Soil-leachate interaction and their effects on hydraulic conductivity and compaction characteristics

Abstract

Leachate is the most dangerous component of the solid waste management process. In a small landfill, the amount of leachate generated may not create a serious problem. As the size of landfill and variety of solid wastes disposed increases, large amounts of leachate will be generated and create environmental problems such as leaching of nutrients and heavy metals into the soil which leads to soil and ground water contamination. The problem of change in behaviour of soils on one hand and the contamination of ground water on the other is a cause of concern for geotechnical and environmental engineers. In this paper, results of a laboratory study to determine the effects of leachate contamination on the hydraulic conductivity and compaction characteristics of shedi soil (also known as lithomargic clay) have been presented. The study has indicated that leachate can modify the soil properties and significantly alter the behaviour of soil. There is a general deterioration in soil properties which is attributed to the chemistry of leachate and of soil. The interaction of leachate with soil is responsible for the modified behaviour of the soil.