Influences of operational parameters on phosphorus removal in batch and continuous electrocoagulation process...

Area of Science:

• Environmental Engineering
• Water Treatment Technologies
• Electrochemistry

Background:

• Phosphorus discharge into water bodies causes eutrophication.
• Effective wastewater phosphorus removal is crucial for environmental protection.
• Electrocoagulation (EC) offers a potential solution for phosphorus remediation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the performance of electrocoagulation for wastewater phosphorus removal.
• To compare batch and continuous EC operating modes.
• To optimize EC process parameters using statistical modeling.

Main Methods:

• Investigated EC performance in batch and continuous modes.
• Varied operational parameters: initial phosphorus concentration, wastewater conductivity, current density, and electrolysis time.
• Utilized Response Surface Methodology (RSM) for multi-factor optimization.

Main Results:

• Achieved excellent phosphorus removal (72.7-100%) within 3-6 minutes.
• Demonstrated low energy consumption (<0.5 kWh/m³).
• Continuous EC mode outperformed batch mode in efficiency.

Conclusions:

• Electrocoagulation with iron electrodes is a promising technology for wastewater phosphorus removal.
• Process efficiency is significantly influenced by operational parameters.
• RSM is a valuable tool for optimizing EC performance and understanding variable interactions.