Article
Engineering, Environmental
Qining Chen, Colette Schissel, Yosuke Kimura, Gary McGaughey, Elena McDonald-Buller, David T. Allen
Summary: Continuous monitoring systems are used to detect methane emissions at oil and gas production sites, but their effectiveness depends on various factors. This study evaluates the effectiveness of continuous sensor networks in detecting different types of emission events using case studies. The results show that the detection of emissions varies depending on the number of sensors deployed and the characteristics of the emission events. The analysis framework presented in this study can be applied in the evaluation of continuous emission monitoring network designs.
ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Erin E. Tullos, Shannon N. Stokes, Felipe J. Cardoso-Saldana, Scott C. Herndon, Brendan J. Smith, David T. Allen
Summary: Short-term methane emission estimates for oil and gas production sites based on observations lasting seconds to minutes are common but challenging to interpret. This study demonstrates that comparing distributions of emissions at multiple sites can reconcile sets of short duration measurements. Extrapolating short duration measurements at the equipment level using models that account for intermittency can predict expected ranges of emissions for individual sites and identify abnormal emissions.
ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY LETTERS
(2021)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Benjamin Hmiel, David R. Lyon, Jack D. Warren, Jevan Yu, Daniel H. Cusworth, Riley M. Duren, Steven P. Hamburg
Summary: This study examines the methane emissions from oil and gas production in the Permian Basin and finds significant variations in emission intensity among different companies. It shows that nearly half of the operators have improved their performance by over 50% from 2019 to 2021.
ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH LETTERS
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Zacariah L. Hildenbrand, Kevin A. Schug
Summary: The study found that 'intelligent' plunger lift systems, which optimize based on reservoir and wellbore conditions, performed the best in aging gas wells, exhibiting lower emission loss rates compared to wells without a plunger lift system. Additionally, wells equipped with next generation reservoir optimized plunger lift technology showed a reduced rate of production decline.
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
(2021)
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Shannon Stokes, Erin Tullos, Linley Morris, Felipe J. Cardoso-Saldan, Mackenzie Smith, Stephen Conley, Brendan Smith, David T. Allen
Summary: Emission rates were estimated for over 100 oil and gas production sites in the Permian Basin of west Texas. The results showed that the average emission rates per site were within a certain range, and none of the site-specific estimates exceeded 10 kg/h. Drone-based measurements confirmed similar emission estimates for inventoried sources. Multiple aircraft measurement platforms were deployed and revealed that a small percentage of sites had emissions exceeding 10 kg/h, which accounted for a significant portion of total emissions.
ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Environmental Sciences
David T. Allen, Felipe J. Cardoso-Saldana, Yosuke Kimura, Qining Chen, Zhanhong Xiang, Daniel Zimmerle, Clay Bell, Chris Lute, Jerry Duggan, Matthew Harrison
Summary: This study presents a tool for estimating routine emissions from oil and gas well sites at multiple time scales. It emphasizes the importance of developing detailed emission inventories that incorporate operational data when comparing measurements to routine emissions.
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
(2022)
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Felipe J. Cardoso-Saldan
Summary: Traditional leak detection and repair programs using handheld detectors every 2 to 4 times a year may result in unintended emissions remaining active for long periods. Manual surveys are also labor intensive. Novel methane detection technologies, such as satellites, aircraft, continuous monitors, and OGI cameras, offer opportunities to quickly detect and fix high-emitting sources, achieving higher emission reductions than quarterly or monthly OGI inspections.
ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Ira Leifer, Christopher Melton, William J. Daniel, David M. Tratt, Patrick D. Johnson, Kerry N. Buckland, Jae Deok Kim, Charlotte Marston
Summary: Remote sensing techniques have great potential in marine oil spill response, but face challenges in field validation and methodology assessment. This study demonstrates and validates a remote sensing approach using the Coal Oil Point natural marine hydrocarbon seepage as a case study. The research shows that thick oil can be separated from seawater based on brightness temperature contrast, and also observes the temporal variability of oil slicks.
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Bin Chen, Siyi Kan, Sijing Wang, Huijing Deng, Bo Zhang
Summary: This paper constructs a demand-driven impacts model to uncover the impact of global consumption and international trade on regional oil and gas methane emissions in 2014. It's estimated that more than three-fifths of global oil & gas methane emissions are embodied in international commodity trade, primarily from large oil and gas suppliers to large consuming economies. Notably, more than three quarters of oil & gas methane emissions embodied in EU's final consumption occurs in other regions. Our results could facilitate targeted demand-side mitigation strategies to complement the relatively loose supply-side methane regulations in large exporting regions.
RESOURCES CONSERVATION AND RECYCLING
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Mark Omara, Daniel Zavala-Araiza, David R. Lyon, Benjamin Hmiel, Katherine A. Roberts, Steven P. Hamburg
Summary: Although low production well sites in the US account for only a small fraction of oil and natural gas output, they are a significant source of CH4 emissions, contributing to a substantial portion of the total emissions. Therefore, mitigating emissions from these low production well sites is crucial for reducing O&G CH4 emissions.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2022)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Malika Menoud, Carina van der Veen, Hossein Maazallahi, Arjan Hensen, Ilona Velzeboer, Pim van den Bulk, Antonio Delre, Piotr Korben, Stefan Schwietzke, Magdalena Ardelean, Andreea Calcan, Giuseppe Etiope, Calin Baciu, Charlotte Scheutz, Martina Schmidt, Thomas Rockmann
Summary: Despite the European Union's goals to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, the methane emissions from the oil and gas sector in Romania are highly uncertain. By measuring the isotopic composition of methane, we found that the main sources of methane in the Romanian Plain are thermogenic gas associated with oil production, as well as some natural gas reservoirs of microbial origin. The classification based on ethane and CH4 isotopes was consistent, confirming the interpretation of gas origin. Furthermore, we discovered that the average isotopic signatures of methane in Romania are significantly lower than the commonly used values for global fossil fuel emissions, emphasizing the importance of regional variations in methane isotopes for global modeling studies.
ELEMENTA-SCIENCE OF THE ANTHROPOCENE
(2022)
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Colby B. Francoeur, Brian C. McDonald, Jessica B. Gilman, Kyle J. Zarzana, Barbara Dix, Steven S. Brown, Joost A. de Gouw, Gregory J. Frost, Meng Li, Stuart A. McKeen, Jeff Peischl, Ilana B. Pollack, Thomas B. Ryerson, Chelsea Thompson, Carsten Warneke, Michael Trainer
Summary: This study provides an updated fuel-based oil and gas inventory, estimating NOx emissions from production in the contiguous US, and compares it with aircraft-derived emissions. The research shows good agreement between the bottom-up inventory and top-down aircraft-derived NOx emissions. It also suggests that NMVOC/NOx emissions from oil and gas basins may be three times higher than current estimates, potentially affecting how air quality models represent ozone formation downwind of oil and gas fields.
ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Hongfang Lu, Zhao-Dong Xu, Kaihui Song, Y. Frank Cheng, Shaohua Dong, Hongyuan Fang, Haoyan Peng, Yun Fu, Dongmin Xi, Zizhe Han, Xinmeng Jiang, Yao-Rong Dong, Panpan Gai, Zhiwei Shan, Yuli Shan
Summary: Crude oil pipelines are critical to the energy industry, but accidents can have severe public health and environmental impacts, with greenhouse gas emissions, particularly methane, often overlooked. This study provides the first-ever inventory of greenhouse gas emissions resulting from crude oil pipeline accidents in the United States from 1968 to 2020, revealing that gathering pipelines contribute more emissions than transmission pipelines. Texas accounts for over 40% of the total accident-related emissions. The findings enhance the accuracy of greenhouse gas accounting for crude oil transport and support data-driven climate mitigation strategies.
Article
Engineering, Environmental
S. Naus, J. D. Maasakkers, R. Gautam, M. Omara, R. Stikker, A. K. Veenstra, B. Nathan, I. Irakulis-Loitxate, L. Guanter, S. Pandey, M. Girard, A. Lorente, T. Borsdorff, I. Aben
Summary: Methane emissions from oil and gas production play a significant role in global warming. Using data from Sentinel-2 and TROPOMI instruments, we found that emissions from Algeria's largest gas field, Hassi R'Mel, decreased by 53% in 2020, while emissions from the oil-production-dominated area, Hassi Messaoud, increased by 79%.
ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Siti Shilatul Najwa Sharuddin, Siti Rozaimah Sheikh Abdullah, Hassimi Abu Hasan, Ahmad Razi Othman, Nur 'Izzati Ismail
Summary: This study isolated multifunctional rhizobacteria from different sources, such as rhizosphere soils and crude oil sludge, and found that these bacteria can efficiently degrade hydrocarbons while producing biosurfactants. The presence of biosurfactants was confirmed by SEM images, showing the formation of exopolymers that enhance the degradation process.
PROCESS SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
(2021)
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Eric D. Lebel, Colin J. Finnegan, Zutao Ouyang, Robert B. Jackson
Summary: Natural gas stoves in over 40 million US residences release methane and nitrogen oxides, contributing to climate change and respiratory diseases.
ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
(2022)
Review
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Adam F. A. Pellegrini, Jennifer Harden, Katerina Georgiou, Kyle S. Hemes, Avni Malhotra, Connor J. Nolan, Robert B. Jackson
Summary: Fire disturbances in ecosystems challenge the paradigm of frequent disturbances depleting soil organic matter carbon, as recent studies show that fires can increase soil organic matter stability and slow decomposition rates, offsetting aboveground biomass carbon losses.
Article
Plant Sciences
Shersingh Joseph Tumber-Davila, H. Jochen Schenk, Enzai Du, Robert B. Jackson
Summary: This study investigated the relationships between plant size and shape and climate. It found that water availability and growth form significantly influence the size of the shoot, while rooting depth is primarily influenced by temperature seasonality. Shoot size is the strongest predictor of lateral spread, with root system diameter generally being twice as wide as shoot width. Plants in different climates exhibited considerably different geometries.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Zhen Zhang, Benjamin Poulter, Sara Knox, Ann Stavert, Gavin McNicol, Etienne Fluet-Chouinard, Aryeh Feinberg, Yuanhong Zhao, Philippe Bousquet, Josep G. Canadell, Anita Ganesan, Gustaf Hugelius, George Hurtt, Robert B. Jackson, Prabir K. Patra, Marielle Saunois, Lena Hoeglund-Isaksson, Chunlin Huang, Abhishek Chatterjee, Xin Li
Summary: Research suggests that the continued rise in atmospheric methane concentration is mainly attributed to increased anthropogenic emissions, particularly from agriculture, waste management, and industrial fossil fuel sources. Wetland emissions have the least contribution to the increase. The current wetland methane models cannot explain the decrease in atmospheric δC-13-CH4 values.
NATIONAL SCIENCE REVIEW
(2022)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Masahito Ueyama, Sara H. Knox, Kyle B. Delwiche, Sheel Bansal, William J. Riley, Dennis Baldocchi, Takashi Hirano, Gavin McNicol, Karina Schafer, Lisamarie Windham-Myers, Benjamin Poulter, Robert B. Jackson, Kuang-Yu Chang, Jiquen Chen, Housen Chu, Ankur R. Desai, Sebastien Gogo, Hiroki Iwata, Minseok Kang, Ivan Mammarella, Matthias Peichl, Oliver Sonnentag, Eeva-Stiina Tuittila, Youngryel Ryu, Eugenie S. Euskirchen, Mathias Goeckede, Adrien Jacotot, Mats B. B. Nilsson, Torsten Sachs
Summary: Wetlands are the largest natural source of methane in the atmosphere. Through data-model fusion, we estimate the processes of methane production, oxidation, and transport in wetlands, and find that production is the most important process.
GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Agronomy
Peter T. Pellitier, Robert B. Jackson
Summary: This study provides direct evidence that phosphorus (P) constrains the growth responses of understory plants to elevated CO2 (eCO2), and indirectly highlights the role of microorganisms in plant responses to eCO2.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Zutao Ouyang, Robert B. Jackson, Gavin McNicol, Etienne Fluet-Chouinard, Benjamin R. K. Runkle, Dario Papale, Sara H. Knox, Sarah Cooley, Kyle B. Delwiche, Sarah Feron, Jeremy Andrew Irvin, Avni Malhotra, Muhammad Muddasir, Simone Sabbatini, Ma Carmelita R. Alberto, Alessandro Cescatti, Chi-Ling Chen, Jinwei Dong, Bryant N. Fong, Haiqiang Guo, Lu Hao, Hiroki Iwata, Qingyu Jia, Weimin Ju, Minseok Kang, Hong Li, Joon Kim, Michele L. Reba, Amaresh Kumar Nayak, Debora Regina Roberti, Youngryel Ryu, Chinmaya Kumar Swain, Benjei Tsuang, Xiangming Xiao, Wenping Yuan, Geli Zhang, Yongguang Zhang
Summary: Although rice cultivation is a significant source of methane emissions, there are large discrepancies in the estimated global emissions due to a lack of observational data. This study used machine learning and remote sensing data to estimate high-resolution methane emissions from paddy rice in Monsoon Asia and found a declining trend in emissions in recent years.
REMOTE SENSING OF ENVIRONMENT
(2023)
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Yannai S. Kashtan, Metta Nicholson, Colin Finnegan, Zutao Ouyang, Eric D. Lebel, Drew R. Michanowicz, Seth B. C. Shonkoff, Robert B. Jackson
Summary: Research shows that benzene released from gas and propane combustion in stoves and ovens can significantly impact indoor air quality and can spread throughout homes, sometimes exceeding health safety standards.
ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Kuang-Yu Chang, William J. Riley, Nathan Collier, Gavin McNicol, Etienne Fluet-Chouinard, Sara H. Knox, Kyle B. Delwiche, Robert B. Jackson, Benjamin Poulter, Marielle Saunois, Naveen Chandra, Nicola Gedney, Misa Ishizawa, Akihiko Ito, Fortunat Joos, Thomas Kleinen, Federico Maggi, Joe McNorton, Joe R. Melton, Paul Miller, Yosuke Niwa, Chiara Pasut, Prabir K. Patra, Changhui Peng, Sushi Peng, Arjo Segers, Hanqin Tian, Aki Tsuruta, Yuanzhi Yao, Yi Yin, Wenxin Zhang, Zhen Zhang, Qing Zhu, Qiuan Zhu, Qianlai Zhuang
Summary: The recent rise in atmospheric methane concentrations has negative effects on climate change and mitigation efforts. Estimates of global wetland methane emissions vary widely among different approaches, but using better-performing models can reduce the spread of these estimates. However, discrepancies in the estimates increase when using the top 20% models. It is important to expand benchmark sites to account for environmental variability and encourage the development of wetland methane models to focus on site-specific and ecosystem-specific variabilities.
GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Etienne Fluet-Chouinard, Benjamin D. Stocker, Zhen Zhang, Avni Malhotra, Joe R. Melton, Benjamin Poulter, Jed O. Kaplan, Kees Klein Goldewijk, Stefan Siebert, Tatiana Minayeva, Gustaf Hugelius, Hans Joosten, Alexandra Barthelmes, Catherine Prigent, Filipe Aires, Alison M. Hoyt, Nick Davidson, C. Max Finlayson, Bernhard Lehner, Robert B. Jackson, Peter B. McIntyre
Summary: Wetlands have been drained for human use, causing significant impact on multiple aspects including greenhouse gas fluxes, flood control, nutrient cycling, and biodiversity. However, the extent of natural wetland loss globally has remained uncertain. In this study, the researchers reconstructed the spatial distribution and timing of wetland loss from 1700 to 2020, and estimated that approximately 3.4 million km2 of inland wetlands, primarily for croplands, have been lost since 1700, accounting for a net loss of 21% of global wetland area. The study highlights the concentration of wetland loss in Europe, the United States, and China, and provides a valuable historical baseline for assessing the impact of wetland loss and guiding conservation planning and restoration efforts.
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Benjamin D. D. Stocker, Shersingh Joseph Tumber-Davila, Alexandra G. G. Konings, Martha C. C. Anderson, Christopher Hain, Robert B. B. Jackson
Summary: Global estimations based on satellite data show that plants have access to deep water across one-third of Earth's vegetated surface. The storage capacity of water in the rooting zone, which determines the sensitivity of land-atmosphere water and carbon exchange during dry periods, was estimated globally using remote sensing data. The study found that 37% of Earth's vegetated surface has plant-available water stores that exceed the storage capacity of 2-meter deep soils. These variations in rooting-zone water-storage capacity were correlated with hydroclimate, rooting depth, and land use.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Evan D. Sherwin, Jeffrey S. Rutherford, Yuanlei Chen, Sam Aminfard, Eric A. Kort, Robert B. Jackson, Adam R. Brandt
Summary: Satellites are considered a useful tool for identifying large greenhouse gas point sources, but independent verification is needed for acceptance. The first single-blind controlled methane release testing of satellite-based detection and quantification was conducted, with five teams analyzing data from one to five satellites. The teams correctly identified 71% of all emissions, ranging from 0.20 to 7.2 metric tons per hour.
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2023)
Article
Soil Science
Sebastian H. Villarino, Emir Talab, Luciano Contisciani, Cecilia Videla, Paula Di Geronimo, Matias E. E. Mastrangelo, Katerina Georgiou, Robert B. B. Jackson, Gervasio Pineiro
Summary: Soil organic matter (SOM) mineralization and nitrogen (N) release are important processes, and the relative contributions of particulate (POM) and mineral-associated organic matter (MAOM) fractions have been poorly understood. Contrary to expectations, we found that MAOM consistently supplied more nitrogen than POM during SOM mineralization in all land uses. Our study suggests that the contributions of MAOM to short-term nitrogen mineralization and nitrogen supply to plants have been underestimated.
BIOLOGY AND FERTILITY OF SOILS
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Chenghao Wang, Jiyun Song, Dachuan Shi, Janet L. Reyna, Henry Horsey, Sarah Feron, Yuyu Zhou, Zutao Ouyang, Ying Li, Robert B. Jackson
Summary: Climate, technologies, and socio-economic changes will influence future building energy use in cities. A study on 277 U.S. urban areas shows that climate change results in heterogeneous changes in energy use intensity (EUI) among urban areas, with population and power sector changes being the primary factors driving city-scale building energy use changes. Considering intercity heterogeneity is crucial when developing sustainable and resilient urban energy systems.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Yuanhong Zhao, Marielle Saunois, Philippe Bousquet, Xin Lin, Michaela I. Hegglin, Josep G. Canadell, Robert B. Jackson, Bo Zheng
Summary: The estimated methane chemical sink by bottom-up methods is significantly higher than the estimates obtained by top-down methods. This difference is mainly due to the large uncertainties in the simulated concentrations of hydroxyl radicals (OH) by the atmospheric chemistry models used in bottom-up estimates. In this study, a new approach based on OH precursor observations and a chemical box model is proposed to improve the accuracy of OH distributions and reconcile the bottom-up and top-down estimates of methane loss. By constraining the simulated OH precursors with observations, the adjusted global mean tropospheric OH concentration ([OH](trop-M)) is around 10x10(5) molec. cm(-3), which is lower than the original model-simulated value and agrees with the top-down estimate. The adjusted methane chemical loss estimate is in line with the latest top-down estimate, contrary to the overestimated bottom-up estimates. The overestimation in global [OH](trop-M) and methane chemical loss by the models is primarily caused by the underestimation of carbon monoxide and total ozone column, and the overestimation of nitrogen dioxide. This study emphasizes the importance of constraining the model-simulated OH fields with available precursor observations to improve bottom-up estimates of the global methane sink.
ATMOSPHERIC CHEMISTRY AND PHYSICS
(2023)