Evaluation of PFOS contamination in aquifers under single lined landfills

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Publication Title
Evaluation of PFOS contamination in aquifers under single lined landfills

Abstract
Perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS) is among the most concerning types of a large group of compounds called per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). PFOS has captured significant attention due to its persistence in the environment and negative effects on human health. Landfills are a major source of PFOS to the surrounding aquifer and usually require composite liner systems for hydraulic and chemical containment. However, knowledge of the transport of PFOS through liner systems remains limited, and relevant numerical simulations are scarce. The paper reports an evaluation of PFOS contamination in the aquifer under a standard, single-liner, barrier system in a landfill, conducted using a 2D finite- element model of advective-diffusive PFOS transport. Three different levels of construction quality assurance (CQA) for the liner system are investigated. It’s concluded that the advection process dominates PFOS transport through the liner system over molecular diffusion and mechanical dispersion. A considerable level of contamination for a scenario with excellent CQA indicates that a single composite liner may not be adequate to mitigate PFOS impact on an aquifer below or close to a municipal solid waste landfill.
Authors
L. Zhao; R. K. Rowe; A. El-Zein

Published In

18th European Conference on Soil Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering (ECSMGE2024)

Theme

E - Environment, water and energy

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