Electroflocculation for textile wastewater treatment

This work reports on the viability of the electroflocculation (EF) process for chemical oxygen demand (COD), turbidity and color removal from a raw effluent originated from a particular textile industry related to hemp manufacture. Firstly, the following operational parameters were optimized: current density; initial pH; electrolysis time; material of the electrode (iron, aluminum or iron-aluminum); and interelectrode distance. Additionally, the effects of these parameters on specific electrical energy consumption (SEEC) were studied under the optimum conditions. The best removal efficiencies obtained were 93% for color, 99% for turbidity and up to 87% for COD using an aluminum electrode, the initial pH was 5, the cell time operation was 30 min and current density was 15 A/m². These results indicate that, under the studied operational conditions, electroflocculation of these efluents may constitute a viable alternative for COD, turbidity and color removal.