Improvement of biodegradability index through electrocoagulation and advanced oxidation process

Abstract

In recent years, extensive work is being conducted to improve the biodegradability index (BI) of effluent to enhance the efficiency of biochemical treatment. Advanced oxidation processes are one among the various methods used as primer to improve the BI of organic effluent. In the present investigation, experiments such as electrocoagulation, electro-oxidation and photochemical were carried out to treat pulp and paper wastewater in a wide range of operating conditions. The effect of individual parameters on BI improvement was critically examined. It was noticed that electro-oxidation method yields maximum biodegradability improvement (0.13–0.42) within process time of 35 min.