Zero emission technologies for pneumatic controllers in the USA

The report evaluates alternatives to gas-driven pneumatic controllers, which are the second-largest source of methane emissions in the US oil and gas industry. It identifies electronic controllers and instrument air as the two most mature and widely applicable zero-emission technologies. An economic analysis of 2,032 site configurations found that these solutions are cost-effective—with abatement costs below the US EPA's social cost of methane ($1,354/tCH4)—in the vast majority of cases, particularly for sites with four or more controllers or those incorporating chemical injection pumps.

• Pneumatic controllers represent the second-largest source of methane emissions within the US oil and gas industry, surpassed only by component leaks.
• Electronic controllers and instrument air are identified as the two most mature and promising zero-emission technologies available on the market today.
• Electronic controllers are typically deployed at smaller, remote sites, while instrument air is used at larger sites due to the requirements of air compressors.
• In an economic analysis of 2,032 site configurations, zero-emission solutions were found to be cost-effective (abatement costs below the US EPA social cost of methane of $1,354/tCH4) in 2,008 cases.
• Abatement costs for zero-emission technologies primarily exceed the social cost of methane at very small sites with fewer than three controllers, though higher actual emission factors would make these sites cost-effective as well.
• Electronic controllers offer operational benefits beyond emission reductions, including lower maintenance costs compared to gas-driven systems and simplified automation through SCADA integration.
• Instrument air is a mature global solution but is limited to sites with a reliable power supply and requires compressors of at least 5 HP to ensure reliability.
• Other zero-emission options exist but have limited applicability, such as self-contained controllers which require high differential pressure, or vent gas recovery which requires an on-site VRU or gas engine.
• The conversion of chemical injection pumps to electric power is a mature and cost-effective method for reducing emissions, often resulting in abatement costs below the social cost of methane.

APA

Saunier, S., Darani, H., & Pederstad, A. (2016). Zero emission technologies for pneumatic controllers in the USA. Clean Air Task Force. https://cdn.catf.us/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/21093627/CL2016-ZeroEmitting-Pneumatics-Alts-1Aug2016.pdf

Chicago

Saunier, Stephanie, Hesam Darani, and Anders Pederstad. Zero emission technologies for pneumatic controllers in the USA. Clean Air Task Force, 2016. https://cdn.catf.us/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/21093627/CL2016-ZeroEmitting-Pneumatics-Alts-1Aug2016.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Saunier |first1=Stephanie |last2=Darani |first2=Hesam |last3=Pederstad |first3=Anders |title=Zero emission technologies for pneumatic controllers in the USA |publisher=Clean Air Task Force |date=1 August 2016 |url=https://cdn.catf.us/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/21093627/CL2016-ZeroEmitting-Pneumatics-Alts-1Aug2016.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{saunier2016zero, author = {Saunier, Stephanie and Darani, Hesam and Pederstad, Anders}, title = {{Zero emission technologies for pneumatic controllers in the USA}}, institution = {Clean Air Task Force}, year = {2016}, month = aug, url = {https://cdn.catf.us/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/21093627/CL2016-ZeroEmitting-Pneumatics-Alts-1Aug2016.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }