Geoenvironmental Issues in High‑Food‑Waste‑Content Municipal Solid

Waste Landfills
 ABSTRACT:

• The amount of municipal solid waste (MSW) has increased significantly in developing countries . And the
food waste in MSW produced is higher in developing countries than developed countries.
• This paper introduced theoretical model to analyse the coupled hydromechanical-chemical interactions in the
landfilled MSW.
• The impacts of degradation of MSW on the properties of MSW were studied.
• The major cause of Geo environmental issues in HFWC are rapid leachate and gas generation.
INTRODUCTION:

• Urbanization has increased rapidly in the last 40 years in developing countries which is leading to annually
increase MSW production at the rate of 7-10%.
• Generally, MSW consists of food waste, paper, textile, wood, plastic, metal, and other materials.

• This paper focuses on HFWC MSW. First, a theoretical analysis of the degradation and stabilization processes
is conducted. Subsequently, the engineering properties of HFWC MSW are summarized, including
compression, strength, water retention, and water and gas conductivity.
 DEGRADATION AND STABILIZATION OF LANDFILLED MSW
• Two Stage Anaerobic degradation model:

• The water content has a significant impact on the degradation process, and a large amount of intra-particle water
is released by HFWC MSW.
• The acid environment of the leachate inhibits bacterial activity, delaying methanogenesis and the generation of
landfill gas. Acid inhibition occurs until the VFAs are consumed by the biomass.
COUPLED BIOCHEMICAL‑HYDRO‑MECHANICAL MODEL FOR MSW
• Coupling model was classical, especially for biodegradation
and deformation components, which provided valuable
guidance for further research on this problem

• Several models describe the relationship between the volume

loss of solid and the pore volume change caused by
biodegradation and compression

• Many models are developed based on Cam clay model,

Mohr–Coulomb constitutive model ,Bishop effective stress ,
heat transfer

• A series of comprehensive BCTHM coupling models have

been introduced .These models involved multicomponent gas
diffusion, leachate solute transport, water evaporation and gas
dissolution processes.
DEGRADATION-CONSOLIDATION MODEL:
• The normalized ratio of cellulose to lignin (β) can be used as
a criterion for the stabilization of MSW.

• The results of the stabilization behavior analysis indicated

that the degradation could be separated into three stages, i.e.,
rapid degradation, slow degradation, and stabilization .
• The rapid degradation lasted 2–3 years, and 60–80% of the
degradable solid mass was lost. Intra-particle water was
generated, and more than 60% of the methane production
potential was released. The slow degradation stage lasted 20–
30 years. More than 90% of the degradable solid mass was
lost, and 80% of the methane production potential was
released. Subsequently, stabilization occurred in the landfill
 CHANGES IN THE ENGINEERING PROPERTIES DURING DEGRADATION

• The changes in the solid mass loss and particle size distribution signifcantly affect the engineering properties of
HFWC MSW
1.One‑Dimensional Compression Behavior:
One-dimensional compression experiments were carried out for MSW aged for 3 and 235 days to obtain the
primary compression parameters.
›› Marques et al. (2006):
Total compression strain (ε) = εp + εc + εd
A change in the composition of landflled MSW
changed the strength properties. Zhan et al.47
performed triaxial tests on landflled MSW with
different aging times. The results (Fig. 5)
indicated that the internal friction angle
increased and the cohesion decreased as the
aging time increased.44,46 presented similar
results.
2. Water Retention Behavior:

• The water retention properties of MSW are

significantly affected by the particle size
distribution and porosity.
• The percentage of fine particles increased
after two months of aging, indicating that
large particles were crushed during
degradation.
3. Hydrualic conductivity:
• Liquid and gas fow in MSW is affected by
hydraulic conductivity, which is related to the
permeability and the fuid properties of the MSW.

• The instrinsic permeability depends only on the

porous properties, which change during
degradation
• The decrease in the intrinsic permeability was
caused by an increase in the fine particle amount,
which deceased the flow paths.
HIGH LEACHATE LEVEL AND DRAINAGE SYSTEM

The leachate production of HFWC MSW was signifcantly higher than that of LFWC MSW due to the higher water content.

1.Leachate production:
• The leachate amount is typically calculated using the water balance equation and the hydrologic evaluation of landfill
performance (HELP) model.

• For HFWC MSW, the leachate caused by degradation and compression is the difference between the initial water content and the
feld moisture capacity.

• The result indicated that the calculation method, which considered the degradation and compression-induced leachate, yielded
more reliable results than the conventional method.
2.Three dimensional Leachate drainage system:

• The leachate drainage system in the middle of the landfill

consisted of several layers to achieve a rapid decrease in the
leachate level.

• The multi-drainage system of the HFWC MSW landfll

included vertical and horizontal wells and horizontal
drainage between the layers.

• A horizontal drainage system was constructed by excavating

trenches within the waste during the waste filling operation.

• Vertical wells are conventionally used as a contingency or

long-term solution to lower the leachate level due to the
straightforward construction and good performance.
GRAPHS OF LEACHATE PRODUCTION AND FLOW RATE AGAINST TIME
LANDFILL GAS GENERATION AND EFFCIENT COLLECTION

• Due to the high leachate level and water saturation state in the HFWC MSW landfill, it is difficult to collect the
landfill gas
• Simplified models were used to investigate landfill gas generation. The LANDGEM model developed by the
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Scholl-Canyon model developed by the Intergovernmental Panel
on Climate Change (IPCC) were widely used.

• The methane generation potential (L0) and gas generation rate (k) are the most important parameters
in both models
• The food waste content and initial water content are typically higher in HFWC MSW than in LFWC MSW in
China. Thus, landfill gas generation is more likely to occur in HFWC MSW. The ratio of carbon to nitrogen is
typically 20:1 in HFWC MSW, which is conducive to methanogenesis.
1 LANDFILL GAS GENERATION
The following modified two-stage landfill gas generation model for HFWC MSW was introduced:

›› Qn is the theoretical monthly landfill gas generation rate in the ith month

ti is the aging time of the landfilled MSW

›› LR0 and LS0 are the theoretical gas generation of the rapidly degradable components and slowly degradable components
per unit mass respectively.

›› KR and ks are the gas generation rate of the rapidly degradable components,and slowly degradable components
respectively.

›› t R,lag and t S,lag are the gas generation lag time of the rapidly degradable components, and slowly degradable components
respectively.
EFFICIENT COLLECTION OF LANDFILL GAS:

• The proportion of landfill gas collection was only 25–40%, much lower than in western countries. As a result, the landfill gas
emissions are high, increasing the risk of slope failure.
• Since most of the landfill gas in HFWC MSW is generated 1–2 years after landflling, two issues should be addressed, i.e., reducing
the permeability of the cover system and increasing the gas permeability of the landfll body.
• Horizontal gas collection wells can be installed under the geomembrane to capture the landfll gas in the early stage.
• The 3-dimensional drainage system can be used to control the leachate level and ensure that the gas has low water saturation.
• The landfill gas collection rate is defined as the ratio of the in-situ collected amount and the calculated amount of the landfill gas.
The results show a significant increase in the amount of the collected landfill gas after the application of the gas collection measure.
• The amount of the collected landfill gas increased from 16,000 m3 /h to 8770 m3 /h in 4 years, and the collection rate was 55%. In
2014, a temporary cover and a gas collection system were installed; as a result, the amount of collected landifll gas increased to
45,500 m3 /h, with a collection rate of 90%.
CONCLUSION:

• The initial content of degradable material differs for HFWC MSW and LFWC MSW.
• Unlike in LFWC MSW landfills, in anaerobic degradation, significant acid inhibition
occurs during hydrolysis and methanogenesis in the early period after landfilling. Thus,
the measures to prevent geoenvironmental issues in LFWC MSW landfills, which were
successfully applied in developed countries, are not appropriate for HFWC MSW
landfills.
• This paper reviewed recent studies on geoenvironmental issues in HFWC MSW
landfills to highlight the problems and potential solutions.
THANK YOU