Journal of Applied Electrochemistry, Vol.48, No.5, 519-528, 2018
Effectiveness of electro-oxidation and electro-Fenton processes in removal of organic matter from high-strength brewery wastewater
In this study, electrochemical processes, namely electro-oxidation (EO) and electro-Fenton (EF), using a boron-doped diamond (BDD) anode were introduced for high-strength brewery wastewater treatment. The emphasis of the work was focused on analyzing (i) performance of EO and integrated EO-EF processes in mineralizing organics from brewery wastewater, (ii) in-situ generation of H2O2 and (OH)-O-center dot radical, and (iii) contribution of the Fenton reaction in oxidizing organic content. The integrated EO-EF process, which involved external iron addition, showed a non-significant effect on treatment in comparison to the EO process. EO treatment alone (i.e., without any external iron dosing) demonstrated high removal of organic matter (similar to 91%). Pre-existing iron in brewery wastewater likely enhanced the EO treatment by incorporating in-situ electro-Fenton. The generation of H2O2 and (OH)-O-center dot exhibited variation due to the addition of iron from external sources. The predominant iron species found in the integrated EO-EF process was Fe(III), which can be attributed as an outcome of the Fenton reaction and the passivation of the electrode surface by iron complexes. [GRAPHICS] .
Keywords:Boron-doped diamond;Electrochemical methods;Brewery wastewater;Reactive oxygen species;Hydroxyl radical