BP Report-5,875 Oil Barrels Saved from Ocean

While Reading the Info I started searching about: 22.5 million cubic feet of natural gas were flaredi. Cubic Foot of Natural Gas

The well integrity test on the MC252 well commenced today; full closure of the choke valve occurred at approximately 2:25pm. -Currently the well remains shut-in with no oil flowing into the Gulf; any significant change to this operation will be announced via a press release. -For the first 12 hours on July 15 (midnight to noon), approximately 5,875 barrels of oil were collected and approximately 3,430 barrels of oil and 22.5 million cubic feet of natural gas were flared. -We anticipate the next update will be provided at around 9:30am CDT on July 16, 2010. Updated July 15 at 6:00 pm CDT

While Reading the Info I started searching about:

1. 22.5 million cubic feet of natural gas were flaredⁱ.
2. Cubic Foot of Natural Gas

Scotty-

• I found that Gas Flare Stacks when burning the excess gas from the pipes is a significant source of Green House Gas Emissions.
• The World Bank estimates that over 150 billion cubic metres of natural gas are flared or vented annually, an amount worth approximately 30.6 billion dollars, equivalent to 25 percent of the United States’ gas consumption or 30 percent of the European Union’s gas consumption per year.
• On oil production rigs, in refineries and chemical plants, its primary purpose is to act as a safety device to protect vessels or pipes from over-pressuring due to unplanned upsets. This acts just like the spout on a tea kettle when it starts whistling as the water in it starts boiling.

How to Measure Natural Gas

Describing the amount of natural gas consumed by an entire country or a single residential appliance can be confusing, since natural gas can be measured in several different ways.

The energy content of natural gas and other forms of energy (i.e., the potential heat that can be generated from the fuel) is measured in Btus (British thermal units). The number of "therms" that residential natural gas customers consume each month is listed on their gas bills.

Quantities of natural gas are usually measured in cubic feet. For example, a typical natural gas futures contract is a financial instrument based on the value of about 10 million cubic feet (Mmcf) of natural gas.

Here are some frequently used units for measuring natural gas:

1 cubic foot (cf) = 1,027 Btu 100 cubic feet (1 ccf) = 1 therm (approximate) 1,000 cubic feet (1 Mcf) = 1,027,000 Btu (1 MMBtu) 1,000 cubic feet (1 Mcf) = 1 dekatherm (10 therms) 1 million (1,000,000) cubic feet (1 Mmcf) = 1,027,000,000 Btu 1 billion (1,000,000,000 cubic feet (1 bcf) = 1.027 trillion Btu 1 trillion (1,000,000,000,000) cubic feet (1Tcf) = 1.027 quadrillion Btu

Live feeds from Skandi ROV1-

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iWikepedia:

On oil production rigs, in refineries and chemical plants, its primary purpose is to act as a safety device to protect vessels or pipes from over-pressuring due to unplanned upsets. This acts just like the spout on a tea kettle when it starts whistling as the water in it starts boiling. Whenever plant equipment items are over-pressured, the pressure relief valves on the equipment automatically release gases (and sometimes liquids as well) which are routed through large piping runs called flare headers to the flare stacks. The released gases and/or liquids are burned as they exit the flare stacks. The size and brightness of the resulting flame depends upon how much flammable material was released. Steam can be injected into the flame to reduce the formation of black smoke. The injected steam does however make the burning of gas sound louder, which can cause complaints from nearby residents. Compared to the emission of black smoke, it can be seen as a valid trade off. In more advanced flare tip designs, if the steam used is too wet it can freeze just below the tip, disrupting operations and causing the formation of large icicles. In order to keep the flare system functional, a small amount of gas is continuously burned, like a pilot light, so that the system is always ready for its primary purpose as an over-pressure safety system. The continuous gas source also helps diluted mixtures achieve complete combustion. Enclosed ground flares are engineered to eliminate smoke, and contain the flame within the stack.

Flaring and venting of natural gas from oil & gas wells is a significant source of greenhouse gas emissions. Its contribution to greenhouse gases has declined by three-quarters in absolute terms since a peak in the 1970s of approximately 110 million metric tons/year and now accounts for 0.5% of all anthropogenic carbon dioxide emissions.[4] The World Bank estimates that over 150 billion cubic metres of natural gas are flared or vented annually, an amount worth approximately 30.6 billion dollars, equivalent to 25 percent of the United States’ gas consumption or 30 percent of the European Union’s gas consumption per year.[5] This flaring is highly concentrated: 10 countries account for 75% of emissions, and twenty for 90%. The largest flaring operations occur in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria. The leading contributors to gas flaring are (in declining order): Nigeria, Russia, Iran, Algeria, Mexico, Venezuela, Indonesia, and the United States.[6] In spite of a ruling by the Federal High Court of Nigeria (that forbade flaring) in 2005, 43% of the gas retrieval was still being flared in 2006. It will be prohibited by law as of 2008. [citation needed]Russia has announced it will stop the practice of gas flaring as stated by deputy prime minister Sergei Ivanov on Wednesday September 19, 2007.[7] This step was, at least in part, a response to a recent report by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) that concluded Russia's previous numbers may have been underestimated. The report, which used night time light pollution satellite imagery to estimate flaring, put the estimate for Russia at 50 billion cubic meters while the official numbers are 15 or 20 billion cubic meters. The number for Nigeria is 23 billion cubic meters.[8]