Research of Sustainable Use of Tire Shreds in Landfill

Studies are on-going to establish the suitability of tire shreds in the landfill bottom drainage layer, to minimize clogging. Four experimental columns were constructed in which were 500 mm long and 200 mm in diameter. They were filled with different fillers and with a different amount of tire shreds. The most important problem with drainage filler in landfills is clogging. Over long periods of time in landfill operation, the drainage layer clogs (the pores of the layer become smaller and the porosity of the layer becomes smaller). The experiment was carried out for 365 days. Although the landfill for this period represents only one-fiftieth or less of the operation time, the laboratory tests found that the drainage layer bandwidth of reduction in one year can have a negative impact in the long run over time. The main elements that influence the decrease of conductivity are the total suspended solids and calcium and iron compounds. The change of these compounds was observed during the column study, where the concentration of each month in all the columns was decreasing. The results showed that the waste of rubber (tire shreds) used for creating fillers in columns provided greater porosity of the layer. It is a beneficial reason to use a rubble and tire shreds waste mix for forming the drainage layer in landfills.