Short Course: Geomembranes and composite liners in landfills and mining: Moving forward
Date and time: Sunday, 17th September 2023 – 9:00 am – 12:30 am
The short course addresses two fundamental questions asked about liners: “how much will they leak?” and “How long will they last”.
Leakage: Beginning with the basic concepts, this short course examines six simple equations for calculating leakage and discusses the areas of applications and limitations of the various equations. Worked examples illustrate that while the equations are simple, careful thought must be given to the selection of the appropriate equation and the evaluation of appropriate parameters. For example, consideration is given to wrinkles and the very different consequences of wrinkles with respect to leakage in landfills and tailings storage facilities are discussed. Consideration is also given to how differential settlement may affect leakage through cover systems.
Service life: Again, the course begins with an introduction of basic concepts and techniques for evaluating the time to antioxidant depletion as well as estimating the remainder of the time to nominal failure. The approaches are illustrated by examples. The way the chemical interactions between a geomembrane and the fluid it is intending to contain and the length of time a test is conducted may affect the interpretation of antioxidant depletion and the length of time and the implications are illustrated. The evaluation of the time to nominal failure and the factors affecting the ultimate service life of a geomembrane is discussed both for the design of new geomembrane liners the assessment of remaining service life existing liners.
The course finishes with a discussion of how contaminants of emerging concern such as Per and Poly fluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) and how this changes what represents an acceptable leakage, how long the barrier system may need to last (the contaminating lifespan of a landfill), and the service life of the geomembrane.
BIO
Rowe holds the Canada Research Chair in Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering at Queen’s University where he is also the Barrington Batchelor Distinguished University Professor. His professional practice and research relevant to the short course have covered contaminant migration through soil and rock, hydrogeological/geotechnical/civil engineering aspects of landfill design, containment and remediation of contaminated sites from the Arctic to the Antarctic, geosynthetics, hydro dams, tailings storage facilities and tailings dams. He is a past President of the International Geosynthetics Society, the Canadian Geotechnical Society and the Engineering Institute of Canada. He has been selected to present some of the world’s most prestigious named geotechnical lectures including the Giroud Lecture (2002), Rankine Lecture (2005), Manuel Rocha Lecture (2006), Casagrande lecture (2011), Karl Terzaghi Lecture (2017), Croce Lecture (2017) and Mercer Lecture (2019). In 2013, the International Society for Soil Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering created a named lecture to honour his pioneering contributions to geoenvironmental engineering, the ISSMGE R. Kerry Rowe Lecture. In 2021, the International Geosynthetics Society created the Kerry Rowe Lecture to honour his seminal contributions to the development of geosynthetic engineering. He has received nnumerous awards and been elected a Distinguished Member of ASCE, Foreign Member of the US National Academy of Engineering, and a Fellow of the Royal Society (London, UK), UK Royal Academy of Engineering, the Royal Society of Canada, and the Canadian Academy of Engineering. He has been appointed an Officer of the Order of Canada (O.C.), Canada’s highest Civilian Honour.
