Mapping of greenhouse gas concentration in peninsular Malaysia industrial areas using unmanned aerial vehicle-based sniffer sensor

Abstract

The increasing concentration of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions due to increased fossil fuel consumption for manufacturing activities to support population growth is worrisome. Carbon dioxide (CO2) and methane (CH4) remain the two GHGs that contribute to the impact of global warming, and inventorying their concentrations is important for monitoring their changes, which can be used to infer their emissions over time. Hence, this article highlights sniffer4D, an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV)-based air pollutant mapping system that visualise and analyse three-dimensional (3D) air pollution data in real time, for mapping GHGs concentrations within industrial areas. Consequently, GHGs concentrations for two industrial and adjacent residential areas in Johor, Peninsular Malaysia were mapped. The GHGs concentrations were validated using a ground-based portable gas detector. The results revealed that CO2 has the highest concentration mean of 625.235 mg/m3, followed by CH4 with a mean of 249.239 mg/m3. The mapped UAV GHG concentration also reported good agreement with the in situ observations with an RMSE of 7 and 6 mg/m3 for CO2 and CH4 concentration, respectively. Ozone and nitrogen dioxide mixture (O3 + NO2) with a mean concentration of 249 μg/m3 and an RMSE of 9 μg/m3 are the remaining significant concentrations reported. This approach shall assist in fast-tracking the United Nations climate change mitigation agenda.