A novel method for indicating landfill stabilization combining microbial metabolic analysis with principal component analysis

Abstract

It is of critical importance to determine the endpoint of stabilization for landfills that are stabilized by aeration acceleration. Current stabilization evaluation methods are inconsistent and mostly fail to account for the effect of oxygen concentration. In this study, degradation experiments were conducted to quantitatively analyze the impact of oxygen on microbial communities and metabolic functions. High-throughput sequencing analysis demonstrated that an oxygen concentration exceeding 10% significantly enhances amino acid metabolism, secondary metabolite biosynthesis, and exogenous biodegradation. Three-dimensional fluorescence data were analyzed using the PARAFAC method, and a novel fluorescence-based stabilization indicator was proposed based on the ratio of fulvic-like to tyrosine-like substances. When the growth multiples of the fluorescence index exceed 10-fold, it can be inferred that degradation has been met the stabilization endpoint. Principal component analysis was employed to establish multiple regression equations between the physicochemical parameters of landfill waste and dissolved fluorescent substants, offering an innovative insight to evaluate the stabilization process of aerated landfills.

Graphical abstract

Keywords

Landfill stabilization / Municipal solid waste / Aeration / Principal component analysis / Microbial metabolism

Highlight

	● O2 influences metabolic functional modules, notably affecting tyrosine in landfill.
	● Tyrosine and fulvic-like substances are proposed as a landfill stabilization indicator.
	● A novel method for calculating the fluorescence index of landfill waste is developed.

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