TECHNICAL PAPERS
Jun 15, 2009

Effects of Temperature, Moisture Content, and Fertilizer Addition on Biological Methane Oxidation in Landfill Cover Soils

Publication: Practice Periodical of Hazardous, Toxic, and Radioactive Waste Management
Volume 13, Issue 3

Abstract

Patterns of methane (CH4) oxidation were investigated under various combinations of environmental factors including temperature, moisture content, and fertilizer addition (as an additional nutrient source) in two types of existing landfill cover soils. In all the experimental runs, CH4 and oxygen concentrations decreased with time, while carbon dioxide concentration increased suggesting that biological CH4 oxidation was taking place. The highest CH4 oxidation rates ( 6.412.3μg CH4h1gdrysoil1 ) were achieved at 35°C . The lowest oxidation rates ( 3.34.7μg CH4h1gdrysoil1 ) were obtained for experiments conducted at 5°C without adding the fertilizer. For both types of soil, without adding fertilizer, the soil with 20% moisture content (MC) showed consistently higher oxidation rates compared to soil samples containing 25 or 30% MC, for different operating temperatures. Adding the fertilizer as the nutrient source to the two soils samples with 30% moisture content resulted in enhanced CH4 oxidation rates in a range of 44–145% at tested temperatures in the range between 5 and 35°C .

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Acknowledgments

The writers wish to express their appreciation to Lafleche Environmental Inc. for supplying funds for this study.

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Go to Practice Periodical of Hazardous, Toxic, and Radioactive Waste Management
Practice Periodical of Hazardous, Toxic, and Radioactive Waste Management
Volume 13Issue 3July 2009
Pages: 187 - 195

History

Received: Jul 27, 2007
Accepted: Oct 22, 2008
Published online: Jun 15, 2009
Published in print: Jul 2009

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Authors

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Muna Albanna [email protected]
Ph.D. Candidate, Dept. of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Univ. of Ottawa, 161 Louis Pasteur St., Ottawa ON, Canada K1N 6N5 (corresponding author). E-mail: [email protected]
Leta Fernandes
Professor, Dept. of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Univ. of Ottawa, 161 Louis Pasteur St., Ottawa ON, Canada K1N 6N5.

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