Determining the Biodegradability of Leachate Through XAD-8 Adsorption

Knowledge of biodegradability of leachate during municipal solid waste disposal is important for this process. The traditional indicator BOD5/COD can characterize the leachate stability, but the experiment of BOD5 lasts long time and success or failure is often affected by various factors, such as the seed, solution times, dilution multiple, and high levels of nitrate and nitrite. The present study was built up an innovative method with short time to determine the biodegradability of leachate by using XAD-8 resin. The leachate was sampled from the aerobic, semi-aerobic, and anaerobic degradations of municipal solid waste. The degradability of leachate could be determined using the formula given by 1-2.084CODXAD/COD. When the CODXAD/COD ratio is greater than 0.432, the leachate is expected to be stable.