Abstract
With the aim of examining the forcing factors in postmanagement landfills, in this study, excavation waste from nonhazardous municipal waste landfill in Tuscany was characterized for the first time. The specific objective was to estimate the feasibility of sampling and analyzing the excavated waste in order to define its properties and provide information about possible landfill mining projects. Based on the biochemical methane potential assays, it was shown that the excavated waste had not yet been stabilized (i.e., with a production of 52.2 ± 28.7 NlCH4/kgTS) in the landfill, probably due to the low excavated waste moisture content (36% ± 6% w/w). Furthermore, excavated waste has a high calorific value, i.e., 15.2 ± 4.1 MJ/kg; the quantity of combustibles in the industrial shredder waste (16 MJ/kg) was rather modest compared to that of municipal solid waste (20.8 MJ/Kg). In conclusion, during large scale excavation of the landfill, it was possible to evaluate how a dedicated treatment plant could be designed to treat and select waste which might appear in a different category. For excavated industrial waste, detailed mechanical sorting may be convenient for end-of-waste recovery to improve calorific value.
Highlights
In recent decades, many changes have been implemented in the European Union (EU) regarding solid waste management and landfilling thanks to the Landfill Directive (EU Directive 1999/31/EC) and subsequent amendments
There were significant differences between the compositions of municipal solid waste (MSW) and industrial waste (IW): the amount of fine fraction (FF) measured in IW (44 ± 6% w/w) was greater than that of MSW (17 ± 4% w/w)
A visual check of FF can confirm the results of other studies [7,11] that show that the fine fraction in MSW is composed of the fraction of degraded kitchen and garden waste
Summary
Many changes have been implemented in the European Union (EU) regarding solid waste management and landfilling thanks to the Landfill Directive (EU Directive 1999/31/EC) and subsequent amendments. The EU directive strongly encourages the reduction of organic waste which can be landfilled; waste reduction and the mechanical–biological pretreatment of unsorted waste are promoted, which is leading to changes in the composition of landfilled waste [1]. The processes, along with the diversified composition of the landfilled waste, may result in different states existing in distinct areas within the landfill. These circumstances may produce indecision when scheduling post-landfill and/or aftercare activities [3]
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary 
Published Version (
Free)
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call