Grantee Research Project Results
Final Report: Drone-Based Gas Mapping LiDAR for Leak Mitigation
EPA Contract Number: 68HE0D18C0019Title: Drone-Based Gas Mapping LiDAR for Leak Mitigation
Investigators: Thorpe, Michael
Small Business: Bridger Photonics, Inc.
EPA Contact: Richards, April
Phase: I
Project Period: October 1, 2018 through March 31, 2019
Project Amount: $99,999
RFA: Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) - Phase I (2018) RFA Text | Recipients Lists
Research Category: SBIR - Air and Climate
Description:
Bridger Photonics, Inc. (Bridger) is developing an innovative drone-based solution to cost-effectively locate and quantify leaks across the Oil & Gas supply chain and provide owners and operators with actionable information to prioritize maintenance and repair activities. The proposed solution will transition Bridger's existing Gas Mapping LiDAR™ (GML) sensor technology, which includes a commercial manned-aircraft solution and a prototype multi-rotor drone sensor, to an economical drone-based flight platform to uncover methane gas leaks and physical changes to Oil & Gas infrastructure including well pads, processing and storage facilities, and pipeline right-of-ways. GML provides high-resolution 3D LiDAR maps acquired using spatially-scanned frequency-modulated continuous wave (FMCW) laser radar and aerial photography overlaid with methane gas concentration imagery acquired using spatially-scanned wavelength modulation spectroscopy (WMS). The sensor uses these data products to reliably detect, precisely locate, and accurately quantify regions of elevated methane concentration and associated leak rates. Moreover, GML uses high-resolution 3D LiDAR data to assess equipment status, measure physical dimensions, and uncover right-of-way encroachment, erosion, or vegetation overgrowth. Drone-based, and eventually autonomous, deployment of this technology will enable a rapid and cost-effective solution for infrastructure leak monitoring across the supply chain.
The overall goal for the phase I effort was to develop a pathway for miniaturizing the GML sensor hardware and plan for integration of the GML sensor onto one or more drone platforms that enable cost-effective monitoring of Oil and Gas infrastructure. Bridger's phase I objectives were to:
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reduce the size and weight of the LiDAR beam scanner, transceiver and optical circuit;
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design a miniaturized data acquisition and sensor control electronics package; and
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identify candidate drone platforms for GML integration for cost-effective monitoring of Oil & Gas infrastructure.
Summary/Accomplishments (Outputs/Outcomes):
The phase I work plan focused on developing design improvements to reduce the size, weight and power consumption (SWaP) of the GML sensor hardware. Bridger began with a review of GML subsystems and interfaces to identify the most impactful improvements for reducing the sensor SWaP. To create continuity across gas mapping applications and UAV platforms Bridger aimed to create subsystem designs using a common architecture to make GML sensors compatible and configurable for both multi-rotor and fixed wing deployments. To this end Bridger developed reduced SWaP designs for several GML subsystems including:
- LiDAR transceiver,
- fiber optic circuit,
- beam scanner electronics,
- laser control and signal processing electronics, and
- camera and data storage peripherals.
Designs for the new LiDAR transceiver, fiber optic circuit and beam scanner were reviewed and fabricated during phase I and will be ready for testing and integration in the first quarter of phase II. Designs for the laser control and signal processing electronics and peripherals were fully vetted during phase I and will be ready for fabrication during the first quarter of phase II. Bridger estimates the designs created during phase I will result in a compact UAV GML sensor with 2x lower weight and volume compared to the prototype UAV GML and equal or better measurement performance. Bridger also conducted a survey of commercially available drones and commercial drone deployment practices during phase I, which resulted in a clear path for GML sensor integration that includes preferred drone platforms, navigation systems and operations protocols to support phase II work.
Conclusions:
The reduced SWaP hardware designs developed in phase I will enable fabrication and testing of a compact GML sensor in phase II that can be integrated onto smaller and lower cost rotor-drones and, for the first time, small fixed-wing drones. Bridger's phase I drone research has identified the best drones for GML integration and best navigation systems for GML deployment. The hardware design progress made during phase I will leave plenty of time in phase II for construction and testing of the compact GML sensor, integration onto UAV platforms, sensor flight testing and UAV GML applications and operations development. By the end of phase II Bridger expects these advancements in GML technology to drive the commercialization goals outlined in the commercialization plan.
Commercialization:
Bridger Photonics is commercializing Gas Mapping LiDAR™ (GML) as a cost-effective solution to locate and quantify leaks across the Oil & Gas supply chain and provide owners and operators with actionable information to prioritize maintenance and repair activities. Bridger began by validating the GML product hypothesis through numerous customer interviews and used their feedback to design the GML product features and pricing model to meet the customers' budget constraints and monitoring needs. This combined market research and technology development approach resulted in GML technology that provides its customers with comprehensive monitoring and site awareness across all segments of its infrastructure to prevent costly accidents, fines from regulatory non-compliance, and lost product.
Bridger's manned aircraft GML sensors are already commercially available and being used by customers to uncover methane gas leaks and physical changes to up-stream and mid-stream infrastructure including well pads, processing and storage facilities, and pipeline right-of-ways. The transition from manned-aircraft GML to a more economical drone-based flight platform, funded by this contract, will increase the scope of applications addressable by GML and attract new customers in existing application areas due to lower deployment costs. Bridger expects the compact UAV GML developed under this EPA SBIR contact to dramatically expand existing up-stream and mid-stream markets while enabling several new applications including processing facility monitoring, municipal gas distribution network monitoring, landfill emissions monitoring, agricultural emissions monitoring and others.
The perspectives, information and conclusions conveyed in research project abstracts, progress reports, final reports, journal abstracts and journal publications convey the viewpoints of the principal investigator and may not represent the views and policies of ORD and EPA. Conclusions drawn by the principal investigators have not been reviewed by the Agency.