From Lab to Rice Field

Author: Bart Beckers, Sales Manager GAS, Axetris AG

Methane emissions from rice cultivation are an important topic in climate-smart agriculture. Yet measuring those emissions has traditionally required gas chromatography, a method that is accurate but time-consuming, laboratory-bound, and difficult to scale for large field studies. The researchers set out to evaluate whether a portable TDLAS-based methane detector could offer the same level of confidence with much greater flexibility in the field. For the study, weekly methane samples from five rice cultivars were analyzed in parallel using GC and the Axetris-based portable methane detector. 

Strong Correlation and Concordance in Field Measurements

The results were clear. In field measurements, the portable detector showed an R² of 0.9943 (R² shows how well the two methods follow the same trend) compared with GC, meaning the sensor tracked the laboratory reference extremely closely over the full measurement range. Because correlation alone does not show whether two methods give the same absolute values, the authors also used Lin’s concordance correlation coefficient (Lin's CCC). Lin's CCC, shows how close the two methods are giving the same answer. This metric combines correlation with closeness to perfect agreement, and the reported CCC of 0.991 confirms near-perfect agreement between the portable detector and GC. A simple linear calibration then removed the small remaining offset. In practical terms, this means the Axetris sensor platform can provide rapid, robust, and labor-efficient methane measurements that are suitable for both laboratory and field applications. 

Real-Time Methane Data, Directly in the Field

For researchers and agronomists, this is a major advantage. Compared with GC, the Axetris solution enables portable, real-time, in-situ methane monitoring without the burden of bulky and fragile lab equipment. The paper highlights the sensor’s suitability for high-throughput phenotyping, large-scale screening of rice genotypes, and the development of low-emission cultivation practices. This opens the door to faster data collection and more practical climate research directly where crops are grown. 

A Practical Alternative to Gas Chromatography

The authors also note that environmental factors such as moisture and CO₂ can influence measurements under some conditions, which is why calibration and thoughtful system design remain important. Even so, the study concludes that the Axetris LGD Compact-A CH₄ sensor is a reliable and practical alternative to gas chromatography for methane quantification in rice emission studies. 

This publication is a strong validation of Axetris technology in a demanding real-world application. It shows how compact laser-based gas sensing can help researchers move from slow, lab-centered workflows to faster and more scalable field measurements—supporting the development of climate-smart agriculture and low-emission crops. 

Ready to move methane measurement from the lab to the field? Talk to Axetris about a sensing solution for your application.