Electro-coagulation Treatment Method to Remove Heavy Metals from Synthetic Wastewater

Abstract

Poisonous heavy metals released into the atmosphere as a result of human activities and industrial processes are toxic to all living beings. The removal of cadmium (Cd), copper (Cu), and nickel (Ni) from synthetic wastewater using an electrocoagulation (EC) setup with a batch cylindrical iron reactor was investigated in this report. The effects of various operational parameters on removal performance, such as initial pH of 2, 4, and 7, current density of 20, 40, and 60 mA/cm², and initial concentrations of 15, 25, and 35 ppm, were investigated. The applied current density and pH had an effect on removal efficiencies, as can be seen from the findings. The experimental results demonstrated that after 90 minutes of electrocoagulation process the highest Cd, Ni, Cu removal efficiencies of 99.78 percent, 99.99 percent, 98.90 percent were achieved at the current density of 25 mA/cm² pH of 7 using supporting electrolyte (0.05 M Na₂SO₄) respectively. The results of the tests showed that heavy metal removal by electrochemical cells can be performed efficiently and effectively.