(225d) Electrochemical Wastewater Treatment: Applications and Scale-Up

In recent years great progress has been made in the research of electrochemical wastewater treatment (EAOP) with the aim to develop a universal method for the treatment of persistent water constituents. Especially anodic oxidation of organic substances with boron-doped diamond (BDD) electrodes has demonstrated its high potential for the degradation of persistent pollutants.

In this project the principles of electrochemical oxidation in wastewater treatment were developed and the applicability of this technology was verified. The degradation trends were characterised for synthetic and industrial wastewater effluents. The influence of the water matrix and the operating parameters were monitored and analysed. Boron-doped diamond electrodes prove to be a highly appropriate electrode in terms of oxidation power, application and stability. With this electrode configuration the purification of a variety of industrial wastewaters was successful. Side reactions and the formation of side products due to chloride, carbonate or ammonium load were also investigated. In the experiments the formation and prevention of chlorinated organic reaction products (AOX) was evaluated as well. The results of the research activities confirm that electrochemical wastewater treatment can establish as highly reliable technology.