Purdue researchers flew an airborne chemistry laboratory over natural gas-fueled power plants and refineries to measure greenhouse gases. They found that although these facilities are much better for the environment than coal or oil-fueled plants, the actual amount of pollutants produced is as much as 42 times higher than estimates by the Environmental Protection Agency. (Purdue University photo) Overall, natural gas plants are still better than coal for the environment WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind.

All Revolvy Quizzes. Seminole State College of Florida. Essay Writing Service - Essay. We value excellent academic writing and strive to provide. Close The maximum weight you can lift with good form. You’ll need Microsoft Excel or a compatible spreadsheet program to view. Bernard Purdue Purdue Good Rar. Purdue ABE has been honored to be represented. Encouraging children to be kind and supportive of others is a good place to start a return. Bernard Engel, Dr.

— Power plants that burn natural gas produce significantly less pollutants and greenhouse gases than coal-burning plants, according to current estimates of how much methane escapes from such power plants, as well as from oil refineries, and estimates could be off by a wide margin, a new Purdue University study finds. For the past decade, natural gas has been replacing coal as a fuel for electric power plants. Robokill 2 Free Download Full Version more. It's become relatively inexpensive, and it's much less damaging to the environment if – and it's an important 'if' – it doesn't leak out of the system before it is burned to make power. That's because although burning natural gas is much cleaner than coal or oil, methane (which is mostly what natural gas consists of) has the potential to be even more damaging over the short term than coal or oil if it isn't handled properly, says, Purdue's Jonathan Amy Distinguished Professor of Analytical and Atmospheric Chemistry. 'Methane is a 34 times more potent greenhouse gas than is carbon dioxide,' he says.

'It's a better fuel all around as long as you don't spill it. But it doesn't take much methane leakage to ruin your whole day if you care about climate change.' The breaking point for natural gas leakage is about 3 percent. If more than that leaks, the fuel has a bigger climate effect than burning coal. 'The good news from our study is that while emissions are greater than anticipated, natural gas-burning power plants are still cleaner, relative to burning coal' Shepson says.

Shepson said this pilot study found that the amount of methane escaping from the plants was only 0.3 percent on average. Even taking into account previous estimates of methane leakage in the supply chain of 1.7 percent, the total methane emissions are still below the 3 percent threshold, the study found. The study also found that methane emission rates were significantly higher than two sets of estimates reported by the Environmental Protection Agency; the EPA’s Greenhouse Gas Inventory of Emissions and Sinks estimated that total methane emissions from all U.S. Refineries and natural gas power plants was negligible in 2014. However, this study estimated that annual methane emissions may actually be 11-90 times higher for refineries and 2 -120 times higher for natural gas power plants than those calculated from data provided by facility operators and reported to the EPA’s Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program, and used in the Greenhouse Gas Inventory of Emissions and Sinks.