Swamp reclamation in tropical monsoon regions by appropriate refuse landfilling

Summary This paper is based on a research study to evaluate the feasibility of reclaiming low-lying swamplands by filling them with refuse, rather than with dirt, sand or other inert materials. A supplementary study was also initiated to prepare a preliminary evaluation of disposing of solid waste from the Bangkok Metropolis region. This included a preliminary assessment of available filling areas and of costs for filling them, together with projected values of reclaimed land. The latter study was included to determine if a feasibility study for utilising refuse landfilling for Bangkok solid-waste disposal is warranted, and to prepare the feasibility study terms of reference if so justified. Results of the literature review, practices of refuse landfilling in swamps, and methods and materials employed in conduct of the study are described. This is followed by evaluations of the feasibility of disposing solid wastes utilising swamplands, an environmental analysis of the same, and the conclusions of the study.The authors are Consulting Engineers at Seatec International, Bangkok. The views in this paper are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect World Bank policies.     

Online elemental analysis of process gases with ICP-OES: A case study on waste wood combustion

A mobile sampling and measurement system for the analysis of gaseous and liquid samples in the field was developed. An inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometer (ICP-OES), which is built into a van, was used as detector. The analytical system was calibrated with liquid and/or gaseous standards. It was shown that identical mass flows of either gaseous or liquid standards resulted in identical ICP-OES signal intensities. In a field measurement campaign trace and minor elements in the raw flue gas of a waste wood combustor were monitored. Sampling was performed with a highly transport efficient liquid quench system, which allowed to observe temporal variations in the elemental process gas composition. After a change in feedstock an immediate change of the element concentrations in the flue gas was detected. A comparison of the average element concentrations during the combustion of the two feedstocks showed a high reproducibility for matrix elements that are expected to be present in similar concentrations. On the other hand elements that showed strong differences in their concentration in the feedstock were also represented by a higher concentration in the flue gas. Following the temporal variations of different elements revealed strong correlations between a number of elements, such as chlorine with sodium, potassium and zinc, as well as arsenic with lead, and calcium with strontium.