Emissions rate measurement with flow modelling to optimize landfill gas collection from horizontal collectors

•Numerical modeling is useful for assessing options to improve landfill gas collection.•Effects of higher vacuum and/or more horizontal collectors are quantified.•Accurate measurement of the fugitive emission rate is a key calibration parameter.•Emission rate measurements conducted using airborne matter mapping method. A two-dimensional landfill gas flow model using the FEFLOW numerical code was developed to assess the potential improvement in landfill gas (LFG) collection and the reduction in greenhouse gas emissions at a landfill due to increases in the vacuum of horizontal collectors and/or installation of additional LFG collection infrastructure. A key calibration input parameter for the model, the fugitive methane emission rate from the study area, was measured using the airborne matter mapping method. The measurement showed that, at the time, the methane collection efficiency for the study area was approximately 37 %. The model indicated that increasing the vacuum of the existing collection system by 0.75 kPa could result in an improvement in collection efficiency from 37 % to 49 % within the selected study area. A similar increase of collection efficiency could be obtained by either doubling the number of horizontal collectors on a platform or installing a layer of permeable demolition waste on that level, without an increase in collection system vacuum. Combining the addition of collection infrastructure with an increase in collection system vacuum by 1 kPa was predicted to improve the collection efficiency for the study area to about 74 %.