Characteristics of Biochar-Amended Soil Cover for Landfill Gas Mitigation

In this study, biochar-amended soil cover was investigated to enhance reduction of CH4 emissions from landfills. This paper presents physical and chemical characteristics of biochar-amended soils. Specifically, moisture content, organic content, ash content, pH, particle size distribution, Atterberg limits, specific gravity, and permeability tests were conducted with biochar alone, soil alone, and biochar-amended soils. Moreover, batch experiments were performed using biochar alone, soil alone, and biochar-amended soils to quantify the effects of biochar amendment on adsorption of CH4. The batch testing showed that the maximum methane adsorbed in biochar-amended soil was higher than that for soil alone, due to the adsorption of CH4 to biochar, providing favorable conditions for methanotrophic oxidation to improve CH4 degradation within the cover.