Liner Materials Exposed To Toxic and Hazardous Wastes

Abstract

A research project was undertaken to assess the relative effectiveness and durability of a wide variety of liner materials when exposed to hazardous wastes under conditions simulating various aspects of service in waste storage and disposal facilities. The materials studied included compacted soil, admixes, sprayed-on asphalt and 32 polymeric membranes. Four partially crystalline polymeric sheetings, though not compounded for use as liners, were included in the study because of their known chemical resistance and their use in applications requiring good chemical and ageing resistance.

The lining materials were exposed in test cells to 10 hazardous wastes (two acidic, two alkaline, three oil, a blend of lead, a pesticide and a briny industrial waste) and three media of known composition—deionized water, 5% aqueous solution of salt and a saturated solution of low-concentration (0.1%) tributyl phosphate. The polymeric materials were also exposed to wastes or environmental conditions under a variety of conditions that included primary one-sided exposure, immersion testing, two types of outdoor exposure and a pouch test. Some of the exposures were as long as 2700 days. New methods for testing polymeric materials are presented. Results indicated that some of the liner materials performed satisfactorily in contact with certain wastes but, because waste combinations can be highly specific, compatibility testing is needed to select a liner for a given waste.