油气行业甲烷排放现状及核算方法进展

Methane emission from the oil and natural gas industry: current progress in emission budgets and evaluation methods

关键词:  甲烷排放  油气行业  监测与核算  气候变化

Key words:  methane emission  oil and natural gas industry  monitoring and evaluation method  climate change

摘要:

甲烷作为全球第二大温室气体，对气候变化有重要影响。油气行业作为全球甲烷的重要排放源之一，全面推进甲烷减排工作势在必行。因此，准确认识和总结我国油气行业甲烷排放现状及趋势是实现甲烷高效减排的前提，也有助于指导甲烷监测、评估和减排技术的开发与应用。文章通过总结国内外油气行业甲烷排放现状和核算方法的进展，提出了当前核算体系和评估方法存在的主要问题。结果表明： 工艺排空是全球油气工业甲烷泄漏的主要途径，我国排放总量在居全球第六位，然而该核算结果具有较大的不确定性，主要是由于缺乏准确且符合我国实际的排放因子；通过对比不同监测方法的优缺点及不确定性，分析新兴无人机巡航监测和同位素溯源技术的开发应用进展，表明这些技术能够在保证精度的前提下完成区域排放通量核算与排放源的识别。更多连续、精确的实地监测数据有助于排放因子的确立与排放清单的编制，然而在全国范围内开展此项工作受限于人力和物力。因此，文章指出了建立场站级甲烷排放综合核算方法的必要性，是准确评估全国油气工业源甲烷排放贡献的关键技术路径；此外，结合当前场站级甲烷排放监测与核算方法的应用前景及不足，针对性地给出了完善该综合核算体系的建议， 为我国油气行业全面推进甲烷减排措施提供有力的理论依据。

Abstract:

Background, aim, and scope As the world’s second most potent greenhouse gas, methane exerts a profound and highly accelerated impact on global climate change, possessing a short-term global warming potential significantly higher than that of carbon dioxide. Given that the broader oil and gas industry represents one of the most critical anthropogenic sources of methane emissions worldwide, it is absolutely imperative to comprehensively advance and accelerate methane mitigation efforts within this specific sector. Consequently, acquiring an accurate understanding and a systematic summary of the current status, historical trajectories, and future trends of methane emissions within China’s oil and gas industry is a fundamental prerequisite. This robust understanding is crucial for achieving effective methane emission reduction targets and for guiding the strategic development, deployment, and practical application of advanced methane monitoring, precise environmental assessment, and innovative emission reduction technologies tailored to the region. Materials and methods This paper comprehensively reviews the current operational and environmental status of methane emissions originating from the global and domestic oil and natural gas industry. By systematically summarizing recent advancements in both top-down and bottom-up emission accounting methodologies, the study evaluates the efficacy of current measurement approaches. Furthermore, it rigorously identifies the primary limitations, methodological gaps, and systemic inconsistencies currently embedded within existing accounting frameworks. This systematic analysis provides a critical baseline for future methodological refinements, regulatory policy development, and the eventual standardization of industry-wide reporting protocols. Results Our findings indicate that routine process venting— alongside fugitive equipment leaks and incomplete flaring—constitutes the primary pathway for global methane emissions from the oil and natural gas industry. Within this global context, China currently ranks sixth worldwide in total sectoral emissions, highlighting a significant area for potential climate action and regulatory focus. However, current national-scale and regional estimates of these methane emissions still suffer from remarkably large uncertainties. This statistical unreliability is primarily driven by the conspicuous absence of precise, localized, and directly measured emission factors that accurately reflect China’s specific operational realities. By meticulously comparing the advantages, operational disadvantages, and inherent uncertainties of various traditional and modern monitoring approaches, we further analyzed the developmental trajectory and practical application progress of emerging detection technologies. Notably, technologies such as unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) mobile monitoring and stable isotope tracing have shown promising performance. These advanced techniques facilitate precise regional flux assessments, enable dynamic spatial mapping, and significantly improve the identification and source attribution of ground-level emission sources. Discussion Although an increased volume of continuous, high-precision field monitoring data is universally recognized as crucial for establishing reliable, localized emission factors and compiling highly robust national emission inventories, practical implementation still faces severe hurdles. Nationwide field monitoring activities across complex oil and gas infrastructure remains substantially constrained by immense human resource requirements and significant financial burdens. Consequently, national inventories are frequently forced to rely on limited empirical measurements and generalized emission factors, which fail to capture temporal and spatial variability. Standardized site-level measurements, when strategically combined with targeted high-frequency monitoring, can significantly improve local inventories and help accurately prioritize the highest-emitting sources for immediate mitigation and resource allocation. Conclusions Based on an exhaustive review and critical synthesis of current evaluation methodologies, we emphatically highlight the urgent necessity of establishing a comprehensive, standardized, and scalable site-level accounting method for methane emissions. This integrated site-level framework is not merely an incremental improvement; rather, it serves as the indispensable technical pathway required to accurately evaluate the overall methane emission contribution from the entire national oil and gas industry. Recommendations and perspectives In light of the current application prospects, technological capabilities, and logistical limitations of site-level methane monitoring and accounting methods, a series of targeted, actionable recommendations are proposed to refine and optimize this comprehensive accounting framework. Overall, we firmly believe that this comprehensive summary provides an essential theoretical basis and practical roadmap for the advancement of accurate methane emission assessments and the accelerated implementation of robust mitigation measures across China’s vital oil and natural gas industry