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Landfill gas produced through decomposition of organic material contains 45% to 60% methane and 40% to 60% CO2. Methane is a potent greenhouse gas with a global warming potential that is 25 times greater than CO2. Rather than releasing landfill methane into the atmosphere or flaring it, methane can be collected, converted and used as an energy source.
Operators of landfill gas plants need to continuously evaluate the percentage of methane in their product because this determines the end use of the gas and the pricing. A TDLAS analyzer is a good choice for such a task. Traditionally gas chromatography and mass spectrometry technologies are used to provide methane monitoring. Gas chromatography offers high sensitivity, but it has the disadvantage of a slow response time. Mass spectrometers can quickly measure multiple components but may have a significant total installation cost. A TDLAS analyzer provides real-time monitoring with a data acquisition rate of two seconds and is significantly less expensive than both gas chromatographs or mass spectrometers
Learn more about AMETEK’s TDLAS solutions.