Removal of Pollution by Intensive Aeration Technology for Landfill Leachate Treatment.

Background: Landfill leachate is a source of environmental pollution and a major concern for human health because it contains high concentrations of organic and inorganic contaminants.

Objectives: The objective of the present study is to validate the efficiency of the forced aeration treatment technique, which consists of intensively injecting a continuous oxygen flow of 16.75 kg/m³/h for 30 days using a bubble air diffuser in a relatively small volume of 1 m³. The principle of the technique is essentially based on acceleration of the degradation of the effluent as well as reduction of the organic and nitrogenous matter contents.

Methods: Forced aeration technology was used for the treatment of leachate from the Mohammedia-Benslimane landfill. The sample was treated by injecting a flow of oxygen to accelerate the biodegradability of the pollutants by the microorganisms.

Results: The physicochemical characterization of the raw leachate at the inlet of the aeration tank showed high values for chemical oxygen demand (COD) (38,600 mg O₂/l), biological oxygen demand (BOD5) (24,000 mg O₂/l), and total Kjeldahl nitrogen (TKN) (5,932.45 mg/L). The proposed treatment technique allowed relatively high purification yields to be achieved, with abatement rates for the major elements COD, BOD5 and TKN of 73%, 98%, and 85%, respectively.

Conclusions: The treatment of leachate by intensive aeration technology reduces considerably the pollutant load and achieves a high purification yield.

Competing interests: The authors declare no competing financial interests.