A STUDY ON VARIATION IN HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY OF A SOIL AFTER PASSING WASTE WATER THROUGH IT

Abstract

Waste water from over the years has become one of the hazardous pollutants affecting the human life in urban areas. There has been an exponential growth of human population which has caused substantial rise in the dumping of Solid and Semi Solid Waste in open area along with rapid urbanization and industrialization, which is known to cause high Soil contamination and Water Pollution levels in Indian cities. The Soil below any Landfill Site undergoes many Physical, Chemical and Structural changes. The Objective of this study is to observe the changes in the properties of the soil and also the changes in the properties of waste water. The property of soil observed during this study was the Hydraulic Conductivity of the soil which was checked for fresh water on first day and then observed with wastewater for the next 3 days. The properties of wastewater observed were pH, Total Dissolved Solids, Total Suspended Solids, Dissolved Oxygen, COD and Hardness of the water. The soil for this Observational Study was taken from the construction site in Delhi Technological University premises and the waste water was taken from hostel mess drain. It is observed that the Leachate and waste water contribute significantly in the soil contamination and also the contamination of nearby natural drains and underground water. The test analysis shows that the hydraulic conductivity decreases with continuous passage of leachate or waste water through the soil.