As more and more landfill closure projects were built using geomembranes as the final cover barrier layer over the past 20 years, the issue of handling water in the final cover drainage layer became more prominent. Precipitation on closed portions of a landfill leaves the landfill basin in three ways: (1) runoff; (2) percolating into the final cover upper soil layer and then evaporating back out into the atmosphere by evapotranspiration; and (3) percolating into the final cover upper soil layer and reaching the final cover drainage layer, flowing through the drainage layer to the bottom of the landfill slope, and leaving the landfill basin through discharge points to the landfill perimeter ditch. Addressing the runoff component is relatively straightforward because for decades engineers have been designing various types of conveyance systems to handle surface water runoff. Mother Nature takes care of the second component.
The third component, however, took many years to be engineered properly. SCS developed one of the best-engineered systems over 18 years ago and perfected the design over the following five years. The perfected design has been incorporated into the permits of many landfills and implemented at many closure construction events. As a commitment to the efficiency of the design, SCS has been monitoring the performance of many of these closure projects during rain events to gather data and ensure that nothing unexpected occurs during the more severe storm events.
SCS’s system involves a perforated collection pipe embedded in gravel, wrapped in geotextile, and placed in a depression created by a geomembrane flap near the bottom of the slope. The geomembrane flap is welded to the final cover geomembrane and supported in a depressed shape by the upper soil layer of the final cover system. The drainage layer geocomposite ends at the bottom of the depression, delivering the water in the geocomposite into the pipe-gravel-geotextile positioned inside the depression. Installation of the geomembrane flap is at a sloping grade; therefore, the collection pipe ends up sloping toward a low point where a drain pipe that is perpendicular to the perforated pipe takes the water out of the depression and delivers it to the landfill perimeter ditch. The system is fairly easy to install and almost guarantees proper removal of water from the final cover drainage layer. Although other engineers have designed many varieties of such systems, the SCS system has a proven track record with no glitches or side effects at the bottom of the landfill slope.
Some other systems, because of the inherent shortcomings in the design, either don’t remove all of the water from the geocomposite drainage layer, or they clog at the discharge point. Sometimes the water coming through the system adversely affects other landfill components, such as the perimeter berm integrity. Additionally, complexities during construction of the system can conflict with the storm water down chute pipes or landfill gas pipes that may exist above the cover system geomembrane.
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In addition to writing the SCS Engineers blog series SCS Advice from the Field, Dr. Khatami speaks about SCS blog topics at SWANA national and local chapter conferences. His webinar Design Leachate Collection Pipes to Eliminate Clogging of Geotextiles will be presented on June 29, 2016. Use the links below to learn more about Dr. Khatami’s advanced landfill designs which last longer and help prevent common operational challenges over time.
How to Manage Leachate Seeps Below the Final Landfill Geomembrane Cover
Recommendations for Jet Cleaning Leachate Collection Pipes
Avoid Geotextile Clogging of Leachate Collection Pipes
Ali Khatami, Ph.D., PE, LEP, CGC, is a Project Director and a Vice President of SCS Engineers. He is also our National Expert for Landfill Design and Construction Quality Assurance. He has nearly 40 years of research and professional experience in mechanical, structural, and civil engineering.
Dr. Khatami has acquired extensive experience and knowledge in the areas of geology, hydrogeology, hydrology, hydraulics, construction methods, material science, construction quality assurance (CQA), and stability of earth systems. Dr. Khatami has applied this experience in the siting of numerous landfills and the remediation of hazardous waste contaminated sites.
Dr. Khatami has been involved in the design and permitting of civil and environmental projects such as surface water management systems, drainage structures, municipal solid waste landfills, hazardous solid waste landfills, low-level radioactive waste landfills, leachate and wastewater conveyance and treatment systems. He is also involved in the design of gas management systems, hazardous waste impoundments, storage tank systems, waste tire processing facilities, composting facilities, material recovery facilities, landfill gas collection and disposal systems, leachate evaporator systems, and liquid impoundment floating covers.
If you are looking to design a final cover for your landfill, please contact SCS. We will review your particular needs and the existing conditions at your facility and will recommend a proper design that suits your site conditions. SCS will also provide you with construction recommendations and an estimate for construction of the system. Furthermore, SCS will gladly incorporate the final design into your facility permit and prepare construction drawings for implementation of the system.
One general problem that is encountered in traditional designs is the potential for clogging of geotextiles in the vicinity of the leachate collection pipes.
Traditionally, leachate collection pipes are encased in gravel, wrapped in geotextile, and positioned above the leachate collection system geocomposite drainage layer inside a trench or at the trough of the bottom of a cell. In a traditional design, leachate travels through the geonet component of the geocomposite and reaches the leachate trench where the leachate collection pipe is located. Here, leachate must flow out of the geocomposite, through the upper geotextile component, and then through the geotextile wrapped around the gravel, before entering the gravel and eventually flowing through the pipe. The flow through the geotextiles is concentrated in small areas on the two sides of the leachate collection pipe-gravel-geotextile wrap. Considering the large volume of leachate that follows this path over the life of the cell, it is evident why traditional designs are doomed to clog.
The clogging impedes the free flow of leachate from the geocomposite drainage layer to the leachate collection pipe. As the clogging occurs, the leachate must find a new flow path (most likely further back from the collection pipe), and flow out of the geocomposite, through the geotextile wrap at a different location, and eventually enter the gravel and pipe. This new location will eventually clog as well for the same reasons that the initial location was clogged. This process continues until the geotextile within the leachate trench becomes completely clogged and the system loses functionality. Unfortunately, the periodic cleaning of leachate collection pipes (usually every few years) cannot address this issue because the problem is outside the pipe and the high-pressure jets inside the pipes do not reach the clogged locations.
The solution is to eliminate geotextiles from the flow path of the leachate, extending from the geocomposite drainage layer to the leachate collection pipe. Over the past several years, SCS has successfully designed and constructed numerous landfill cells with no geotextile in the flow path of leachate from the geocomposite drainage layer to the leachate collection pipe. The design follows the “Rule of Transmissivities” which dictates that a proper design should provide the free flow of leachate from one medium to another and that only occurs when the transmissivity of the latter medium is equal to or greater than the transmissivity of the former medium. If a design does not satisfy the Rule of Transmissivities, there may be potential for clogging, bottlenecking of flow, and other consequences resulting from impeded flow in the system.
SCS Engineers is a leader in the design of landfill lining systems, and we have experience with issues that may not be familiar to other firms. If you are interested in the design of a leachate collection system at your facility, please contact SCS. Our professional engineers will gladly review your design and make recommendations if needed. We can identify potential issues and improve designs to prevent future problems and maintenance during the life of your facility.
Questions? Contact Ali Khatami, PhD, PE, LEP, CGC, is a Project Director and a Vice President of SCS Engineers. He is also our National Expert for Landfill Design and Construction Quality Assurance. He has nearly 40 years of research and professional experience in mechanical, structural, and civil engineering. Dr. Khatami has acquired extensive experience and knowledge in the areas of geology, hydrogeology, hydrology, hydraulics, construction methods, material science, construction quality assurance (CQA), and stability of earth systems. Dr. Khatami has applied this experience in the siting of numerous landfills and the remediation of hazardous waste contaminated sites.
Read more here. Rule of Transmissivities at Material Interfaces in Landfill Leachate Collection Systems, in Talking Trash
