title: Partitioning and diffusion of PBDEs through an HDPE geomembrane.
abstract: Polybrominated diphenyl ether (PBDE) has been measured in MSW landfill leachate and its migration through a modern landfill liner has not been investigated previously. To assure environmental protection, it is important to evaluate the efficacy of landfill liners for controlling the release of PBDE to the environment to a negligible level. The partitioning and diffusion of a commercial mixture of PBDEs (DE-71: predominantly containing six congeners) with respect to a high-density polyethylene (HDPE) geomembrane is examined. The results show that the partitioning coefficients of the six congeners in this mixture range from 700,000 to 7,500,000 and the diffusion coefficients range from 1.3 to 6.0×10(-15)m(2)/s depending on the congener. This combination of very high partitioning coefficients and very low diffusion coefficients suggest that a well constructed HDPE geomembrane liner will be an extremely effective barrier for PBDEs with respect to diffusion from a municipal solid waste landfill, as illustrated by an example. The results for pure diffusion scenario showed that the congeners investigated meet the guidelines by at least a factor of three for an effective geomembrane liner where diffusion is the controlling transport mechanism.
authors.affiliation: Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering, GeoEngineering Centre at Queen's-RMC, Queen's University, Ellis Hall, Kingston, ON K7L 3N6, Canada. Electronic address: kerry.rowe@queensu.ca.
authors.forename: R Kerry
authors.initials: RK
authors.lastname: Rowe
authors.affiliation: Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering, GeoEngineering Centre at Queen's-RMC, Queen's University, Ellis Hall, Kingston, ON K7L 3N6, Canada. Electronic address: pooneh.saheli@queensu.ca.
authors.forename: Pooneh T
authors.initials: PT
authors.lastname: Saheli
authors.affiliation: School of Environmental Studies, Queen's University, Kingston, ON K7L 3N6, Canada. Electronic address: ruttera@queensu.ca.
authors.forename: Allison
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Rutter
mesh_terms: D004784:Environmental Monitoring; D005374:Filtration / Q000295:instrumentation*; D055768:Halogenated Diphenyl Ethers / Q000032:analysis*; D020959:Polyethylene; D012037:Refuse Disposal / Q000379:methods*; D062611:Solid Waste; D064091:Waste Disposal Facilities; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000032:analysis*
chemical_list: D055768:Halogenated Diphenyl Ethers; D062611:Solid Waste; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical; D020959:Polyethylene
keywords: Brominated flame retardants; Contaminants of emerging concern; Diffusion coefficient; Geosynthetics; High density polyethylene; MSW landfill; Partitioning coefficient; Polybrominated diphenyl ethers