Inter-comparison of Direct Quantification and Areal Micrometeorological Methods to Investigate the Transport and Fate of Methane from Heterogeneous Sources in Natural Gas Fields

天然气的使用在世界范围内不断增加。甲烷是天然气的主要成分，是一种导致气候变化的强效温室气体（GHG）。 最近的研究表明，甲烷可以从天然气田中释放出来，但这些数据的不确定性很大，无法准确量化甲烷的数量。拟议的研究将减少这种不确定性，并在测量方法和建模工具的天然气田甲烷排放量的量化先进的知识。该项目将支持来自阿巴拉契亚农村地区代表性不足的工程专业学生的研究生和本科生研究人员，解决扩大科学和工程参与的社会需求。如果成功，这项研究的结果将有助于保护国家的能源安全，可能会影响监管活动和提高天然气生产的效率。由于定向钻井和提高采收率等技术的成熟，美国的天然气产量继续增长。然而，天然气田泄漏甲烷排放的规模和命运仍然高度不确定和悬而未决。最近的研究表明，甲烷损失的变化很大，从不到1%到17%的天然气总产量。这些巨大的差异通常归因于自上而下（间接空气通量或顺风测量）和自下而上（直接成分水平测量和排放系数）估计的不确定性，其中包括测量不确定性和普遍缺乏高保真数据集。本研究的目标是通过收集和分析时间的自上而下的测量甲烷通量和环境变量的基础上涡协方差通量技术和高斯羽测量与直接自下而上的测量，以减少这些不确定性。这项研究将采用先进的数据分析，使用经验模型和人工智能来提高对西弗吉尼亚州和大阿巴拉契亚地区天然气田甲烷排放的机械理解。用间接测量技术进行准确的量化将减少目前采用的劳动密集型泄漏检测方案的需要。研究结果将通过同行评审的出版物和会议介绍广泛传播。研究人员将利用位于西弗吉尼亚州摩根敦的马塞勒斯页岩能源与环境实验室（MSEEL）的工业合作来交流研究成果。该研究小组还将与西弗吉尼亚大学能源研究所合作，开发推广材料，并在马塞勒斯地区举办研讨会。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并被认为值得通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估来支持。

The use of natural gas is increasing worldwide. Methane, the primary component of natural gas, is a highly potent greenhouse gas (GHG) that contributes to climatic changes. Recent research suggests that methane can be released from natural gas fields, but large uncertainties in these data do not allow accurate quantification of the amount. The proposed research will reduce this uncertainty and advance knowledge in measurement methods and modeling tools for the quantification of methane emissions in natural gas fields. The project will support graduate and undergraduate researcher from underrepresented engineering students in rural Appalachia, addressing societal needs for broadening participation in science and engineering. If successful, the results of this research will help protect the Nation's energy security by potentially influencing regulatory activities and improving the efficiency of natural gas production.Due to maturation of technologies such as directional drilling and enhanced recovery, natural gas production continues to grow in the U.S. However, the magnitude and fate of leaking methane emissions from natural gas fields remain highly uncertain and unresolved. Recent studies show significant variations in methane losses, from less than 1% to 17% of the total natural gas produced. These large variations are generally attributed to uncertainty in top-down (indirect aerial fluxes or downwind measurements) and bottom-up (direct component level measurements and emissions factors) estimates, which include measurement uncertainty and a general lack of high fidelity data sets. The goal of this research is to reduce these uncertainties by collecting and analyzing temporal top-down measurements of methane fluxes and environmental variables based on eddy-covariance flux techniques and Gaussian plume measurements in concert with direct bottom-up measurements. This research will employ advanced data analytics using empirical models and artificial intelligence to improve the mechanistic understanding of methane emissions in natural gas fields across West Virginia and the greater Appalachian region. Accurate quantification with indirect measurement techniques would decrease the need for the labor-intensive leak detection schemes currently employed. The research findings will be broadly disseminated through peer-reviewed publications and conference presentations. The researchers will leverage industrial collaborations at the Marcellus Shale Energy and Environmental Laboratory (MSEEL) in Morgantown, WV, to communicate the research outcomes. The research group will also work with the West Virginia University Energy Institute to develop outreach materials and conduct seminars in the Marcellus region.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.