Landfill leachate treatment using hydrodynamic cavitation: exploratory evaluation

Hydrodynamic cavitation is a new technology used for the treatment of wastewater. Landfill leachates contain a large variety of organic pollutants and inorganic matter, with recalcitrant and bio-refractory compounds. The present study was designed to evaluate the effect of hydrodynamic cavitation on landfill leachate quality indices. Three experimental designs were proposed. First, the influence of collection climate on leachate quality characteristics was analyzed. Second, the best cavitation time was chosen, which promoted the greatest reduction in the effluent pollutant load. Finally, the hydrogen peroxide (H(2)O(2)) concentration was evaluated as an adjuvant in the cavitation process. A model TEKMASH TEK-1SL equipment was used. This cavitation unit operated with a flow rate of 30 m(3) h(−1), a temperature of 75 °C, and an inlet pressure of 3 bar. The cavitation chamber was of the annular flow type. The statistical analyses were run through ANOVA and Tukey's test, with significance α = 0.05. The response variables for the factors were biochemical oxygen demand (BOD(5)), chemical oxygen demand (COD), total organic carbon (TOC) and total suspended solids (TSS). An influence of the climatic condition on the leachate quality parameters was found, and the difference was marked in COD. In all cases, both for the cavitation process and for the cavitation-oxidant scheme, there was a reduction of 23%–51% BOD(5), 30%–53% COD, 12%–21% TOC and 100% removal in TSS. In a 30-minute treatment, the highest COD removal percentage was reached, corresponding to 53.20%. Furthermore, a 200 ppm concentration of hydrogen peroxide enhanced the reduction of BOD(5) and COD with proportions of 51.55% and 38.21%, respectively. Hydrodynamic cavitation offers advantages in the treatment of wastewater and can be used as an independent technique or as a hybrid method.