Abstract
Landfill leachate contains a large amount of organic matter and ammoniacal nitrogen. As such, it has become a complex and difficult issue within the water treatment industry. The activated sludge process has been found to be a good solution with low processing costs and is now therefore the core process for leachate treatment, especially for nitrogen removal. This paper describes the characteristics and treatment of leachate. Treatment of leachate using the activated sludge process includes the removal of organic matter, ammoniacal nitrogen, and total nitrogen (TN). The core method for the removal of organic matter involves anaerobic treatment supplemented with an aerobic process. Ammoniacal nitrogen is commonly removed using a conventional aerobic treatment, and advanced TN removal is achieved using endogenous denitrification or an anaerobic ammonium oxidation (ANAMMOX) process. Since biological processes are the most economical method for TN removal, a key issue is how to tap the full potential of the activated sludge process and improve TN removal from leachate. This complex issue has been identified as the focus of current scholars, as well as an important future direction for leachate research and development.
Highlights
Solid waste sanitary landfills have been the most common and most important way of dealing with garbage across the world
The cost-effective removal of ammoniacal nitrogen from landfill leachate has been a significant challenge for the water treatment industry
Activated sludge processes are the main technologies used for the removal of ammoniacal nitrogen today
Summary
Solid waste sanitary landfills have been the most common and most important way of dealing with garbage across the world. The total amount of leachate generated by solid waste sanitary landfills has reached 30 million tons per year. Because the waste composition is very complex, with high organic, ammoniacal nitrogen, and salt content, landfill leachate is considered to be a special wastewater [2,3,4]. Conventional sewage treatment leaves behind high concentrations of ammoniacal nitrogen in landfill leachate which can cause the eutrophication of water bodies. The new standard increased regulations on the discharge of TN, total phosphorus, and six heavy metal indicators. The requirements of these regulations, especially in relation to TN emissions, are both a challenge and an opportunity for leachate treatment. On the other hand, the new standards will accelerate the development and promotion of new technologies
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