Statistical Analysis of Anode Efficiency in Electrochemical Treatment of Wastewater and Sludge

Abstract

Electrochemical processes have proven their potential as effective technologies to treat wastewater from industrial, urban and agricultural activities, and thus, contribute towards a cleaner environment. In this study, we aimed to assess the effectiveness of the leading electrochemical technologies, such as electro-oxidation, electrochemical coagulation and electrochemical advanced oxidation processes (EAOPs), statistically for different types of anodes for the removal of various pollutants from wastewater along with their treatment efficiency. Anode is considered as a source of electron and an essential part of electrochemical processes. So, we have evaluated the relationship between different anode features such as anodic material, surface area versus removal of chemical oxygen demand (COD), dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and colour in various wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) by IBM SPSS Statistics 26. Apart from that, various process characteristics such as inter-electrode distance, system pH, reactor volume, current density and voltage were also considered in this investigation. From the regression analysis of the electrochemical coagulation system, it was found that the removal efficiency of pollutants is enhanced by the surface area of the electrodes along with the inter-electrode distance. Regarding electro-oxidation, it was seen that COD and colour removal are both dependent on the reaction time of the system, while the DOC removal rate of different EAOPs was strongly related to the reactor volume. Furthermore, the uncertainty of the regression analysis on pollutant removal efficiency prediction was assessed. Finally, sensitivity analysis was done by Monte-Carlo method to check modest changes from input variables.