Title: Aging effect on the bearing capacity of landfills: a field study experiment

Authors: Reza Mozouni; Ali Ghanbari; Gholamreza Asadollahfardi

Addresses: Faculty of Engineering, Kharazmi University, No. 49 Mofatteh Ave., Tehran, IR, Iran ' Faculty of Engineering, Kharazmi University, No. 49 Mofatteh Ave., Tehran, IR, Iran ' Faculty of Engineering, Kharazmi University, No. 49 Mofatteh Ave., Tehran, IR, Iran

Abstract: The complete design of a municipal solid waste (MSW) landfill requires geotechnical parameters of the landfill bed. In the present study, several plate load tests (PLT) with plates 450 mm in diameter were performed on a landfill surface with different ages in the Karaj landfill in Iran. The objective of this study was to evaluate bearing capacity, the modulus of elasticity, and the modulus of sub-grade reaction with increasing age of burial. The exact design of landfills, slope stability analysis, and drainage system, as well as gas well integrity are contingent upon these parameters. The results of the plate load tests revealed that the bearing capacity, the modulus of elasticity, and the modulus of sub-grade reaction increased considerably with MSW age. The bearing capacity rose by approximately 14% and 40% in 6 years and 15 years after dumping, respectively. In addition, the modulus of elasticity increased threefold after 15 years.

Keywords: aging; bearing capacity; field study; landfill; municipal solid waste; plate load test; PLT.

DOI: 10.1504/IJEWM.2024.136956

International Journal of Environment and Waste Management, 2024 Vol.33 No.2, pp.234 - 247

Received: 29 Apr 2020
Accepted: 08 Jul 2021
Published online: 01 Mar 2024 *

Full-text access for editors Full-text access for subscribers Purchase this article Comment on this article