Detection of gas leakage from landfills using infrared thermography - applicability and limitations

Abstract

Although landfill gas emission can be greatly reduced by extraction and converting gas to energy, in practice not all gas can be collected and some leaks can still occur. Management of landfill gas can be improved if leaks can be detected and rectified effectively. This paper provides a brief review of methods available for detecting landfill leakage, with a focus on infrared thermography. It then describes a study which was conducted to test if an infrared camera can be used to detect gas leaks accurately by identifying them as anomalies. It examined the applicability and limitations of the technique by investigating fundamental factors such as weather conditions, ground conditions and distance of sensor from source. The paper also describes a test case conducted to reinforce the findings. It concluded that unless all the fundamental factors are clearly understood and addressed, the technique currently can only be used as a screening tool rather than as a precise tool to detect landfill gas leakages. For this reason, it would be difficult to use the technique as a basis for modelling gas emission from landfills.

Leakage quantification of compressed air on pipes using thermovision

“…Passive ultrasound detection cannot be used reliably for quantification of compressed air leaks, but only for detection, as reported by [19]. The application of passive ultrasound on leak detection on a steel pipe in compressed air systems shall be the focus of this paper.…”

“…The autonomous analysis of thermogram allows application of autonomous robots, which contribute to easier and safer remote detection of leaks. Lewis et al [19] give a concise presentation of available methods for gas leak detection in landfills, with emphasis on IR thermography. They also point out the potentials and limitations of this technology, such as the weather conditions, local conditions, and remoteness of source from the IC detector.…”

Review on Conveyor Systems and Thermography

“…Thermography is mainly utilized for non-destructive analysis, fault analysis, and medical analysis. These applications can be further expanded into fields like investigation of historic structures [111], flat bottom hole analysis in slabs [112], loose electrical connections [113], sports medicine [114], dentistry [115], medical applications [116,117], electrical motor applications [118], power plants [119], heater process [120], mechanical systems and hydraulic components [121], energy conservation [122], surveillance and security [123,124,125], civil constructions [126,127], marine engineering applications [128], animal reproduction [129], defence systems and military applications [130,131], dairy applications [132], pathological analysis in structures for building strength analysis and maintenance [133], automobile industries [134,135,138], gas leakage and detection [136,137,140], aerial survey of buried objects [139], agriculture [141], food processing industry [142,143], food quality assessment [144], waste management [145], soil assessment [146], research and development works [147], printed circuit board fabrication & solar cell diagnostics [148], etc. The applications extend to a larger range and only a few are discussed above.…”

Computational monitoring in real time: review of methods and applications

“…The passive thermographic methods are able to detect global anomalies and are qualitative in nature. It is used for leakage detection (Inagaki and Okamoto 1997;Lewis et al 2003), monitoring of heat losses and structural inspections (Grinzato et al 2002;Stepinski et al 2013;Theodorakeas et al 2015). In the active thermographic monitoring, the energy is supplied to the object by an external source, either by a thermal wave source or by vibration source.…”