence methanol. It is well known that the cleavage of the C-H bond of methane is extremely difficult (bond energy is around 104 kcal/mol) and that fairly drastic conditions are required to convert methane into methanol. Temperatures around 1200 deg C and pressures of up to 100 atmospheres over metal catalysts in a series of reactions are required to effect this process. Efforts have been made to reduce the temperature and the number of steps by using lanthanide ruthenium oxide catalyst but such reactions are still thermodynamically endothermic. An energetically more efficient reaction would be the direct conversion of methane to methanol using oxygen as the oxidant: CH{sub 4} + 1/2O{sub 2} -> CH{sub 3}OH {Delta}H deg = - 30.7 kcal/mol. Such a direct oxidation route is manifest in the bacterially-mediated oxidation of methane by methanotrophic bacteria. These organisms effect the direct oxidation of methane to methanol by the enzyme methane monooxygenase (MMO) as part of the reaction sequences to oxidize methane to carbon dioxide. (14 refs.)

A biomimetic methane-oxidising catalyst

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dalton, H. [Warwick Univ., Coventry (United Kingdom). Dept. of Biological Sciences

1996-12-31

The diminishing resources of petroleum oil has meant that there has been considerable efforts in recent years to find a suitable substitute for gasoline as a transportation fuel. Methanol has been identified as a suitable substitute since it is a readily combustible fuel which can be manufactured from a number of different sources. Methane is commonly used as a starting material for the production of synthesis gas (CO + H{sub 2}) and hence methanol. It is well known that the cleavage of the C-H bond of methane is extremely difficult (bond energy is around 104 kcal/mol) and that fairly drastic conditions are required to convert methane into methanol. Temperatures around 1200 deg C and pressures of up to 100 atmospheres over metal catalysts in a series of reactions are required to effect this process. Efforts have been made to reduce the temperature and the number of steps by using lanthanide ruthenium oxide catalyst but such reactions are still thermodynamically endothermic. An energetically more efficient reaction would be the direct conversion of methane to methanol using oxygen as the oxidant: CH{sub 4} + 1/2O{sub 2} -> CH{sub 3}OH {Delta}H deg = - 30.7 kcal/mol. Such a direct oxidation route is manifest in the bacterially-mediated oxidation of methane by methanotrophic bacteria. These organisms effect the direct oxidation of methane to methanol by the enzyme methane monooxygenase (MMO) as part of the reaction sequences to oxidize methane to carbon dioxide. (14 refs.)

Fiber Optic Raman Spectroscopy for Detection of Methane Hydrates and Related Species

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Hart, Sean

2001-01-01

.... The feasibility of using this system for methane hydrate detection is evaluated through the use of organic surrogate molecules, due to the low solubility of methane in water at atmospheric pressures...

Methane, Ethane, and Nitrogen Stability on Titan

Science.gov (United States)

Hanley, J.; Grundy, W. M.; Thompson, G.; Dustrud, S.; Pearce, L.; Lindberg, G.; Roe, H. G.; Tegler, S.

2017-12-01

Many outer solar system bodies are likely to have a combination of methane, ethane and nitrogen. In particular the lakes of Titan are known to consist of these species. Understanding the past and current stability of these lakes requires characterizing the interactions of methane and ethane, along with nitrogen, as both liquids and ices. Our cryogenic laboratory setup allows us to explore ices down to 30 K through imaging, and transmission and Raman spectroscopy. Our recent work has shown that although methane and ethane have similar freezing points, when mixed they can remain liquid down to 72 K. Concurrently with the freezing point measurements we acquire transmission or Raman spectra of these mixtures to understand how the structural features change with concentration and temperature. Any mixing of these two species together will depress the freezing point of the lake below Titan's surface temperature, preventing them from freezing. We will present new results utilizing our recently acquired Raman spectrometer that allow us to explore both the liquid and solid phases of the ternary system of methane, ethane and nitrogen. In particular we will explore the effect of nitrogen on the eutectic of the methane-ethane system. At high pressure we find that the ternary creates two separate liquid phases. Through spectroscopy we determined the bottom layer to be nitrogen rich, and the top layer to be ethane rich. Identifying the eutectic, as well as understanding the liquidus and solidus points of combinations of these species, has implications for not only the lakes on the surface of Titan, but also for the evaporation/condensation/cloud cycle in the atmosphere, as well as the stability of these species on other outer solar system bodies. These results will help interpretation of future observational data, and guide current theoretical models.

The Global Search for Abiogenic GHGs, via Methane Isotopes and Ethane

Science.gov (United States)

Malina, Edward; Muller, Jan-Peter; Walton, David; Potts, Dale

2015-04-01

The importance of Methane as an anthropogenic Green House Gas (GHG) is well recognized in the scientific community, and is second only to Carbon Dioxide in terms of influence on the Earth's radiation budget (Parker, et al, 2011) suggesting that the ability to apportion the source of the methane (whether it is biogenic, abiogenic or thermogenic) has never been more important. It has been proposed (Etiope, 2009) that it may be possible to distinguish between a biogenic methane source (e.g. bacteria fermentation) and an abiogenic source (e.g. gas seepage or fugitive emissions) via the retrieval of the abundances of methane isotopes (12CH4 and 13CH4) and through the ratio of ethane (C2H6) to methane (CH4) concentrations. Using ultra fine spectroscopy (simulations, we show that it is possible to distinguish between methane isotopes using the FTS based instruments on ACE and GOSAT, and retrieve the abundances in the Short Wave Infra-red (SWIR) at 1.65μm, 2.3μm, 3.3μm and Thermal IR, 7.8μm wavebands for methane, and the 3.3μm and 7μm wavebands for ethane. Initially we use the spectral line database HITRAN to determine the most appropriate spectral waveband to retrieve methane isotopes (and ethane) with minimal water vapour, CO2 and NO2 impact. Following this, we have evaluated the detectability of these trace gases using the more sophisticated Radiative Transfer Models (RTMs) SCIATRAN, the Oxford RFM and MODTRAN 5 in the SWIR, in order to determine the barriers to retrieving methane isotopes in both ACE (limb profile) and GOSAT (nadir measurements) instruments, including a preliminary investigation into the effects of clouds, aerosols, surface reflectance on the retrieval of methane isotopes. The aim of these RTM simulations is to further narrow down the spectral regions (originally identified in the HITRAN assessment) where methane isotopes can/may be retrieved from orbit. The key outputs from the RTM study are absorption and radiance data, which allow us to

Glacial-interglacial water cycle, global monsoon and atmospheric methane changes

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Guo, Zhengtang; Wu, Haibin [Chinese Academy of Sciences, Key Laboratory of Cenozoic Geology and Environment, Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Beijing (China); Zhou, Xin [Chinese Academy of Sciences, Key Laboratory of Cenozoic Geology and Environment, Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Beijing (China); University of Science and Technology of China, School of Earth and Space Sciences and Institute of Polar Environment, Hefei (China)

2012-09-15

The causes of atmospheric methane (CH{sub 4}) changes are still a major contention, in particular with regards to the relative contributions of glacial-interglacial cycles, monsoons in both hemispheres and the late Holocene human intervention. Here, we explore the CH{sub 4} signals in the Antarctic EPICA Dome C and Vostok ice records using the methods of timeseries analyses and correlate them with insolation and geological records to address these issues. The results parse out three distinct groups of CH{sub 4} signals attributable to different drivers. The first group ({proportional_to}80% variance), well tracking the marine {delta}{sup 18}O record, is attributable to glacial-interglacial modulation on the global water cycle with the effects shared by wetlands at all latitudes, from monsoonal and non-monsoonal regions in both hemispheres. The second group ({proportional_to}15% variance), centered at the {proportional_to}10-kyr semi-precession frequency, is linkable with insolation-driven tropical monsoon changes in both hemispheres. The third group ({proportional_to}5% variance), marked by millennial frequencies, is seemingly related with the combined effect of ice-volume and bi-hemispheric insolation changes at the precession bands. These results indicate that bi-hemispheric monsoon changes have been a constant driver of atmospheric CH{sub 4}. This mechanism also partially explains the Holocene CH{sub 4} reversal since {proportional_to}5 kyr BP besides the human intervention. In the light of these results, we propose that global monsoon can be regarded as a system consisting of two main integrated components, one primarily driven by the oscillations of Inter-Tropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) in response to the low-latitude summer insolation changes, anti-phase between the two hemispheres (i.e. the ITCZ monsoon component); and another modulated by the glacial-interglacial cycles, mostly synchronous at the global scale (i.e. the glacial-interglacial monsoon

Cryptic Methane Emissions from Upland Forest Ecosystems

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Megonigal, Patrick [Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC (United States); Pitz, Scott [Johns Hopkins Univ., Baltimore, MD (United States); Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC (United States)

2016-04-19

This exploratory research on Cryptic Methane Emissions from Upland Forest Ecosystems was motivated by evidence that upland ecosystems emit 36% as much methane to the atmosphere as global wetlands, yet we knew almost nothing about this source. The long-term objective was to refine Earth system models by quantifying methane emissions from upland forests, and elucidate the biogeochemical processes that govern upland methane emissions. The immediate objectives of the grant were to: (i) test the emerging paradigm that upland trees unexpectedly transpire methane, (ii) test the basic biogeochemical assumptions of an existing global model of upland methane emissions, and (iii) develop the suite of biogeochemical approaches that will be needed to advance research on upland methane emissions. We instrumented a temperate forest system in order to explore the processes that govern upland methane emissions. We demonstrated that methane is emitted from the stems of dominant tree species in temperate upland forests. Tree emissions occurred throughout the growing season, while soils adjacent to the trees consumed methane simultaneously, challenging the concept that forests are uniform sinks of methane. High frequency measurements revealed diurnal cycling in the rate of methane emissions, pointing to soils as the methane source and transpiration as the most likely pathway for methane transport. We propose the forests are smaller methane sinks than previously estimated due to stem emissions. Stem emissions may be particularly important in upland tropical forests characterized by high rainfall and transpiration, resolving differences between models and measurements. The methods we used can be effectively implemented in order to determine if the phenomenon is widespread.