1. Email: Bradley.Coppedge@centerpointenergy.com
Picarro Leak Surveyor
Brad Coppedge
CenterPoint Energy
Office:

2. What is the Picarro SurveyorTM?
Safety is our number one priority and we are committed to providing safe and reliable operation of pipelines and delivery services in all of our communities.
The Picarro SurveyorTM:
Surveys mains and services and identifies potential leaks via a vehicle.
This vehicle mounted gas leak detection device is 1,000x more sensitive than current leak detection technology.
Is capable of detecting leaks down to one part per billion in ambient air while reducing false positives from naturally occurring methane.
Measures and maps methane plumes in the air as the vehicle is driven offering a dramatic improvement over hand-held instruments used in walking surveys.
Facilitates repair teams to pinpoint actual leak location and grade the leak.
CNP has conducted pilots in Houston & Minneapolis to evaluate Picarro’s performance as compared to current methods; both pilots reported more than 5x improvements in leak find rate and about a 20% boost in productivity.
Traditional First and Picarro Second During the Pilots

3. Picarro Deployment Roadmap
Risk based Deployment &
Utilization Cases
Use Picarro for Highest Risk Surveys
Include IT changes
Full Deployment

4. Picarro Technology Overview
1,000x more sensitive than any legacy technology in use today, to find more leaks
10x faster – minimally – than legacy systems, to increase survey frequency
Fully integrated hardware + cloud informatics platform transforms survey processes
No special training or instrument calibration required
Comprehensive on-line reports

5. Methane plume 0.01 PPM 1 PPM CRDS works here: 1PPB FID works here:
Picarro can see plumes from much farther away than traditional equipment
1 PPM
100’ ’ ’ ’ ’ ’

6. Methane plumes from leaks behave like smoke plumes

7. Picarro SurveyorTM - Isotopic Analysis
Surveyor’s stable isotope measurement can distinguish source of methane as pipeline gas or from natural sources (landfill, sewer gas etc.)
The analyzer can SEE the difference between sewer gas and pipeline gas

8. Picarro SurveyorTM for Natural Gas Leaks – Graphical User Interface
Leak indication search area (LISA)
Field of view
Peak bubbles
Isotopic analysis result

9. Paperless Application

10. Picarro SurveyorTM– Survey Coverage
Day Survey
Night Survey
PER BRAD ADD IN THE TWO SLIDES THAT SHOW DAY VS NIGHT
The effect of atmospheric stability: typical Field of View (FOV) comparison between daytime vs. nighttime survey coverage

11. 1st Survey (5 mph avg. wind speed) 2nd Survey (19 mph avg. wind speed)
Picarro SurveyorTM
1st Survey (5 mph avg. wind speed)
2nd Survey (19 mph avg. wind speed)
SHOW THE WIND SPEED AND OTHER CHARACTERISTICS

12. Composite of 1st & 2nd Survey
Picarro SurveyorTM
Composite of 1st & 2nd Survey

13. Increased Leaks Preparing for the Impact
Leak Prediction Models based on Picarro Pilots
By Region
By District
By Office Area
Regulatory Outreach and Alignment
Proactive Planning for availability of required increase in Crews
Contract
Company
Paperless Applications – Immediately available Data
Evaluating “Supercrew” concept
Proactive System Replacement Planning

14. Value Added Use Cases QA/QC Pinpoint difficult to find leaks
NLF (No leak found)
Special LUFG Surveys  
Natural Disasters
Implosions
QA/QC – new Pipe, replacement, company investigations and surveyors, leak repair, JT
earthquakes,
implosions,
excavations

15. Richmond Ave F - Gas in Sewer
Note – Data from Surveyor1
Leak at Avenue F and Jennetta St was migrating in the Storm Sewer.
Resulted in the evacuation of about 60 homes for 15 Hours
Media Event.
District did not call for Picarro until the next morning.
With about 20 minutes of Survey Time Picarro was able locate the highest concentration of gas as well as the dispersal pattern in the Storm Sewer.
District investigation began on the west side as that is where the leak calls came in from.
17.4 Ampilitude Indication was within 25 ft of Leak that was migrating into the sewer.
District was able to see the value of Picarro and understand how to utilize that value in the future.

16. Hallettsville Earthquake
3.1 Magnitude

17. NLF Test Case Gas small was called in by customer NLF by district
Ran the Picarro behind and found a house riser that had been bulldozed to construct a new shopping center

18. NLF Test Case Gas small was called in by customer NLF by district
Ran the Picarro behind and found a house riser that had been bulldozed to construct a new shopping center

19. Weimer LUFG Survey
At request from District TFO ran a LUFG Survey with the Picarro Surveyor2 in the Rapid Response mode.
Rapid Response Mode only reports indications greater than 5.0 ppm amplitude.
359 minutes run time by Surveyor2.
Picarro produced 7 indications which were greater than 5.0 amplitude.
First time utilizing Phone Application on iPad
6.5 hours LISA validation time

20. Customer Value Added
Map P F –LISA 7 with Amplitude of 0.15

21. Picarro SurveyorTM – Always Improving Technology
Pcuded More User Friendly
Improved Algorithm
GIS Assets in Pcuded

22. Questions