Methane generation in tropical landfills: Simplified methods and field results

This paper deals with the use of simplified methods to predict methane generation in tropical landfills.Methane recovery data obtained on site as part of a research program being carried out at the Metropol-itan Landfill, Salvador, Brazil, is analyzed and used to obtain field methane generation over time. Labora-tory data from MSW samples of different ages are presented and discussed; and simplified procedures toestimate the methane generation potential, Lo, and the constant related to the biodegradation rate, k areapplied. The first order decay method is used to fit field and laboratory results. It is demonstrated thatdespite the assumptions and the simplicity of the adopted laboratory procedures, the values Lo and kobtained are very close to those measured in the field, thus making this kind of analysis very attractivefor first approach purposes.