Global annual methane emission rate derived from its current atmospheric mixing ratio and estimated lifetime

Sonnemann, G. R.; Grygalashvyly, M.

doi:10.5194/angeo-32-277-2014

Cited by 12 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 47 publications

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“…SO2 influences the radiative budget through its oxidation to form sulfate particles (Weber et al, 1996) which scatter solar radiation and so cool the atmosphere. The effect is regional rather than global, as sulfate particles are relatively short-lived (weeks) (Myhre et al, 2013) compared to CH4 (~10 years) (Forster et al, 2010;Sonnemann et al, 2014). Sulfate is also a key component of fine PM that is harmful to health (Reiss et al, 2007).…”

Section: The Charcoal Supply Chain In Africamentioning

confidence: 99%

Air Pollution and Climate Forcing of the Charcoal Industry in Africa

Bockarie

Marais

MacKenzie

2020

Environ. Sci. Technol.

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Demand for charcoal in Africa is growing rapidly, driven by urbanization and lack of access to electricity and other reliable and clean off-grid energy. Charcoal production and use, including plastic burning to initiate combustion, release large quantities of trace gases and particles that impact air quality and climate. In this work, past (2000)(2001)(2002)(2003)(2004)(2005)(2006)(2007)(2008)(2009)(2010)(2011)(2012)(2013)(2014) trends in charcoal production and use in Africa are quantified and the dominant drivers identified to forecast the future (2030) of the industry. An inventory of current (2014) and future (2030) emissions from the charcoal supply chain in Africa has also been developed and implemented in the GEOS-Chem chemical transport model to quantify the contribution of charcoal to surface concentrations of PM2.5 and ozone, and direct radiative forcing due to aerosols and ozone. Charcoal production (and use) increased from 2000 to 2014 in Africa by a factor of 2. In 2014, the charcoal industry required 140-460 Tg fuelwood, depending on efficiency of combustion, to produce charcoal and 260 tonnes plastic for charcoal use to initiate combustion. The variability in wood required is due to variability in combustion efficiency of 9-30% that depends on kiln type and technology. The plastic use is an educated guess in the absence of statistics on its use and is most prevalent in low-income homes. A rough estimate of forest loss suggests that by 2030, 4.4-15 million hectares of forest will be lost in Africa due to charcoal production. By 2030, charcoal production will almost double which will drive a similar increase in emissions from the industry. Charcoal production makes a substantial contribution to CH4 emissions in Africa. These may outcompete CH4 emissions from open fires in West Africa by 2025. As expected, inefficient combustion emissions of CH4, NMVOCs, and CO are predominantly from charcoal production, whereas BC and NOx, signatures of efficient vTABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF FIGURES .

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Section: The Charcoal Supply Chain In Africamentioning

confidence: 99%

Air Pollution and Climate Forcing of the Charcoal Industry in Africa

Bockarie

Marais

MacKenzie

2020

Environ. Sci. Technol.

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“…CH 4 is less abundant but is over 20 times more powerful than carbon dioxide (Baldocchi et al, 2012;Lelieveld, 2006). The mean tropospheric lifetime of CH 4 ranges between approximately 8 and 12 years, whereas for carbon dioxide it varies, averaging over 30 years (Dlugokencky et al, 2012;IPCC, 2007;Sonnemann and Grygalashvyly, 2014). Moreover, CH 4 is involved in atmospheric chemistry (Bergamaschi and Bousquet, 2008).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Influence of atmospheric stability and transport on CH 4 concentrations in northern Spain

García

Sánchez

Pérez

et al. 2016

Science of The Total Environment

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Continuous methane (CH4) concentrations were measured in Northern Spain over two years (2011-2012) by multi-point sampling at 1.8, 3.7 and 8.3m using a Picarro analyser. The technique is based on cavity ring-down spectroscopy. The contrast in mean concentrations was about 1.2ppb, with 95th percentiles differing by 2.2ppb and mean minimum concentrations proving similar. Temporal variations of CH4 were also analysed, with a similar seasonal variability being found for the three heights. The highest CH4 concentrations were obtained in late autumn and winter and the lowest in summer, yielding a range of 52ppb. This variation may depend on the active photochemical reaction with OH radical during a period of intense solar radiation and changes in soil conditions together with variations in emissions. Peak concentration levels were recorded at night-time, between 5:00-7:00 GMT, with mean values ranging between 1920 and 1923ppb. The lowest value, around 1884ppb, was obtained at 16:00 GMT. This diurnal variation was mainly related to vertical mixing and photochemistry. Therefore, CH4 concentrations were also examined using the bulk Richardson number (RB) as a stability indicator. Four groups were distinguished: unstable cases, situations with pure shear flow, transitional stages and drainage flows. The highest contrast in mean CH4 concentrations between lower and upper heights was obtained for the transition and drainage cases, mainly associated to high concentrations from nearby sources. The impact of long range transport was analysed by means of 3-day isobaric backward air mass trajectories, which were calculated taking into account origins from Europe, Africa, the Atlantic Ocean and Local conditions. Assessment of the results showed the influence of S and SE wind sectors, especially with Local conditions associated with low winds. Finally, an estimation of the background CH4 concentration in the study period provided an average value of about 1892ppb.

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“…2.21). Since pre-industrial times, CH 4 emissions have risen by a factor of 2.5 (Dlugokencky et al, 2011;Khalil and Rasmussen, 1995), while estimates of its lifetime has decreased; it is now estimated at ∼ 8.5 years (Sonnemann and Grygalashvyly, 2014). Atmospheric CH 4 growth almost ceased between 1999 and 2006 but has resumed since 2007 (Nisbet et al, 2014;Schwietzke et al, 2016).…”

Section: Methane Trends and Uncertaintymentioning

confidence: 99%

Atmospheric characterization through fused mobile airborne and surface in situ surveys: methane emissions quantification from a producing oil field

et al. 2018

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Abstract. Methane (CH 4 ) inventory uncertainties are large, requiring robust emission derivation approaches. We report on a fused airborne-surface data collection approach to derive emissions from an active oil field near Bakersfield, central California. The approach characterizes the atmosphere from the surface to above the planetary boundary layer (PBL) and combines downwind trace gas concentration anomaly (plume) above background with normal winds to derive flux. This approach does not require a well-mixed PBL; allows explicit, data-based, uncertainty evaluation; and was applied to complex topography and wind flows.In situ airborne (collected by AJAX -the Alpha Jet Atmospheric eXperiment) and mobile surface (collected by AMOG -the AutoMObile trace Gas -Surveyor) data were collected on 19 August 2015 to assess source strength. Data included an AMOG and AJAX intercomparison transect profiling from the San Joaquin Valley (SJV) floor into the Sierra Nevada (0.1-2.2 km altitude), validating a novel surface approach for atmospheric profiling by leveraging topography. The profile intercomparison found good agreement in multiple parameters for the overlapping altitude range from 500 to 1500 m for the upper 5 % of surface winds, which accounts for wind-impeding structures, i.e., terrain, trees, buildings, etc. Annualized emissions from the active oil fields were 31.3 ± 16 Gg methane and 2.4 ± 1.2 Tg carbon dioxide. Data showed the PBL was not well mixed at distances of 10-20 km downwind, highlighting the importance of the experimental design.

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Global annual methane emission rate derived from its current atmospheric mixing ratio and estimated lifetime

Cited by 12 publications

References 47 publications

Air Pollution and Climate Forcing of the Charcoal Industry in Africa

Air Pollution and Climate Forcing of the Charcoal Industry in Africa

Influence of atmospheric stability and transport on CH 4 concentrations in northern Spain

Atmospheric characterization through fused mobile airborne and surface in situ surveys: methane emissions quantification from a producing oil field

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