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Natural Gas Leak Detection Systems Tested at
RMOTC
In late September 2004, DOE's National
Energy Technology Laboratory sponsored field tests of advanced
technologies for remote sensing of natural gas leaks at the
Rocky Mountain Oilfield Testing Center (RMOTC) in Wyoming.
RMOTC simulated a pipeline system about 7.5 miles long with 15
leak sites with rates ranging from 1 scfh to 5,000 scfh. There
were different leak release options, even some decoys, so
technologies being tested were truly put to the test.
Tested technologies included: passive
infrared multi-spectral scanning, laser-based differential
absorption LIDAR (Light Detection and Ranging), hyperspectral
imaging, and tunable diode laser absorption spectroscopy.
Sensor systems were mounted in an unmodified automobile, a
helicopter, or a fixed-wing aircraft. Equipment providers
included En'Urga Inc., ITT Industries, Inc. LaSen, Inc.,
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratories, and Physical
Sciences, Inc.
Test results confirm that many of the leak
sites were found. General observations from the test results
are:
- Leak rates of 500 scfh or higher were
detected at least 50% of the time.
- Leak rates of 100 scfh were only detected
15% of the time.
- Leak rates of 15 and 10 scfh were only
detected about 5% of the time.
- The 1 scfh leak rate was never detected.
- There were a large number of "false
positive" leak sites identified.
With a week of testing, some equipment
providers were able to make improvements during the week,
while other providers defined modifications for future work.
There were also lessons learned about procedures for
conducting future leak detection field tests.
The full report (7.3 mb) is available
online at
www.netl.
doe.gov/scngo/Natural%20Gas/
publications/t&d/final%20
Report_RMOTC.pdf.
DOE
Releases LNG Safety Study
DOE recently released a Liquefied Natural
Gas (LNG) safety and security study conducted by Sandia
National Laboratories. While |
accepted standards exist for the systematic
safety analysis of spills or releases from LNG storage
terminals on land, no equivalent set of standards exists for
safety or consequences of LNG spills over water. The report
reviews several existing studies of LNG spills with respect to
their assumptions, inputs, models and experimental data.
The following conclusions, which are only a
partial list, were developed by Sandia:
- Risks from accidental LNG spills, such as
from collisions and groundings, are small and manageable
with current safety policies and practices.
- Consequences from an intentional breach
can be more severe than those from accidental breaches, but
these intentional breach risks can be significantly reduced
with appropriate security, planning, prevention and
mitigation.
- The most significant impacts exist within
approximately 500 m of a spill, due to thermal hazards, with
lower public health and safety impacts beyond approximately
1,600 m.
- Although large, unignited LNG vapor
releases are unlikely, they could spread over distances
greater than 1,600 m (to 2,500 m for a nominal intentional
spill).
Sandia noted that modeling the dynamics and
dispersion of a spill over water is hampered by (1) very
limited historical and empirical information since current LNG
ship design and safety procedures have reduced accidents
greatly and (2) the experimental data that are available are
more than 100 times smaller than spill sizes currently being
postulated for some intentional events.
The full Sandia report is available
online at
www.fe.doe.gov/pro
grams/oilgas/storage/lng/sandia_
lng_1204.pdf.
Canadian Provinces Added to Two DOE Regional Sequestration
Partnerships
DOE recently announced that Alberta and
British Columbia have joined Saskatchewan and Manitoba as
Canadian partners in the Regional Carbon Sequestration
Partnerships program. The Department of Energy selected seven
original partnerships in August 2003. With the addition of
organizations from Alberta and British Columbia, the
partnerships now include 216 organizations spanning 40 states,
three Indian nations, and four Canadian provinces. |
Plains
CO2 Reduction Partnership. In January
2005 Alberta joined Manitoba and Saskatchewan as Canadian
provinces participating along with nine states (from Iowa to
Montana/Wyoming) in the Plains CO2 Reduction
Partnership. Alberta shares many of the geologic and
physiographic characteristics of the existing partnership
region. The Alberta Energy and Utility Board and Alberta
Environment will contribute information on Alberta CO2
sources, transportation infrastructure, and the vast geologic
formations to the partnership's geographic information system
and decision-support tools. Ducks Unlimited Canada will expand
their work on characterizing the potential for Prairie Pot
Hole Region Wetlands in Alberta to sequester carbon and offset
other greenhouse gas emissions through future restoration
projects.
West
Coast Regional Sequestration Partnership. British
Columbia joined six states in the West Coast Regional Carbon
Sequestration Partnership in December 2004. British Columbia
has a significant amount of hydrocarbon-bearing sedimentary
basins that could be used to store CO2 while
simultaneously enhancing recovery. Within these sedimentary
basins are saline reservoirs that have huge potential storage
capacity but need better characterization. In addition,
several mineral deposits exist that could be used to
permanently store carbon dioxide by converting it to a solid
material. The British Columbia Ministry of Energy and Mines,
which has previous experience characterizing their geographic
area for sequestration opportunities, has created a database
of potential sequestration sites, CO2 sources, and
transportation infrastructure.
View DOE techline at
www.netl.
doe.gov/publications/press/2005/
tl_sequestration_canada.html. For information
on all regional sequestration partnerships, visit
www.fossil.energy.gov/programs/
sequestration/partnerships/index.
html. |
Environmental