title: How the origin of fresh household waste affects its ability to be biodegraded: an assessment using basic tools and its application to the city of Kara in Togo.
abstract: Waste biodegradation has been largely investigated in the literature by using conventional tests like the BMP test and the respirometric test, whereas only few studies deal with the use of leaching tests in combination with biological activity measurements. Consequently, this study used an improved leaching test to evaluate the biodegradability of two deposits of fresh household waste from the city of Kara in Togo. The first deposit came from households in neighborhoods located in the outskirts of the city and the second consisted of fresh waste, mainly composed of business waste and household waste, collected in the urban center and aimed at being deposited in the landfill. A physicochemical characterization of the two deposits completed the leaching test. The biological activity was monitored by measuring O(2) consumption and CO(2) production. pH, DOC/OM, VFA/DOC ratios and the SUVA index was measured in the leaching juice to assess both the state of degradation of the waste in the deposits and the ability of the organic matter to be mobilized quickly and to be easily assimilated by microorganisms. The biodegradability of waste from the city of Kara correlated with their origin even though the physical characteristics of the two deposits studied differed greatly.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory for Management, Treatment and Value of Waste, University of Lomé, BP 1515 Lomé, Togo.
authors.forename: K N
authors.initials: KN
authors.lastname: Segbeaya
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Feuillade-Cathalifaud
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Baba
authors.forename: E K
authors.initials: EK
authors.lastname: Koledzi
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Pallier
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Tchangbedji
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Matejka
mesh_terms: D001673:Biodegradation, Environmental; D019149:Bioreactors; D002245:Carbon Dioxide / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism; D005191:Family Characteristics; D005232:Fatty Acids, Volatile; D005740:Gases; D006863:Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; D010101:Oxygen Consumption; D012037:Refuse Disposal / Q000379:methods*; D062611:Solid Waste / Q000032:analysis*; D014037:Togo; D014867:Water
chemical_list: D005232:Fatty Acids, Volatile; D005740:Gases; D062611:Solid Waste; D014867:Water; D002245:Carbon Dioxide