Title: Small scale bioreactor studies for sustainable municipal solid waste landfilling management in developing countries

Authors: Aragaw Tamru Tesseme; Sumedha Chakma

Addresses: Department of Civil Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, Hauz Khas, 110016, New Delhi, India ' Department of Civil Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, Hauz Khas, 110016, New Delhi, India

Abstract: In this study, an investigation was undertaken to solve reliable data simulation problems in the real landfill. Testing reactors were designed in prismoidal shape and loaded waste in different lifts. A control reactor was designed in circular shape and loaded with only fresh waste. All reactors were operated under the typical waste composition of the developing countries about nine months and monitored the leachate quality, the gas production and surface settlement. The results showed in the early stage of waste degradation, leachate quality and gas production were found varied significantly based on the waste pretreatment and placement pattern. The settlement was also found seems to depend mainly on shape and scale of reactors. Therefore, the small-scale bioreactors should be designed in a prismoidal shape with appropriate scaling and run 250–300 days for a rough simulation of the waste degradation pattern and mechanisms in the real landfills of the developing nations, where the concept is still new.

Keywords: small scale reactors; prismoids shape; real landfills; developing countries; waste degradation mechanisms; solid waste management.

DOI: 10.1504/IJEWM.2020.105350

International Journal of Environment and Waste Management, 2020 Vol.25 No.2, pp.194 - 219

Received: 15 Apr 2018
Accepted: 04 Jan 2019

Published online: 25 Feb 2020 *

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