Estimation of Primary and Mechanical Compression in MSW Landfills

Abstract

The density of municipal solid waste (MSW) plays a significant role in the computation of landfill settlement. A methodology is developed to compute the primary and mechanical compression considering the landfill density to be constant or spatially and temporally variable. The primary and mechanical compression computed taking a constant density of refuse yields lower settlement values compared to variable density. The coefficient of compressibility was found highly sensitive in the model. The difference between constant and variable density was a decreasing rate for mechanical compression and an increasing rate for primary compression.