Sampling method for the determination of methane emissions from landfill surfaces.

The first aim of this work is the definition and the study of a suitable sampling method for the measurement of landfill gas (LFG) emissions from landfill surfaces, since, up to now, there are no codified nor universally accepted sampling methods for this specific task. The studied sampling method is based on the use of a static hood. The research work involves a preliminary theoretical study for the hood design, experimental tests for the definition of the optimal sampling procedures, and simulations of the hood fluid-dynamics for the system validation. The second aim of this study is the investigation of the correlations between LFG emissions and meteorological conditions, whose identification would be very useful in terms of effective landfill management and pollution control. This involved a wide literature study for the selection of those parameters that seem to have an influence on LFG emission, and the collection of a great number of experimental data on a target site, which led to the conclusion that atmospheric pressure and soil humidity are the parameters that mostly affect LFG emissions.