Study the efficiency of electrocoagulation system using conductivity measurements for the removal of zinc heavy metal

摘要

Electrocoagulation has turned out to be a rapidly growing area of wastewater treatment due to its ability to remove contaminants that are generally more difficult to remove by filtration or chemical treatment systems. The removal efficiency of zinc from a simulated industrial wastewater of three electrocoagulation systems has been studied depending on conductivity measurements. System (1) has only two circulated horizontal flat electrodes, system (2) has two circulated horizontal electrodes with 17 holes and system (3) has two circulated horizontal electrodes and one of them is made of wire mesh. Aluminum metal has been used in all electrodes. The effects of various parameters such as applied voltage, initial Zn concentration, electrodes distance and temperature on the removal efficiency have been investigated. It has been seen from the results that removal efficiency has been significantly affected by the type the configuration system used. The best results obtained using Al-electrodes with holes. The conductivity has been decreased with increasing temperature as a function of time. Finally the ultrasonic effect on the electrocoagulation process has also been examined. In conclusion, the removal of heavy metal ions can be successfully accomplished by using electrochemical technique.