Evaluation of physical and biological clogging under different landfill leachate heads

• Grant number: 14/16038-0
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: November 01, 2014
• End date: April 30, 2015
• Field of knowledge: Engineering - Civil Engineering
• Principal Investigator: Fernando Henrique Martins Portelinha
• Grantee: Luis Felipe Evaristo Cardoso
• Host Institution: Centro de Ciências Exatas e de Tecnologia (CCET). Universidade Federal de São Carlos (UFSCAR). São Carlos , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Drainage and collection systems of leachate in landfills must assure the flow capacity with time and a minimum hydraulic head in the landfills. However, drainage system always act with filters to retain solids and to allow the liquid flowing inside the collector without any obstruction of the voids of filters, normally attributed to physical, chemical and biological agents. Therefore, it is necessary the understanding of influences of these agents in the obstruction of filters, which is named as clogging. This research tends to evaluate the effect of the process of clogging by physical, chemical and biological agents on the reduction of drainage capacity of filtering and draining systems in landfills, aiming the effect of different leachate heads on the clogging process, as well as on the clearing of clogged filters. This study will be conducted by means of laboratory equipment that imposes the circulation of leachate though geotextile filters specimens (perpendicularly), materials usually used as filters of drainage system in landfills. The main aspect of this study consists on the influence of hydraulic gradient (height of leachate level) developed by an eventual clogging of filters with time. Three different geotextiles will be evaluated being two needle punched nonwoven geotextiles and one woven geotextile. These materials will be tested in isolation as well as below a sand layer in order to simulate a field condition of installation of geotextile filters.