Study on water holdup of municipal solid waste

A laboratory testing method, which is used to measure water holdup of municipal solid waste(MSW) is introduced. A artificial solid waste is used in the study, which is made according to the composition of a municipal solid waste landfill located in Southern China. In general, the dry gravimetric water holdup of the waste decreases with increasing of its dry density, the waste density is another important factor affecting water holdup. The volumetric water holdup for the dense waste also decreases with increasing overburden pressure and dry density. However, the volumetric water holdup for the loose waste initially increases with the increase of overburden pressure and dry density. After the volumetric water holdup reaches a maximum value, the volumetric water holdup then decreases with the increase of overburden pressure and dry density.