Type 1 — CEMS
Continuous Emissions MonitoringStack-continuous emissions measurement across regulated emission sources.
Permanently installed, automated monitoring of exhaust-gas and stack emissions. FUTUREGAZ supports CEMS engineering, data structuring, and compliance documentation across industrial and maritime operations.
CEMS applies wherever a regulated source requires continuous, instrument-based evidence of emissions performance — as opposed to periodic testing or calculation-only approaches. The regulatory requirement determines whether CEMS is mandatory; the operational context determines the measurement basis.
What we deliver
Measurement system design and review
Extractive versus in-situ system selection, probe positioning, sample conditioning, analyser specification, and flow measurement integration. Includes DAHS (Data Acquisition and Handling System) architecture review.
Compliance documentation
Structuring of continuous emissions datasets for regulatory submission. Covers data availability reporting, exceedance identification, and evidence packaging aligned to IED, EPA 40 CFR Part 75, EU ETS, and MARPOL Annex VI requirements.
Quality assurance — QAL and calibration
EN 14181 QAL1 certification path support, QAL2 field calibration planning, QAL3 ongoing drift monitoring, and Annual Surveillance Testing (AST). Calibration traceability from certified reference materials to instrument records.
DAHS data structuring and integration
Integration of raw analyser output into structured DAHS records with timestamps, quality flags, missing data substitution logic, and averaging period definitions aligned to applicable reporting requirements.
What CEMS measures — and what it does not change.
CEMS provides continuous, instrument-based evidence of emissions concentration and mass flow at the stack. It replaces or supplements calculation-only and periodic-testing methods with real measurement.
Continuous measurement evidence
Verified concentration data for each regulated compound at defined time resolution. Stronger evidentiary position than fuel-based estimation, default emission factors, or periodic testing alone. Required by IED Article 70, EPA Part 75, and MARPOL Annex VI under certain vessels and operating modes.
Not a substitute for abatement
CEMS records what is emitted; it does not reduce it. Improvements in emissions performance require operational or technical changes — fuel quality, combustion tuning, flue gas treatment. CEMS provides the data to evidence that change, not the change itself.
Where CEMS applies
Power generation
Coal, gas, and biomass-fired plant under IED and EPA Part 75. Large combustion plant NOx, SO₂, and CO₂ limits require continuous monitoring as the primary compliance method.
Oil & gas processing
Flaring, combustion turbines, and process heaters at upstream and downstream facilities. Relevant to EU ETS reporting, IED permitting, and EPA NSPS subpart requirements.
Cement & lime
Rotary kilns and coolers require continuous NOx, SO₂, CO, and particulate monitoring under IED BAT conclusions. High-dust conditions require specialist extractive or cross-stack in-situ designs.
Steel & metals
Sinter plants, blast furnaces, and electric arc furnaces. Dust loading and high temperatures require robust extractive CEMS with heated sample lines.
Waste-to-energy / incineration
Among the most demanding CEMS configurations under IED Annex VI: CO, NOx, SO₂, HCl, HF, total organic carbon, and particulates — with 10-minute and hourly averaging requirements.
Chemical & petrochemical
Process combustion, reformers, and large furnaces under IED and IPPC permit conditions. Integration with DCS and process historians is standard.
Maritime shipping
Onboard stack CEMS under MARPOL Annex VI and EU MRV/ETS. Covers CO₂, NOx, and SOx monitoring for Annex I vessels, with challenges of marine fuel variability, vessel motion, and survey-cycle integration.
Applicable regulatory frameworks
CEMS requirements arise from multiple overlapping frameworks. The applicable standards depend on installation type, jurisdiction, and source category.
US acid rain and emissions reporting
Mandatory CEMS for SO₂, NOx, CO₂, and flow at affected electric utility units. Specifies analyser certification (RATA), QA procedures, and DAHS data reporting to EPA's Electronic Data Reporting (EDR) system.
Industrial Emissions Directive
Requires continuous monitoring at large combustion plant and waste incineration facilities across EU member states. BAT conclusions define emission limit values and monitoring requirements.
European QAL framework
Three-level quality assurance: QAL1 (analyser suitability certification), QAL2 (site-specific calibration function), QAL3 (ongoing bias monitoring), and AST (annual surveillance). Standard reference method parallel testing required for QAL2.
Maritime sulphur and NOx
Reg. 13 (NOx) and Reg. 14 (SOx) compliance. Onboard CEMS as Direct Monitoring Method under MEPC guidelines and as alternative to fuel oil non-availability reporting under Reg. 18.
EU carbon market reporting
EU ETS MRV Regulation permits CEMS as a measurement-based monitoring approach for stationary installations. EU MRV Regulation (2015/757) and EU ETS apply to maritime shipping from 2024.
Flow measurement at stacks
Volumetric flow measurement at stationary source stacks. EN 15259 defines measurement cross-section requirements relevant to mass emission rate calculation when concentration CEMS is combined with flow CEMS.
Work with us
Describe the installation type, source category, applicable regulatory framework, and current monitoring basis. We will assess scope and respond with a structured proposal.
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