Electrochemical Wastewater Treatment Directly Powered by Photovoltaic Panels: Electrooxidation of a Dye-Containing Wastewater

Abstract

Electrochemical technologies have proved to be useful for the treatment of wastewater, but to enhance their green characteristics it seems interesting to use a green electric energy such as that provided by photovoltaic (PV) cells, which are actually under active research to decrease the economic cost of solar kW. The aim of this work is to demonstrate the feasibility and utility of using an electrooxidation system directly powered by a photovoltaic array for the treatment of a wastewater. The experimental system used was an industrial electrochemical filter press reactor and a 40-module PV array. The influence on the degradation of a dye-containing solution (Remazol RB 133) of different experimental parameters such as the PV array and electrochemical reactor configurations has been studied. It has been demonstrated that the electrical configuration of the PV array has a strong influence on the optimal use of the electric energy generated. The optimum PV array configuration changes with the intensity of the solar irradiation, the conductivity of the solution, and the concentration of pollutant in the wastewater. A useful and effective methodology to adjust the EO-PV system operation conditions to the wastewater treatment is proposed.

Dye Waste Treatment

“…For electrochemical oxidation removal of dye wastewater, the degradation of Remazol RB 133 was achieved with the aid of photovoltaic (PV) cells to power an electrochemical filter press reactor [27]. Different degradation rates were obtained by using different PV arrays and electrochemical configurations.…”

Seeking Potential Anomalous Levels of Exposure to PCDD/Fs and PCBs through Sewage Sludge Characterization

“…In general, it is reasonable to consider that electro-oxidation makes sense when renewable energy is used. This has recently been highlighted by several authors [47][48][49][50].…”

Highly Stable and Efficient Lignin‐PEDOT/PSS Composites for Removal of Toxic Metals

“…There are also reports for removal of Cu(II) ions using poly (2,6-pyridinedicarboxylic acid) [23] and poly-4-vinylpyridine. [24] In addition to enhancing the removal efficiency and selectivity, electrochemical methods do have several advantages including the possibility to (1) monitor the amount of metal ions remaining in solution during the remediation process with simple, less expensive and sensitive methods; [25] (2) integrate with renewable energy conversion and storage technologies, where the wastewater treatment can be powered with renewable energy sources such as photovoltaic panels; [26] (3) treat wastewater by recovering toxic metals and oxidation of organic pollutant while simultaneously producing renewable energy; [27] and (4) enhance the charge storage capacity of electrodes used in energy storage devices such as supercapacitors while simultaneously treating wastewaters. [28] Apart from earlier reports in the 1990s [29] and our recent report, [30] the potential application of electrochemically assisted removal of heavy metals using electrodes of conducting polymers was not thoroughly investigated.…”