침출수 재순환과 생물학적 단축질소제거공정을 병합한 매립지 조기안정화 기술 연구

A leachate containing an elevated concentration of organic and inorganic compounds has the potential to contaminate adjacent soils and groundwater as well as downgradient areas of the watershed. Moreover high-strength ammonium concentrations in leachate can be toxic to aquatic ecological systems as well as consuming dissolved oxygen, due to ammonium oxidation, and thereby causing eutrophication of the watershed. In response to these concerns landfill stabilization and leachate treatment are required to reduce contaminant loading sand minimize effects on the environment. Compared with other treatment technologies, leachate recirculation technology is most effective for the pre-treatment of leachate and the acceleration of waste stabilization processes in a landfill. However, leachate recirculation that accelerates the decomposition of readily degradable organic matter might also be generating high-strength ammonium in the leachate. Since most landfill leachate having high concentrations of nitrogen also contain insufficient quantities of the organic carbon required for complete denitrification, we combined a shortcut biological nitrogen removal (SBNR) technology in order to solve the problem associated with the inability to denitrify the oxidized ammonium due to the lack of carbon sources. The accumulation of nitrite was successfully achieved at a 0.8 ratio of $NO_2^{-}-N/NO_x-N$ in an on-site reactor of the sequencing batch reactor (SBR) type that had operated for six hours in an aeration phase. The $NO_x$-N ratio in leachate produced following SBR treatment was reduced in the landfill and the denitrification mechanism is implied sulfur-based autotrophic denitrification and/or heterotrophic denitrification. The combined leachate recirculation with SBNR proved an effective technology for landfill stabilization and nitrogen removal in leachate. 본 연구는 침출수 재순환 공법과 산소요구량과 탄소요구량의 절감이 가능한 단축질소제거공법(shortcut biological nitrogen removal: SBNR)을 병합하여 침출수중의 암모니아와 유기물을 효과적으로 제거하는 방안에 대해 부피 약 200 $m^3$의 pilot 규모 매립지를 만들어 연구하였다. 매립지에서 발생한 침출수는 연속회분식반응기(sequencing batch reactor: SBR)형태의 on-site reactor에서 암모니아성 질소를 아질산으로 부분질산화 시킨 후 매립지로 재유입 시켜 지중탈질(in-situ denitrification)을 유도하였다. 침출수는 매립면적에 따른 년평균 강우량을 기준으로 약 221 L/cycle을 주당 3회 재순환 하였다. 그 결과 반응시간은 약 6시간으로 운전하였을 때 $NO_2^{-}-N/NO_x-N$의 비는 약 0.8에 이르러 효과적인 아질산 축적을 이룰 수 있었으며 온도저하로 인해 질산화의 저해가 일어나기 이전의 질산화 효율은 약 80%에 달하여 단축질소제거공정을 위한 아질산 축적이 가능함을 보여주었다. 이와 같이 SBR을 통해 질산화하여 재순환한 침출수의 $NO_x$-N는 모형 매립지 내에서 모두 제거할 수 있었으며, 침출수에 비교적