Accurate Quantification in Different Local Wind Fields

These two plumes are from two identically-sized leaks, both at 10L/min. So why do they look different? The answer is in the slightly different local wind field right at the plume origins -- the top plume is more dispersed than the bottom plume. When the plumes are analyzed by QLM’s gas imaging lidar camera, it can identify the the extents of each of the plumes separately: the top plume extends over more area (but at lower concentration density) than the bottom (smaller) plume, which has higher concentration density. The camera’s flow rate measurement depends on both the plume size and density, and so in the calculation, it turns out you get nearly identical flow rate quantification answers for each of these plumes, as you should.