Energy-related carbon dioxide emission factors from combustion of gaseous methane fuels

The topic of this paper concerns energy-related carbon dioxide emission factors from the combustion of gaseous methane fuels. It is a very current subject, as methane fuels, mainly of fossil origin, are one of the primary energy carriers used in industrial and municipal applications for energy purposes. Consequently, the emitted carbon dioxide contributes to the intensification of the greenhouse effect in the atmosphere. The problem of the quantities characterising emissions from the combustion of methane fuels is complicated by the diversity of these fuels. This paper presents background information on the gaseous hydrocarbon fuels and the composition of the main types of natural gas. The structure of natural gas consumption in Poland, depending on the sectors of application for particular types of natural gas, is presented. On the basis of the existing data, aggregated energy-related carbon dioxide emission factors were estimated and analysed. The analysis was carried out for high-methane natural gas (HM), colliery gas (CG) and nitrified natural gas (N)—for the years 1988–2021. Trends in fuel consumption and energy-related carbon dioxide emission factors were determined for the years 1988–2021.