Detection of Landfill Leachate Leakage Based on ERT and OCTEM

Abstract

Leakage in the impervious layer of a domestic waste landfill seriously pollutes the soil and groundwater. Therefore, it is necessary to carry out rapid nondestructive leakage location detection. In this research, the electrical resistivity tomography (ERT) method and the opposing-coils transient electromagnetic method (OCTEM) were used to detect the leakage location. The inversion sections of both methods showed a clear low–middle–high resistivity spectrum in the longitudinal direction that could be used to speculate the distribution pattern of the upper waste body layer, the bottom impermeable layer, and the lower limestone layer. The leakage area was identified in Zone B of the landfill on the basis of inversion results and drilling verification results. The results indicate that OCTEM and ERT were both sensitive to leakage detection. However, OCTEM had higher longitudinal resolution and more refined inversion results, resulting in more effective delineation for the location of the damage and leakage of the impervious landfill layer, thereby providing a new technical basis for landfill leakage detection.