Procedure

VN

Overview

This document specifies a compliance test for routine testing providing information on the leaching of monolithic waste which can be obtained under the experimental conditions specified hereafter with a single batch leaching test at a specified liquid to surface area ratio (L/A) of 12 (cm³ cm^-2). The compliance test applies to test portion of monolithic waste of regular shape, with a minimum dimension of 40 mm in all directions, obtained for example, by cutting, coring or moulding. This document is not applicable if the surface area of the test portion cannot be determined by simple geometrical means. This document has been developed to determine the release of mainly inorganic constituents from wastes. It does not take into account the particular characteristics of organic constituents nor the consequences of microbiological processes in organic degradable wastes. This leaching test does not provide information by itself on dynamic leaching behaviour, as specified in EN 12920. This test does not give information on equilibrium conditions. In the different European countries, tests have been developed to characterize and assess the constituents which can be leached from waste materials. The release of soluble constituents upon contact with water is regarded as a main mechanism of release which results in a potential risk to the environment during the disposal of waste materials. The intent of these tests is to identify the leaching properties of waste materials. The complexity of the leaching process makes simplifications necessary. Not all of the relevant aspects of leaching behaviour can be addressed in one standard. Procedure to characterize the behaviour of waste materials can generally be divided into three steps, using different tests in relation to the objective. The following test hierarchy is taken from the Landfill Directive (Council Directive 1999/31/EC of 26 April 1999 on the landfill of waste) and the Decision on Annex II of this Directive (Council Decision 2003/33/EC of 19 December 2002 establishing criteria and procedures for the acceptance of waste at landfills pursuant to Article 16 of and Annex II to Directive 1999/31/EC) for disposal of waste. a) Basic characterization constitutes a full characterization of the waste by gathering all the necessary information for a safe management of the waste in the short and long term. Basic characterization may provide information on the waste (type and origin, composition, consistency, leachability, etcetera), information for understanding the behaviour of waste in the considered management scenario, comparison of waste properties against limit values, and detection of key variables (critical parameters as liquid/solid (L/S) ratios, leachant composition, factors controlling leachability such as pH, redox potential, complexing capacity and physical parameters) for compliance testing and options for simplification of compliance testing. Characterization may deliver ratios between test results from basic characterization and results from simplified test procedures as well as information on a suitable frequency for compliance testing. In addition to the leaching behaviour, the composition of the waste shall be known or determined by testing. The tests used for basic characterization shall always include those to be used for compliance testing. b) Compliance testing is used to demonstrate that the sample of today fits the population of samples tested before by basic characterization and, through that, is used to carry out compliance with regulatory limit values. The compliance test should therefore always be part of the basic characterization program. The compliance test focuses on key variables and leaching behaviour identified by basic characterization tests. Parts of basic characterization tests can also be used for compliance purposes. c) On-site verification tests are used as a rapid check to confirm that the waste is the same as that which has been subjected to characterization or compliance tests. On-site verification tests are not necessarily leaching tests. The test described in this document belongs to category B. The committee responsible for this standard is NA 119-01-02-05 UA "Eluierungsverfahren" ("Leaching test procedures") at DIN.

Document: references other documents

Responsible national committee

NA 119-01-02-05 UA - Leaching methods  

Responsible european committee

CEN/TC 444/WG 1 - Leaching tests