Evaluating net life-cycle greenhouse gas emissions intensities from gas and coal at varying methane leakage rates
Deborah Gordon6,1,2, Frances Reuland2, Daniel J Jacob3, John R Worden4, Drew Shindell5 and Mark Dyson2
Abstract
The net climate impact of gas and coal life-cycle emissions are highly dependent on methane leakage. Every molecule of methane leaked alters the climate advantage because methane warms the planet significantly more than CO2 over its decade-long lifetime. We find that global gas systems that leak over 4.7% of their methane (when considering a 20-year timeframe) or 7.6% (when considering a 100 year timeframe) are on par with life-cycle coal emissions from methane leaking coal mines. The net climate impact from coal is also influenced by SO2 emissions, which react to form sulfate aerosols that mask warming. We run scenarios that combine varying methane leakage rates from coal and gas with low to high SO2 emissions based on coal sulfur content, flue gas scrubber efficiency, and sulfate aerosol global warming potentials. The methane and SO2 co-emitted with CO2 alter the emissions parity between gas and coal. We estimate that a gas system leakage rate as low as 0.2% is on par with coal, assuming 1.5% sulfur coal that is scrubbed at a 90% efficiency with no coal mine methane when considering climate effects over a 20 year timeframe. Recent aerial measurement surveys of US oil and gas production basins find wide-ranging natural gas leak rates 0.65% to 66.2%, with similar leakage rates detected worldwide. These numerous super-emitting gas systems being detected globally underscore the need to accelerate methane emissions detection, accounting, and management practices to certify that gas assets are less emissions intensive than coal.
5. Conclusion
Numerous scenarios run in this study indicate that the benefits of gas do not outweigh coal at certain methane leakage rates. Super-emitting gas production systems being assessed globally by satellites and high-altitude aircraft are demonstrating gas leakage rates that meet emissions intensity parity with coal. This underscores the need to scale remote methane detection to accelerate emissions management practices. Visibly tracking and quantifying the extent of climate damage done by leaking gas can help public and private decision makers prioritize and accelerate methane emissions controls so that global gas assets emit GHGs well below coal.
5 comments
Nous sachions cela déjà. Dans les grandes lignes du moins.
*Pikachu surpris*
La source de la source :
https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1748-9326/ace3db
Evaluating net life-cycle greenhouse gas emissions intensities from gas and coal at varying methane leakage rates
Deborah Gordon6,1,2, Frances Reuland2, Daniel J Jacob3, John R Worden4, Drew Shindell5 and Mark Dyson2
Abstract
The net climate impact of gas and coal life-cycle emissions are highly dependent on methane leakage. Every molecule of methane leaked alters the climate advantage because methane warms the planet significantly more than CO2 over its decade-long lifetime. We find that global gas systems that leak over 4.7% of their methane (when considering a 20-year timeframe) or 7.6% (when considering a 100 year timeframe) are on par with life-cycle coal emissions from methane leaking coal mines. The net climate impact from coal is also influenced by SO2 emissions, which react to form sulfate aerosols that mask warming. We run scenarios that combine varying methane leakage rates from coal and gas with low to high SO2 emissions based on coal sulfur content, flue gas scrubber efficiency, and sulfate aerosol global warming potentials. The methane and SO2 co-emitted with CO2 alter the emissions parity between gas and coal. We estimate that a gas system leakage rate as low as 0.2% is on par with coal, assuming 1.5% sulfur coal that is scrubbed at a 90% efficiency with no coal mine methane when considering climate effects over a 20 year timeframe. Recent aerial measurement surveys of US oil and gas production basins find wide-ranging natural gas leak rates 0.65% to 66.2%, with similar leakage rates detected worldwide. These numerous super-emitting gas systems being detected globally underscore the need to accelerate methane emissions detection, accounting, and management practices to certify that gas assets are less emissions intensive than coal.
5. Conclusion
Numerous scenarios run in this study indicate that the benefits of gas do not outweigh coal at certain methane leakage rates. Super-emitting gas production systems being assessed globally by satellites and high-altitude aircraft are demonstrating gas leakage rates that meet emissions intensity parity with coal. This underscores the need to scale remote methane detection to accelerate emissions management practices. Visibly tracking and quantifying the extent of climate damage done by leaking gas can help public and private decision makers prioritize and accelerate methane emissions controls so that global gas assets emit GHGs well below coal.
what else is new
NON