Photo-assisted electrochemical degradation of real textile wastewater

Abstract

In the present study, photo-assisted electrochemical degradation of real textile wastewater was performed. Degradation assays were performed at constant current (40 mA cm−2) in a combined electro/photochemical flow-cell using a Ti/Ru0.3Ti0.7O2 DSA® type electrode. The results show that the method is capable of removing color and chemical oxygen demand (COD) from the effluent. Additionally, the effect of initial pH and type of supporting electrolyte (Na2SO4 or NaCl) was investigated. The principal figures of merit used in this study were COD removal and color removal (605 nm). The results show that up to 72% color and up to 59% COD removal in 120 min is possible under the operating conditions employed. Studies of the phytotoxicity of the wastewater before and after the photo-assisted degradation assays are also presented and the results demonstrate that the toxicity of the effluent is dependent on the length of electrolysis time and the treatment procedure employed.