Chemical Oxygen Demand and Turbidity Improvement of Deinked Tissue Wastewater using Electrocoagulation Techniques

Abstract

The goal of this work was to evaluate the efficiency of electrocoagulation technique in deinked tissue industry wastewater. The effect of two types of electrodes, three electrolysis times, four voltages, and three pHs were investigated. Experiments were conducted in batch process using a glass cell. The chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal and turbidity improvement of wastewater were measured and evaluated through the independent and interaction effects of variables. The results revealed that both electrodes reduced the COD and turbidity. However, the ability of their performance depended on the electrolysis time, voltage, and pH. For COD, greater improvement by electrocoagulation technique was obtained with an electrolysis time of 45 minutes, 24 volts, and alkaline conditions, while the turbidity reduction was achieved at lower voltage. Analysis of the treated water showed that the maximum COD and turbidity removal efficiencies were 81.12% and 89.43%, respectively. The treated effluent was very clear, and its quality met the industrial applications. Consequently, the electrocoagulation technique can be considered a reliable and safe method for deinked tissue effluent treatments to replace the other chemical methods.