Decomposition of Land-fills

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Abstract
Results of investigation of 5 large land-fills indicate that for the fresh land-fill material the opt. moisture content lies between 50 and 70%. For older fills the opt. region expands to include values between 30 and 80%. A more rapid decomposition of land-fill could be obtained if additional moisture were added to the fill while being placed. This could be accomplished by having streams from a fire hose play on the material as it is dumped from each truck. Air in the fills is rapidly exhausted and the process of decomposition becomes anaerobic. This is evidenced by the results of many gas analyses taken from within the land-fill. The constituents varied considerably but the indications were that the gases averaged 30% CO2, 45% CH4, 3% O2, 0.1% H2, and the remaining 22% N2 and other inert gases. The high % of CH4 and almost complete absence of O2 serves to indicate the anaerobic character of the decomposition.

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