Treatment of Agro-Industrial Wastewaters by Coagulation-Flocculation-Decantation and Advanced Oxidation Processes—A literature Review †

Abstract

The agro-industry has increased over the years as a necessity to supply the needs of the population in regard to food and drink. This increase has led to the significant production of agro-industrial wastewaters characterized by a high content of organic matter, polyphenols, suspended solids, and turbidity, making these wastewaters dangerous if released into the environment without proper treatment. In this work, recent findings concerning the feasibility of coagulation–flocculation–decantation (CFD) and advanced oxidation processes (AOPs) for the treatment of agro-industrial wastewaters were collected and reviewed. More specifically, the mechanisms, limitations, operational conditions, and relevance of the different treatment processes for wastewater treatment and reuse are discussed. As a result, it was concluded that CFD processes and AOPs could be performed either separately or combined to achieve high efficiency in agro-industrial wastewater treatment.