A coupled multi-component approach for bacterial methane oxidation in landfill cover layers

Methane (CH4), which has a 25 times higher global warming potential than carbon dioxide (CO2), can be oxidated by methanotrophic bacteria into carbon dioxide and water. The biological oxidation of methane can be considered in the passive aftercare phase of landfills in order to reduce climate‐damaging methane emissions. Methanotrophic bacteria are situated within the landfill cover layer and convert the harmful methane emissions arising from the degradation of organic waste to the less harmful carbon dioxide. Hence, the passive aftercare of landfills in terms of methane oxidation layers is an efficient method to reduce contributions to the greenhouse effect. To model the coupled processes during phase transition from methane to carbon dioxide, the well‐known Theory of Porous Media (TPM) combined with the Mixture Theory has been used in order to develop a multi‐component Finite Element calculation concept, see [1, 3]. The thermodynamic consistent model analyzes the relevant gas productions of methane, carbon dioxide and oxygen. The model also accounts for the driving phenomena of production, diffusion and advection. (© 2014 Wiley‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)