Effect of temperature and oxidation rate on carbon-isotope fractionation during methane oxidation by landfill cover materials.

The quantification of methane oxidation is one of the major uncertainties in estimating CH4 emissions from landfills. Stable isotope methods provide a useful field approach for the quantification of methane oxidation in landfill cover soils. The approach relies upon the difference between the isotopic composition of oxidized gas at the location of interest and anaerobic zone CH4 and knowledge of alpha(ox), a term that describes the isotopic fractionation of the methanotrophic bacteria in their discrimination against (13)CH4.