Application of ozone and ozone plus hydrogen peroxide to remove recalcitrant compounds in landfill leachates

Leachates are wastewaters generated at sites of solid waste disposal through organic matter decomposition, added to infiltration waters and suspended materials. They contain biodegradable and recalcitrant compounds, difficult to biological degradation (biodegradation). This wastewater reguires treatment before being disposed in the environment. The aim of this study was to evaluate the use of ozone (O-3) and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) as advanced oxidation process (AOP), in order to remove recalcitrant compounds in landfill leachate Two leachates from Sao Leopoldo landfill, in Rio Grande do Sul, were used, raw and treated in pounds, which were treated only with O-3 at the concentration of 29 mg.L-1 (generated from the corona process) or with addition of 1,000 mg.L-1 H2O2 to O-3. The tests occurred on a pilot scale, treating 460 L of leachate in each test, which lasted 96 hours. AOP of this study was more efficient in the treatment of leachate that had the lowest initial concentrations of biological oxygen demand (BOD), chemical oxygen demand (COD) and total organic carbon (TOC) (both raw and treated leachate) for both of the leachates. High removals of apparent color, COD and TOC were observed, reaching 99,88 and 66%, respectively. The greater removal of inorganic carbon was 23%, but the group that started with the highest concentration of this parameter achieves the greatest removals for all other parameters studied. The addition of H2O2 increased the efficiency of removal of all parameters, but not significantly. It is necessary additional treatment to the AOP of this study.