Title: Evaluation of different full scale landfill leachate treatment systems

Authors: Pedro Travanca; João Jesus; Merijn Picavet; José Tomás Veiga Soares De Albergaria; Maria Teresa Pereira De Oliva Teles Moreira; Cristina Maria Fernandes Delerue Alvim De Matos; Anthony S. Danko

Addresses: Faculdade de Engenharia, Universidade do Porto (FEUP), Rua Dr. Roberto Frias, 4200-465 Porto, Portugal ' Centre for Natural Resources and the Environment (CERENA), Department of Mining Engineering, University of Porto – Faculty of Engineering (FEUP), Rua Dr. Roberto Frias s/n, 4200-465, Porto, Portugal ' Ambisys, SA, Rua Maria da Paz Varzim, 116, 4490-658 Póvoa de Varzim, Portugal ' REQUIMTE, Instituto Superior de Engenharia do Porto, Instituto Politécnico do Porto (IPP), Rua Dr. António Bernardino de Almeida, 4200-072 Porto, Portugal ' REQUIMTE, Instituto Superior de Engenharia do Porto, Instituto Politécnico do Porto (IPP), Rua Dr. António Bernardino de Almeida, 4200-072 Porto, Portugal ' REQUIMTE, Instituto Superior de Engenharia do Porto, Instituto Politécnico do Porto (IPP), Rua Dr. António Bernardino de Almeida, 4200-072 Porto, Portugal ' Centre for Natural Resources and the Environment (CERENA), Department of Mining Engineering, University of Porto – Faculty of Engineering (FEUP), Rua Dr. Roberto Frias s/n, 4200-465, Porto, Portugal

Abstract: Sanitary landfills are one of the most used disposal methods for municipal solid waste (MSW) disposal. Due to its high strength, these wastewaters need a combination of several treatment steps, which combine biological with physical-chemical processes. The main goal of this study was to assess the removal efficiency for specific treatment steps in three different full scale treatment facilities in Portugal. Results indicate a good BOD5 removal (75; 93; 96%) on all facilities but low TOC removal (2; 58; 64%) indicating that recalcitrant organic matter remains after treatment. Total dissolved nitrogen was poorly removed (0; 0.2 and 47%) possibly due to limited nitrate removal, even in the facility with an anoxic tank. This suggests biodegradable carbon limitations and salinity toxicity. The major cations, anions and heavy metals are only partially removed with advanced filtration. The heavy metal concentrations and the high conductivity (22-67 dS m⁻¹) indicate the need for further treatment steps.

Keywords: sanitary landfill leachate; full scale wastewater treatment; municipal solid waste; MSW; biological degradation.

DOI: 10.1504/IJHST.2017.084141

International Journal of Hydrology Science and Technology, 2017 Vol.7 No.2, pp.158 - 168

Received: 14 Oct 2015
Accepted: 16 Mar 2016
Published online: 14 May 2017 *

Full-text access for editors Full-text access for subscribers Purchase this article Comment on this article