North Haven, CT (January 12th, 2026) – Precision Combustion, Inc. (PCI) announced today the successful validation of a trailer mounted, compact, pilot system for ventilation air methane (VAM) abatement at an underground coal mine site in West Virginia. During operation, PCI’s modular system achieved greater than 99% methane conversion in an active mine ventilation stream. To date, the system has been operated for >4,000 hours with stable performance.
Ventilation air methane (VAM) is the dilute methane removed from underground mines by large ventilation systems. Although concentrations are typically below ~1%, VAM abatement is an important aspect for mine gas management and could reduce sector emissions as an added benefit. PCI’s pilot validated high-efficiency methane removal with economic benefits, supporting mine operational needs and health and safety benefits.
In addition to the aforementioned drivers, the field validation highlights a path to secondary revenue generation for coal mining through monetization via ongoing carbon offset markets. This leverages facility yields for economic gains. By documenting performance and verification requirements, mine operators can evaluate how measured methane abatement translates into marketable credits, creating a win-win scenario with financial incentive alongside improved health and safety for mining operations.
“This project shows that practical, economically attractive, compact, high-efficiency VAM abatement can be delivered in the field,” said Dr. Hani Hawa, Senior Research Engineer and project principal investigator at PCI. “We look forward to supporting broader deployment of modular solutions that help operators manage ventilation methane with efficient and proven solutions.”
The core of PCI’s methane abatement solution is a short-contact time, low-thermal-mass reactor that maximizes conversion in a compact volume with catalyst formulations tuned to lower operating temperature, and a heat-recirculating architecture to capture and reuse released heat. The technology was developed under ARPA-E’s Advanced Material Processes for Leveraging Industrial Facility Yield (AMPLIFY) program. PCI plans to continue operations of the pilot-scale prototype while seeking additional partnership for field tests and commercial scale-up of the technology.
About Precision Combustion, Inc.
Precision Combustion, Inc. is a small business developing new reactors and systems for energy and environmental sector applications.
Learn more about us by visiting https://pci.energy/
For more information, contact:
Anthony Anderson
Director, Marketing and Business Development
Phone: 203-287-3700 ext. 290
Email: aanderson@pci.energy
