Effect of current density variation in the electrocoagulation process for the treatment of brewery wastewater

Abstract

Breweries generate substantial amounts of wastewater, typically ranging from 3 L to 10 L per liter of beer produced. This wastewater possesses acidic characteristics and carries a high organic load, making it a suitable candidate for electrocoagulation (EC) treatment. EC treatment uses aluminum electrodes to generate an on-site coagulating agent, reducing the concentration of solids, organic load, and color in the wastewater. In this study, the present data were used to compare the efficiencies of different current densities (CD) applied to the EC process for treating raw brewery wastewater (RBW). The RBW underwent treatment with aluminum electrodes, with a CD of 12.00 A∙cm-2 and 13.23 A∙cm-2. The raw and treated samples were analyzed, and the data was analyzed statistically. Both CDs demonstrated effectiveness in reducing pollutant content. The process successfully reduced turbidity (99.9 %). Furthermore, the process effectively removed color across all wavelengths analyzed. The treatment process also showed promise in removing solid content, with a maximum removal efficiency of 84.5 % for suspended solids. Statistical analysis of the collected data indicates that treatment with a CD of 13.23 A∙cm-2 was more effective in treating brewery wastewater without significantly increasing the concentration of Al3+. The data presented in this study strongly supports the proposed treatment's efficacy in reducing pollutant concentrations in brewery wastewater.