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Use of electrical resistivity tomography for detecting the distribution of leachate and gas in a large-scale MSW landfill cell

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Abstract

In this study, integrate electrical resistivity tomography (ERT) tests were carried out in a large-scale (5.0 × 4.0 × 7.5 m) MSW landfill cell to investigate the possibility of detecting perched leachate mounds, leachate level, and gas accumulation zones at wet landfills. The resistivity of both bulk waste and waste components at different moisture states were measured and the three-phase volumetric relationships of the waste pile were analyzed to better interpret the ERT test results in the large-scale cell. The following observations were given: (1) The relationship between resistivity and volumetric moisture content (VMC) of waste sample can be reasonably fitted by Archie’s law. The resistivity of waste components at a saturated state was all lower than 21 Ω m. (2) A significant amount of void gas was entrapped in the underwater waste, being 30.4–34.8% of the whole waste pile in volume. (3) Low-resistivity zones (< 5.0 Ω m) were observed in the waste pile being fully drained under a gravity condition, which was believed to be related to a perched leachate. (4) The average VMC values of the waste layer below and above the leachate level were in the ranges of 46.5–53.1% and 28.1–41.3%, respectively. (5) Irregular variations of high-resistivity zones (> 40 Ω m) observed in the underwater waste were associated with the accumulation and dissipation of gas pressure. It was found that the “gas-breaking value” in the gas accumulation zone was up to 10.5 kPa greater than the pore liquid pressure in the stable methanogenesis stage. These findings shone a light on the possibility of using the ERT method as an efficient tool for mapping the gas/leachate distribution and improving operations at wet landfills.

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Acknowledgments

The authors want to express their deep thanks to Prof. William Powrie and Dr. Richard Beaven from the University of Sonthampton, and the anonymous reviewers for their constructive comments.

Funding

This study was financially supported by the National Basic Research Program of China (973 Program) via Grant No.2012CB719802, the National Natural Science Foundation of China via Grant Nos. 41502276 and 51708508, and the Open Foundation of MOE Key Laboratory of Soft Soils and Geoenvironmental Engineering (Zhejiang University) via Grant No. 2017P03.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Civil Engineering, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, China

    Liang-tong Zhan, Ji-wu Lan & Yun-min Chen

  2. School of Civil Engineering & Architecture, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou, 310018, China

    Hui Xu & Zhen-ying Zhang

  3. The Bureru of Land and Resource of Kaiping, Jiangmen, 529300, China

    Xiao-ming Jiang

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  1. Liang-tong Zhan
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  2. Hui Xu
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  3. Xiao-ming Jiang
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  4. Ji-wu Lan
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  5. Yun-min Chen
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  6. Zhen-ying Zhang
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Correspondence to Hui Xu.

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Zhan, Lt., Xu, H., Jiang, Xm. et al. Use of electrical resistivity tomography for detecting the distribution of leachate and gas in a large-scale MSW landfill cell. Environ Sci Pollut Res 26, 20325–20343 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-019-05308-6

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