Estimation of Biogas Generated in Two Landfills in South-Central Ecuador

Paulina Poma,Marco Usca,Carlos Mestanza-Ramón,Theofilos Toulkeridis,María Polanco

doi:10.3390/atmos12101365

Abstract

The landfill is a final disposal technique to confine municipal solid waste (MSW), where organic matter is degraded generating leachate and biogas composed of methane gases (CH4), carbon dioxide (CO2) and other gases that contribute to global warming. The objective of the current research was to estimate the amount of biogas generated through the LandGEM 3.03 mathematical model to determine the amount of electrical energy generated and the number of homes that would be supplied with electrical energy from 2021 to 2144. As a result of the application, it was estimated that in the Pichacay landfill, the highest point of biogas generation in 2053 would be 76,982,177 (m3/year) that would generate 81,226,339.36 (kWh/year), and would supply 5083 homes with electricity. Similarly, in the Las Iguanas landfill, the highest point would be 693,975,228 (m3/year) of biogas that produces 73,223,5296.7 (kWh/year) and would supply electricity to 45,825 homes. Of the performed gas analyses in the Pichacay landfill in 2020, an average of 51.49% CH4, 40.35% CO2, 1.75% O2 and 17.8% H2S was presented, while in the Las Iguanas landfill, for 2020 and 2021, we obtained an average of 51.88/CH4, 36.62% CO2, 1.01% O2 and 187.58 ppm H2S. Finally, the biogas generated by being harnessed minimizes the impacts related to global warming and climate change and would contribute electricity to the nearby communities.

Highlights

Anthropic activities have caused the generation of greenhouse gases (GHG), increasing in environmental temperatures, leading to increased rainfall, thawing, altering the hydrological system and acidification of the oceans [1,2]
One of the predominant factors that contribute to climate change is the generation of municipal solid waste (MSW), the World Bank indicates that 2.01 trillion tons of urban solid waste is generated per year worldwide, of which only 33% is managed in an environmentally safe way
The main objectives of the current study were to estimate the amount of biogas produced in two landfills in Ecuador, in order to determine the amount of electricity generated from the total biogas and the number of houses that would be supplied with the amount of the produced electricity

Summary

Introduction

Anthropic activities have caused the generation of greenhouse gases (GHG), increasing in environmental temperatures, leading to increased rainfall, thawing, altering the hydrological system and acidification of the oceans [1,2]. One of the predominant factors that contribute to climate change is the generation of municipal solid waste (MSW), the World Bank indicates that 2.01 trillion tons of urban solid waste is generated per year worldwide, of which only 33% is managed in an environmentally safe way. The World Biogas Association (WBA), estimated that worldwide, more than 105,000 billion tons of organic waste is generated per year, which releases gases such as methane (CH4 ), carbon dioxide (CO2 ) and other gases (GHG) which are products of the degradation of organic matter [4,5,6]. 2% of organic waste is recycled and 98% is mixed with MSW; this waste could be managed to reduce GHG by 10% between 2021 and 2030, following one of the main objectives of the Agreement on Paris Sustainable Development of the United Nations (UN) [1,7,8]. The Intergovernmental Group of Experts on Climate Change (IPCC), in the

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