Post-treatment of landfill leachate using rice husk ash as adsorbent medium

Abstract Sanitary landfill is the most disposal method for urban solid waste. However, in the process of organic matter degradation, a dark-colored liquid with high potential for polluting is produced, necessitating an efficient treatment before its discharge into watercourses. Several technologies can be used in the treatment, such as biological and physico-chemical systems. The activated carbon produced from agricultural residues - rice husk ash (RHA), appears as an alternative treatment, mainly for color reduction in landfill leachate. This study determined the best operational condition for the slurry treatment using a fixed-bed column. The column was filled with activated RHA and support material (sand). The column heights studied were 5 cm (C1) and 20 cm (C2) of adsorbent. The column with 20 cm of RHA and sand intercalated with the coal layer showed better efficiency in removal of the chemical oxygen demand (COD), with COD removal efficiency of 88.91% and rupture time of 120 min. The removal of apparent color was 87.40% with the rupture time of 40 min and true color removal of 86.64% with rupture time of 50 min. Activated rice husk ash was shown to be promising for post-treatment of the leachate with substantial efficiency.