Factors influencing spontaneous combustion of solid waste.
Landfill fires create a critical problem for landfill operators and require investigation of its occurrence and the conditions that favor its initiation. Subsurface fires are considered the most significant due to the difficulty in determining their location and extent. These fires are mainly caused by spontaneous combustion, combustion due to high temperature in absence of flame. This study investigates the effect of moisture content, oxygen concentration and leachate components on spontaneous ignition, combustion initiation, and self-heating of solid waste. A new procedure for testing spontaneous ignition is described; however, variations in solid waste components and landfill conditions can create some limitations to its use. The presence of water and dissolved solids in leachate was found to accelerate chemical self-heating of the solid waste. Oxygen concentration at 10% by volume can sustain chemical oxidation but did not promote accelerated burning.
Moqbel
Shadi
S
Civil, Environmental and Construction Engineering Department, University of Central Florida, P.O. Box 162450, Orlando, FL 32816-2450, USA. smoqbel@knights.ucf.edu
Reinhart
Debra
D
Chen
Ruey-Hung
RH
D005390:Fires; D010100:Oxygen / Q000032:analysis; D012037:Refuse Disposal; D018605:Spontaneous Combustion; D013696:Temperature; D013816:Thermodynamics; D014866:Waste Products / Q000032:analysis* / Q000145:classification; D014867:Water / Q000032:analysis; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000032:analysis* / Q000737:chemistry
D014866:Waste Products; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical; D014867:Water; D010100:Oxygen