Using the LI-COR 7810 Gas Analyzer to Understand Methane Distribution and Fluxes in Engineered and Natural Systems

As the world continues to falter on reaching a consensus on policy and practice to avoid more extreme levels of global warming, it is increasingly clear that, in addition to carbon dioxide, abatement of other greenhouse gases (e.g. methane, nitrous oxide) will be necessary. At the end of 2019 global methane concentrations reached 1.875 ppm, more than twice pre-industrial levels. Though less abundant in the atmosphere as compared to carbon dioxide, methane has a global warming potential ~28 times stronger per unit mass than carbon dioxide on a 100-year time scale. Equipment requested in this proposal, the LI-COR LI-7810 gas analyzer, provides an important tool to measure concentrations and fluxes of methane and carbon dioxide in various settings. Current and future collaborative research at UK would readily use the 7810 in analyzing methane in man-made (oil and gas infrastructure) and disturbed natural (reclaimed mine lands) systems. In work on natural gas gathering lines, the 7810 will be used in combination with measurements from unmanned aerial systems to determine the locations and magnitudes of fugitive methane emissions. Similarly, the 7810 will be used to measure emissions from abandoned oil and gas wells in Kentucky to determine their contribution to atmospheric methane. For work documenting the carbon cycle on reclaimed mine lands, the 7810 connected to a flux chamber will measure the rate of methane and carbon dioxide exchange between the soil and atmosphere. The measurements are necessary to determine the net carbon balance on mine lands undergoing reclamation to forest lands.