While participating in the Mobile Methane Monitoring Challenge, ULC Robotics and Los Gatos Research (LGR) deployed their patented UAS-based sensor to identify the source of controlled methane leaks.

Data collected during the challenge by the UAS and sensor will be compared to eleven other ground- and aerial-based technologies.

“Leak surveys are traditionally carried out by vehicle or by foot, which can be inefficient and dangerous to utility workers,” says Michael Passaretti, UAV Program Manager at ULC Robotics.

“By using Los Gatos Research’s new aerial gas leak detection sensor our team is able to reduce the cost of these surveys and ensure these critical pipelines are free of leaks.”

ULC Robotics and LGR say that using UAS to monitor for gas leaks can not only help gas utilities better manage their infrastructure, but the technology can also ensure public safety. This is especially important considering that there are more than 300,000 miles of inter- and intrastate natural gas transmission pipelines, and more than two million miles of distribution pipelines in the United States.

Data from the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF)—which was one of the hosts of the challenge, along with Stanford University’s Natural Gas Initiative—says that approximately 25% of global warming is caused by methane emissions, which has more than 80 times the impact of carbon dioxide over a 20-year period.