Chemical Engineering Journal 292 (2016) 308–314

Contents lists available at ScienceDirect

Chemical Engineering Journal

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/cej

Energy efficient electrocoagulation using an air-breathing cathode

to remove nutrients from wastewater
Yushi Tian a, Weihua He a, Xiuping Zhu b, Wulin Yang b, Nanqi Ren a,⇑, Bruce E. Logan a,b,⇑
a
State Key Laboratory of Urban Water Resource and Environment, Harbin Institute of Technology, No. 73 Huanghe Road, Nangang District, Harbin 150090, PR China
b
Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering, Penn State University, 231Q Sackett Building, University Park, PA 16802, USA

h i g h l i g h t s

First application of an air-breathing cathode for electrocoagulation (EC).

Energy reduced for treatment due to lack of a need for wastewater aeration.

High efficiency in the removal of nutrients from wastewater.

Design allows for a compact, stackable and modular configuration.

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: Electrocoagulation (EC) can be used to remove nutrients as well as suspended solids and organic carbon
Received 12 December 2015 from wastewaters, but the high energy requirements (pumping air) and the use of precious metals in
Received in revised form 30 January 2016 some processes has hindered widespread application of EC technologies. The use of a thermodynamically
Accepted 1 February 2016
favorable activated carbon air cathode and a sacrificial aluminum anode was examined to reduce the
Available online 5 February 2016
energy needed for EC for nutrient removal. Performance of the air cathode electrocoagulation (ACEC) pro-
cess was tested using raw wastewater, and a carbon-free synthetic solution (nitrogen:phosphorus ratio of
Keywords:
1:10 in deionized water) to simulate nutrient removal of a wastewater treated for organic matter
Energy efficiency
Wastewater treatment
removal. ACEC treatment of wastewater removed up to 99% of both ammonia and phosphorus, along with
Electrocoagulation 72–81% COD and 78–89% TSS in 4 h (1.5 cm electrode spacing, current density of 8 A m2). Nearly total
Air-cathode removal of the nutrients required 1.8 kWh m3, which is lower than that previously reported for some
Aluminum electrode EC processes for this application (0.4–22 kWh m3). Nutrient removals using synthetic solutions (no
organic matter) ranged from 74% to 93% for nitrogen (47–370 mg-N/L) and 44–76% for phosphorus.
These results indicate that the ACEC can achieve good levels of nutrient removal with reduced energy
demands compared to previous EC systems.
Ó 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction processes that can be coupled to these anaerobic systems are

In recent years, there has been great interest in the develop-
ment of completely anaerobic treatment processes, such as anaer-
obic fluidized bed reactors, anaerobic membrane bioreactors [1–3]
and microbial fuel cells (MFCs) [4]. While these processes can be
used to remove organic matter, there is little nutrient (nitrogen
and phosphorus) removal in these processes. Therefore, effective
⇑ Corresponding authors at: Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering,
Penn State University, 231Q Sackett Building, University Park, PA 16802, USA. Tel.:
+1 814 863 7908; fax: +1 814 863 7304 (B.E. Logan). State Key Laboratory of Urban
Water Resource and Environment, Harbin Institute of Technology, No. 73 Huanghe
Road, Nangang District, Harbin 150090, PR China. Tel.: +86 13904651427 (N. Ren).
E-mail addresses: rnq@hit.edu.cn (N. Ren), blogan@psu.edu (B.E. Logan).
needed in order to achieve nutrient removal [5].
Electrocoagulation (EC) is an electrochemical process that can
be used to treat wastewaters in terms of both organic matter and
nutrient removal [6,7]. The process is based on the use of sacrificial
electrodes such as aluminum, iron, and zinc [8–11] that are oxi-
dized to produce metal ions that can be used to coagulate and react
with organic matter and nutrients in the wastewater. When cur-
rent is applied, the metal ions that are produced react with primary
hydroxides and produce polyhyroxides and polyhydroxy-metallic
flocs [12]. When aluminum is used as the sacrificial electrode
material, the primary chemical species that are produced under
typical alkaline (pH of 7.5–9) or acidic (pH 3.5–6) conditions at
the anode (20 °C) are:

http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.cej.2016.02.004
1385-8947/Ó 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
 Y. Tian et al. / Chemical Engineering Journal 292 (2016) 308–314
þ 3OH ! AlðOHÞ3
3þ
Al ðAlkaline pHÞ
þ 3H2 O ! AlðOHÞ3 þ 3Hþ
3þ
Al ðAcidic pHÞ
where applied voltages are typically <0.81 V, and the temperatures
are usually in the range of 25–50 °C reported. The flocs that form
have a large surface area that can adsorb soluble organic com-
pounds and trap colloidal particles in the wastewater [10]. Various
metals have been examined to improve process performance [13],
but commonly aluminum or iron is used [8,14–18] due to the good
performance of these metals for domestic and textile wastewaters,
as well as for pesticides and arsenic [18–20].
While EC processes are effective for treatment of many types of
wastewaters, applications have been limited due to high energy
demands and high current densities. Examples include: oil in
wastewater at 25 mA cm2 [21] and 4–30 mA cm2 [22], berberine
hydrochloride removal from a pharmaceutical factory wastewater
at 19 mA cm2 [23], food wastes from restaurants at 30–80 A m2
[24], 50–200 A m2 for hexavalent chromium treatment in an
industrial wastewater [25], heavy metal ions removal from a metal
plating wastewater at 4 mA cm2 with 6.3 kWh m3 energy con-
sumption [26]. EC has also been used for drinking water treatment
to remove hardness and fluoride, but at very high applied voltages
of 24 V, with 22 A m2 and a treatment time of 1 h [27,28]. The
advantage of the EC process is that treatment can be accomplished
without the need for additional chemicals or pre-treatment, but
energy costs need to be reduced for EC processes to become more
applicable.
The cathodic reaction in an EC process is usually hydrogen evo-
lution, or oxygen reduction supported by wastewater aeration.
Both of these approaches require energy that is not intrinsically
part of the treatment process. Hydrogen evolution is thermody-
namically unfavorable, and requires a cathode potential of
0.414 V under standard conditions [29]. While oxygen reduction
is thermodynamically favorable, the production of dissolved oxy-
gen requires aeration, which is an energy consuming process. For
example, wastewater aeration in an activated sludge process con-
sumes about 0.6 kWh m3 [30]. Air cathodes are commonly used in
many types of electrochemical systems such as hydrogen fuel cells
and microbial fuel cells (MFCs) [31,32], to provide oxygen to the
cathode. The use of an air cathode avoids energy losses due to aer-
ation, while providing a favorable reaction at the cathode. How-
ever, air cathodes have not been previously examined for
nutrient removal from wastewater using EC systems.
Air cathodes were examined here as a method to reduce elec-
trochemical energy requirements for nutrient removal from
A Air-breathing cathode
Alumunium mesh anode
Fig. 1. (A) Schematic diagram and (B) photo of the electrocoagulation reactor with an air cathode.
309
ð1Þ wastewater using an air cathode electrocoagulation (ACEC pro-
cess). Air cathodes developed for MFC applications do not need
to use precious metal catalysts. Instead, inexpensive activated car-
ð2Þ
bon can be used, with the cathode made using various press or roll-
ing methods [33,34]. The impact of the reactor configuration, such
as electrode spacing, operational conditions, and treatment time,
were examined using two solutions: domestic wastewater, which
contains high concentrations of residual organic matter; and a sim-
ulated treated wastewater, prepared by adding ammonia and
phosphorus to deionized water, to examine the impact on nutrient
removal in the absence of organic matter. Aluminum mesh anodes
were used to produce a higher active surface than flat plate elec-
trodes. Power requirements were examined for different opera-
tional conditions to achieve high nutrient removals while
minimizing power consumption.
2. Materials and methods
2.1. Reactor construction
Cube-shaped ACEC reactors were constructed based on a previ-
ous design [35] and contained a 3 cm diameter electrolyte chamber
and an air cathode. Reactor lengths of 0.5, 1, 1.5, and 2 cm were
used to examine the impact of electrode spacing on performance,
with the electrodes placed on opposite ends of the chamber
(Fig. 1). The reactive surface area of each electrode was 7 cm2.
The anode was a single piece of aluminum mesh (mesh size 200
per 2.54 cm, wire diameter 0.05334 mm, opening 0.07366 mm;
TWP Corporation). Cathodes contained an activated carbon cata-
lyst, and were made by a continuous rolling and press process,
using polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) as the binder, and a PTFE/Car-
bon black diffusion layer to avoid water leakage [36].
2.2. Solutions
Wastewater was collected from the primary clarifier of the Penn
State Wastewater Treatment Plant and stored at 4 °C. The waste–
water had a pH of 7–7.2, and contained 490 ± 10 mg L1 COD,
200 ± 6 mg L1 TSS, an ammonia concentration of 52 ± 4 mg-
N L1, and a total phosphorus concentration of 3 ± 0.1 mg-P L1.
The ratio of N:P in this wastewater was 17:1, and many wastewa-
ters often have a total nitrogen concentration about ten times that
of phosphorus. The solution used to simulate treated wastewater
was prepared by adding NH4CI and NaH2PO4H2O (Sigma Aldrich)
to deionized water at an initial N:P ratio of 10:1, at four different
B
310 Y. Tian et al. / Chemical Engineering Journal 292 (2016) 308–314

initial concentrations of 50, 125, 250, 500 mg-N L1 (5, 12.5, 25, 1.5 cm was used in all subsequent tests to minimize variations in
50 mg-P L1). anode performance. Salt precipitates were observed on the cathode
following these tests. These salts were removed by intermittent
2.3. Reactor operating conditions soaking of the cathode in an acid solution.

To select an appropriate operation time based on stable current,
the reactor was operated in continuous flow at a hydraulic reten-
tion time (HRT) of 1 h using a peristaltic pump (Cole Parmer,
USA), at a voltage of 0.5 V set using a potentiostat (VMP3; BioLogic,
Claix, France), at an electrode spacing of 1.5 cm. In all other tests,
the reactor was operated in fed-batch mode. To evaluate the
impact of electrode spacing distance on performance, the electrode
spacing was varied from 0.5 to 2 cm (based on electrode distances
used in previous studies) [37–39].
Treatment of domestic wastewater was examined at electroly-
sis times ranging from 0.5 to 6 h (0.5 V applied voltage, 1.5 cm
electrode spacing). Treatment efficiency was further examined at
various current densities at a fixed electrolysis time under constant
current density operation mode. Synthetic wastewater without the
presence of other ions and suspended solids was examined for the
removal of NH+4 and P–PO3 4 at the set conditions of 0.5 V applied
voltage, 1.5 cm electrode spacing and 4 h electrolysis time. Voltage
and the counter electrode potentials were recorded at 10 s inter-
vals, and analyzed using EC-Lab V10.02 software. The cathode
was cleaned every ten tests by soaking the cathode in a diluted
(10%) hydrochloric acid solution (BDH ARISTAR PLUS, VWR) for
2 min to remove salt deposits. All tests were conducted using
duplicate reactors at 30 °C.
2.4. Solution measurements and calculations
3.2. Wastewater treatment at a fixed applied voltage
The effectiveness of the ACEC for nutrient, COD, and TSS
removal was examined using domestic wastewater at electrolysis
times ranging from 0.5 to 6 h (fixed applied voltage of 0.5 V). There
was a nearly linear decrease in ammonia, COD, and TSS with elec-
trolysis time, while phosphate removal increased more rapidly,
with smaller changes in concentrations at the longer treatment
times (Fig. 3). Overall changes in concentrations varied from:
15–88% for NH+4–N, 50–99% for PO3 4 –P, 51–71% for COD, and
22–77% for TSS. The current densities varied over a relatively small
range of 6–6.7 A m2 in these fixed-voltage tests. These results
show that there was an increase in the total nitrogen and phospho-
rus removal over time, with nearly complete phosphorus removals
at the longer treatment times. Thus, after only 2 h there was nearly
93% removal of phosphorus to a concentration of only 0.2 mg L1,
compared to 40% of nitrogen removal to 31 mg L1. After 6 h, there
was 88% removal of nitrogen.
3.3. Wastewater treatment at constant current
Treatment was further examined under conditions of a fixed
current densities over the cycle of 6 A m2 (similar to that obtained
at a fixed voltage) to 12 A m2 (Fig. 4). Higher current densities

Total suspended solids (TSS) were measured using standard

methods [40]. Total COD was measured using method 5220 (HACH
Company, Loveland, CO). For nutrient measurements, all samples
were filtered through 0.45 lm pore diameter syringe filters
(polyvinylidenedifluoride, PVDF, 25 mm diameter; Restek Corpora-
tion) and analyzed using Method 10031 (HACH Company, Love-
land, CO) for NH+4–N, and Method 10127 (HACH Company,
Loveland, CO) for P–PO3 4 [40]. Removals were calculated based
on initial and final concentrations. A probe (SevenMulti, Mettler-
Toledo International Inc.) and meter (SevenMulti, Mettler Toledo,
OH) were used to measure solution pH and conductivities.
Energy consumption W (kWh m3) for EC treatment of wastew-
ater was calculated as W = UIt/v, where U is the voltage (V), I the
current (A), t the electrolysis time (h), and v the volume (m3).

3. Results and discussion

3.1. Current generation as a function of time and electrode spacing

Current production examined over time in continuous flow

mode (1.5 cm electrode spacing, 1 h HRT) showed that there was
an initial rapid decrease in current from 7.5 to 5.8 mA over the first
0.6 h, and that current was relatively constant at 6.0 ± 0.5 mA for
the next 6.4 h (Fig. 2A). The subsequent decline in current at longer
treatment times was likely due to losses of aluminum from the
small mesh anode used in these tests (Fig. 2A). Therefore, a work-
ing time of 4 h was chosen for subsequent fed-batch tests to ensure
uniform operational conditions.
Changing the electrode spacing from 0.5 to 1 cm improved the
current density, but larger electrode distances (1.5 and 2 cm)
reduced current (applied voltage of 0.5 V) (Fig. 2B). The stability Fig. 2. (A) Example of change in current over time using a single aluminum mesh
cathode with domestic wastewater, under continuous flow conditions (1.5 cm
of the current generated was also affected by the electrode spacing, electrode spacing, 0.5 V applied voltage, and 1 h HRT). (B) Current densities
with the smallest variation in current (±0.5 mA) obtained with a produced using different electrode distances under fed batch conditions (0.5 V, 4 h
1.5 cm electrode spacing. As a result, an electrode spacing of electrolysis time).
 Y. Tian et al. / Chemical Engineering Journal 292 (2016) 308–314 311

improved removal of all wastewater constituents, with phosphate
removal increased from 95% to 99% when the current density was
increased from 6 to 8 A m2, and NH+4–N removal increased from
79% to 96%. Lower removals were achieved for organic matter
and solids, with 81% removal of COD, and 89% removal of TSS.
The use of current densities in the range of 8–12 A m2 did not
substantially improve removals. Therefore, these results showed
that a current density of 8 A m2 was sufficient for achieving good
nutrient removals from domestic wastewater at a treatment time
of 4 h.

Fig. 3. Removals as a function of electrolysis time using domestic wastewater at a set voltage of 0.5 V, for: (A) NH+4–N, (B) PO3
4 –P, (C) COD, and (D) TSS (1.5 cm electrode
spacing).

Fig. 4. Performance of the ACEC at different fixed current densities using domestic wastewater for: (A) NH+4–N, (B) PO3
4 –P, (C) COD, and (D) TSS (1.5 cm electrode spacing, 4 h
electrolysis time).
312 Y. Tian et al. / Chemical Engineering Journal 292 (2016) 308–314
3.4. Nutrient removal using synthetic wastewater
In order to examine possible impacts of COD and TSS on perfor-
mance, nutrient removal was examined using nutrients added at
different concentrations to deionized water, at a fixed N:P ratio
of 10:1 (50–500 mg-N L1, 5–50 mg-P L1). All other experiment
conditions were similar to the experiments with the wastewater
treatment (0.5 V voltage, 1.5 cm electrode spacing and 4 h electrol-
ysis time). The lowest nutrient concentrations were similar to that
Fig. 5. Removals of (A) NH4+–N and (B) PO43–P in a synthetic treated wastewater
solution (0.5 V applied voltage, 1.5 cm electrode spacing, 4 h electrolysis time).
Fig. 6. Removals of nutrients, in the domestic wastewater, COD and TSS in domestic wastewater compared to energy consumption at a fixed current density (1.5 cm electrode
spacing, 4 h electrolysis time).
of the domestic wastewater examined here (52 mg-N L1, 3 mg-
P L1). Ammonia removal (93%) at the lowest NH+4–N concentration
was significantly higher than that achieved using the actual
wastewater (75%), showing that the organic matter and TSS in
the wastewater negatively affected nitrogen removal (Fig. 5). In
addition to the removal of ammonium ions by the Al(OH)3, the
fluid near the cathode can reach a high pH, which results in the
conversion of NH+4 to NH3 [41]. This formation of ammonia can
therefore result in volatilization and loss of ammonia from the
solution, which may have resulted in improved nitrogen removal
here. This possible loss of ammonia by this mechanism will require
further study.
Phosphorus removal (76%) at the lowest nutrient loading was
much lower than that achieved with the wastewater (99%), indi-
cating the presence of COD and TSS improved phosphorus removal.
The greater removal of phosphorus in the wastewater samples sug-
gests that the presence of suspended solids in the flocs was impor-
tant for increasing removal of phosphorus. The higher removal of
phosphate in wastewater compared to synthetic water indicates
phosphate was present largely in insoluble form and the soluble
phosphate was mainly removed by precipitation followed by inclu-
sion into the flocs containing TSS.
Higher initial nutrient concentrations resulted in lower removal
(Fig. 5), with ammonia removals decreased from 93% to 75% and
phosphorus removal decreased from 76% to 45%. Due to higher
conductivity at higher nutrient concentration, flocs were more
readily formed and accumulated at the bottom of the reactor, cre-
ating a larger local current between anode and cathode. As a result,
more anode mass was consumed to generate precipitates deposit-
ing on air cathode, hindering oxygen transfer. In addition, future
improvement on reactor configuration can be made to increase
the removal efficiency for high nutrient loading wastewater.
3.5. Energy consumption
Nutrient removal increased with applied current, although this
increased the energy consumed. The energy used for treating
domestic wastewater in the set current tests ranged from
0.4 kWh m3 (6 A m2) for 79% N removal and 95% P removal, to
9.9 kWh m3 (12 A m2) for 99% removal of both N and P (Fig. 6).
Considering the balance of energy consumption and nutrient
 Y. Tian et al. / Chemical Engineering Journal 292 (2016) 308–314 313

Fig. 7. Nutrients removals and the energy consumption using a synthetic treated wastewater solution (0.5 V voltage, 1.5 cm electrode spacing, 4 h electrolysis time).

Table 1
Energy consumption of electrocoagulation and removals of phosphorus, nitrogen, COD and TSS reported in different studies using Fe or Al electrodes.

Electrode type Wastewater type Energy (kWh m3) Current density (A m2) Removals (%) References
Al and Fe Landscape water 3 10 90 (total phosphorus) [47]
Al and Al Domestic wastewater 4.5 10 99 (PO3
4 –P); 10 (nitrate); 40 (COD) [43]
Al and Al Synthetic solution 0.4–15 10 52–90 (PO34 –P) [42]
Al and Fe Synthetic solution 22 10 97 (PO3
4 –P) [9]
Al and air-cathode Domestic wastewater 0.4–9.9 6–12 97–99 (PO3 +
4 –P); 79–99 (NH4–N); This study
68–82 (COD); 65–90 (TSS)
Synthetic solution 0.4–2.3 4–23 44–76 (PO3 +
4 –P); 74–95 (NH4–N) This study

removal, a current density of 8 A m2 provided a good balance in to phosphorus removal. In order to take into account all the rele-
nutrient removal (96% ammonium ion removal, and 98% phos- vant variables that impact power production and nutrient removal,
phate removal), and energy demand (1.8 kWh m3). it will be necessary in future studies to examine a wider range of
For tests without high concentrations of organic matter, at variables, using a multivariate analysis, as done by others for eval-
nutrient concentrations (52 mg-N L1 and 3 mg-P L1) similar to uating other technologies [44–46].
wastewater, the energy demand was 0.4 kWh m3 (fixed applied
voltage of 0.5 V, average current density of 6.2 A m2). Nutrient
4. Conclusions
removals (93% N and 76% P removal) in this test were similar to
that obtained in the fixed current tests at 6 A m2. Energy demands
The ACEC process based on using an air-breathing cathode
increased with higher initial nutrient concentrations, with
achieved a nearly linear removal of nitrogen over time (up to
0.5 kWh m3 for 125:12.5 mg L1 tests (N:P), up to 2.33 kWh m3
6 h), with a final removal of 88% of nitrogen, when operated at a
for the 500:50 mg L1 nutrient concentrations (Fig. 7). The higher
fixed applied voltage of 0.5 V. Phosphorus was removed to a
energy demands were likely due to higher electrode overpotentials
greater extent, with 93% of P removed within 2 h. When the system
with the increased concentrations of precipitates formed in the
was operated at a set current density of 8 A m2, rather than a fixed
tests.
voltage, there was up to 99% PO3 +
4 –P and NH4–N removal, and 73%
These energy requirements of the ACEC using air cathodes at
COD and 72% TSS removal, at a fixed operation time of 4 h. The
the lower current densities were generally less than those reported
energy requirement of 1.8 kWh m3 with a set current 5.6 mA
in other studies using Al and Fe or Al and Al electrodes (Table 1).
was lower than that reported in most previous studies, as the ACEC
When using a synthetic wastewater, which contained only phos-
process did not require wastewater aeration or mechanical mixing.
phate, the percentages of nutrients removed here were similar to
These results demonstrate that the ACEC system is a promising
those obtained in these previous studies at similar initial nutrient
technology to remove nutrients from treated wastewater, as the
concentrations. However, the ACEC system required less energy
process has both a high efficiency of nutrient removal, and low
than these other studies with synthetic solutions. When the exper-
energy requirements.
iments were conducted using an actual wastewater the AECE sys-
tem removed more phosphorus, and at the same time removed
ammonia, than that reported by others [42]. While phosphorus Acknowledgment
removals were high here and in previous studies (99%), the ACEC
system consumed much less energy and had lower current densi- This research was supported by the grant from the Strategic
ties than previous studies [9,43]. Moreover, the ACEC system Environmental Research and Development Program (SERDP) and
showed excellent removal of ammonia, TSS, and COD in addition a scholarship from the China Scholarship Council (CSC).
314 Y. Tian et al. / Chemical Engineering Journal 292 (2016) 308–314

References [24] X.M. Chen, G.H. Chen, P.L. Yue, Separation of pollutants from restaurant
wastewater by electrocoagulation, Sep. Purif. Technol. 19 (2000) 65–76.
[25] I. Zongo, J.P. Leclerc, H.A. Maiga, J. Wethe, F. Lapicque, Removal of hexavalent
[1] J. Kim, K. Kim, H. Ye, E. Lee, C. Shin, P.L. McCarty, J. Bae, Anaerobic fluidized bed
chromium from industrial wastewater by electrocoagulation: a
membrane bioreactor for wastewater treatment, Environ. Sci. Technol. 45
comprehensive comparison of aluminium and iron electrodes, Sep. Purif.
(2010) 576–581.
Technol. 66 (2009) 159–166.
[2] R. Yoo, J. Kim, P.L. McCarty, J. Bae, Anaerobic treatment of municipal
[26] M. Al-Shannag, Z. Al-Qodah, K. Bani-Melhem, M.R. Qtaishat, M. Alkasrawi,
wastewater with a staged anaerobic fluidized membrane bioreactor (SAF-
Heavy metal ions removal from metal plating wastewater using
MBR) system, Bioresour. Technol. 120 (2012) 133–139.
electrocoagulation: kinetic study and process performance, Chem. Eng. J. 260
[3] L. Ren, Y. Ahn, B.E. Logan, A two-stage microbial fuel cell and anaerobic
(2015) 749–756.
fluidized bed membrane bioreactor (MFC-AFMBR) system for effective
[27] Q. Zuo, X. Chen, W. Li, G. Chen, Combined electrocoagulation and
domestic wastewater treatment, Environ. Sci. Technol. 48 (2014) 4199–4206.
electroflotation for removal of fluoride from drinking water, J. Hazard.
[4] K.-Y. Kim, W. Yang, B.E. Logan, Impact of electrode configurations on retention
Mater. 159 (2008) 452–457.
time and domestic wastewater treatment efficiency using microbial fuel cells,
[28] M. Malakootian, H.J. Mansoorian, M. Moosazadeh, Performance evaluation of
Water. Res. 80 (2015) 41–46.
electrocoagulation process using iron-rod electrodes for removing hardness
[5] J. Delgado Vela, L.B. Stadler, K.J. Martin, L. Raskin, C.B. Bott, N.G. Love, Prospects
from drinking water, Desalination 255 (2010) 67–71.
for biological nitrogen removal from anaerobic effluents during mainstream
[29] P.A. Selembo, M.D. Merrill, B.E. Logan, The use of stainless steel and nickel
wastewater treatment, Environ. Sci. Technol. Lett. 2 (2015) 234–244.
alloys as low-cost cathodes in microbial electrolysis cells, J. Power Sources 190
[6] M. Ben-Sasson, Y. Zidon, R. Calvo, A. Adin, Enhanced removal of natural organic
(2009) 271–278.
matter by hybrid process of electrocoagulation and dead-end microfiltration,
[30] P.L. McCarty, J. Bae, J. Kim, Domestic wastewater treatment as a net energy
Chem. Eng. J. 232 (2013) 338–345.
producer–can this be achieved?, Environ Sci. Technol. 45 (2011) 7100–7106.
[7] K.S.P. Kalyani, N. Balasubramanian, C. Srinivasakannan, Decolorization and
[31] S. Cheng, H. Liu, B.E. Logan, Increased performance of single-chamber
COD reduction of paper industrial effluent using electro-coagulation, Chem.
microbial fuel cells using an improved cathode structure, Electrochem.
Eng. J. 151 (2009) 97–104.
Commun. 8 (2006) 489–494.
[8] M. Kobya, O.T. Can, M. Bayramoglu, Treatment of textile wastewaters by
[32] W. Yang, W. He, F. Zhang, M.A. Hickner, B.E. Logan, Single-step fabrication
electrocoagulation using iron and aluminum electrodes, J. Hazard. Mater. 100
using a phase Inversion method of poly (vinylidene fluoride)(PVDF) activated
(2003) 163–178.
_ carbon air cathodes for microbial fuel cells, Environ. Sci. Technol. Lett. 1 (2014)
ß . Irdemez,
[9] S N. Demircioğlu, Y.S ß . Yıldız, Z. Bingül, The effects of current density
416–420.
and phosphate concentration on phosphate removal from wastewater by
[33] F. Zhang, M.D. Merrill, J.C. Tokash, T. Saito, S. Cheng, M.A. Hickner, B.E. Logan,
electrocoagulation using aluminum and iron plate electrodes, Sep. Purif.
Mesh optimization for microbial fuel cell cathodes constructed around
Technol. 52 (2006) 218–223.
stainless steel mesh current collectors, J. Power Sources 196 (2011) 1097–
[10] H. Gharibi, A. Mahvi, M. Chehrazi, R. Sheikhi, S. Hosseini, Phosphorous removal
1102.
from wastewater effluent using electro-coagulation by aluminum and iron
[34] H. Dong, H. Yu, X. Wang, Q. Zhou, J. Feng, A novel structure of scalable air-
plates, Anal. Bioanal. Chem. 2 (2010) 165–177.
cathode without Nafion and Pt by rolling activated carbon and PTFE as catalyst
[11] A.S. Fajardo, R.F. Rodrigues, R.C. Martins, L.M. Castro, R.M. Quinta-Ferreira,
layer in microbial fuel cells, Water Res. 46 (2012) 5777–5787.
Phenolic wastewaters treatment by electrocoagulation process using Zn
[35] H. Liu, B.E. Logan, Electricity generation using an air-cathode single chamber
anode, Chem. Eng. J. 275 (2015) 331–341.
microbial fuel cell in the presence and absence of a proton exchange
[12] S. Pulkka, M. Martikainen, A. Bhatnagar, M. Sillanpää, Electrochemical methods
membrane, Environ. Sci. Technol. 38 (2004) 4040–4046.
for the removal of anionic contaminants from water–a review, J. Hazard.
[36] H. Dong, H. Yu, X. Wang, Q. Zhou, J. Feng, A novel structure of scalable air-
Mater. 132 (2014) 252–271.
cathode without Nafion and Pt by rolling activated carbon and PTFE as catalyst
[13] E. Gatsios, J.N. Hahladakis, E. Gidarakos, Optimization of electrocoagulation
layer in microbial fuel cells, Water Res. 46 (2012) 5777–5787.
(EC) process for the purification of a real industrial wastewater from toxic
[37] M.Y. Mollah, P. Morkovsky, J.A. Gomes, M. Kesmez, J. Parga, D.L. Cocke,
metals, J. Environ. Manage. 154 (2015) 117–127.
Fundamentals, present and future perspectives of electrocoagulation, J.
[14] S. Aoudj, A. Khelifa, N. Drouiche, R. Belkada, D. Miroud, Simultaneous removal
Hazard. Mater. 114 (2004) 199–210.
of chromium(VI) and fluoride by electrocoagulation–electroflotation:
[38] X. Xu, X. Zhu, Treatment of refectory oily wastewater by electro-coagulation
application of a hybrid Fe-Al anode, Chem. Eng. J. 267 (2015) 153–162.
process, Chemosphere 56 (2004) 889–894.
[15] M. Kobya, O.T. Can, M. Bayramoglu, Treatment of textile wastewaters by
[39] S. Aoudj, A. Khelifa, N. Drouiche, M. Hecini, H. Hamitouche, Electrocoagulation
electrocoagulation using iron and aluminum electrodes, J. Hazard. Mater. 100
process applied to wastewater containing dyes from textile industry, Chem.
(2003) 163–178.
Eng. Process 49 (2010) 1176–1182.
[16] C.Y. Hu, S.L. Lo, W.H. Kuan, Effects of co-existing anions on fluoride removal in
[40] F. APHA, Water Environmental, Standard methods for the examination of
electrocoagulation (EC) process using aluminum electrodes, Water. Res. 37
water and wastewater, Washington, DC, USA, 2005.
(2003) 4513–4523.
[41] U. Wiesmann, Biological nitrogen removal from wastewater, 1994.
[17] J.A. Gomes, P. Daida, M. Kesmez, M. Weir, H. Moreno, J.R. Parga, G. Irwin, H.
[42] S. Irdemez, N. Demircioglu, Y.S. Yidiz, Z. Bingul, The effects of current density
McWhinney, T. Grady, E. Peterson, D.L. Cocke, Arsenic removal by
and phosphate concentration on phosphate removal from wastewater by
electrocoagulation using combined Al-Fe electrode system and
electrocoagulation using aluminum and iron plate electrodes, Sep. Purif.
characterization of products, J. Hazard. Mater. 139 (2007) 220–231.
Technol. 52 (2006) 218–223.
[18] S.A. Abdel-Gawad, A.M. Baraka, K.A. Omran, M.M. Mokhtar, Removal of some
[43] M.A. Rodrigo, P. Cañizares, C. Buitrón, C. Sáez, Electrochemical technologies for
pesticides from the simulated waste water by electrocoagulation method
the regeneration of urban wastewaters, Electrochim. Acta 55 (2010) 8160–
using iron electrodes, Int. J. Electrochem. Sci. 7 (2012) 6654–6665.
8164.
[19] J.A. Gomes, P. Daida, M. Kesmez, M. Weir, H. Moreno, J.R. Parga, G. Irwin, H.
[44] F. Bella, A. Chiappone, J.R. Nair, G. Meligrana, C. Gerbaldi, Effect of different
McWhinney, T. Grady, E. Peterson, D.L. Cocke, Arsenic removal by
green cellulosic matrices on the performance of polymeric dye-sensitized solar
electrocoagulation using combined Al-Fe electrode system and
cells, Chem. Eng. Trans. 41 (2014) 211–216.
characterization of products, J. Hazard. Mater. 139 (2007) 220–231.
[45] F. Bella, M. Imperiyka, A. Ahmad, Photochemically produced quasi-linear
[20] C.Y. Hu, S.L. Lo, W.H. Kuan, Effects of co-existing anions on fluoride removal in
copolymers for stable and efficient electrolytes in dye-sensitized solar cells, J.
electrocoagulation (EC) process using aluminum electrodes, Water Res. 37
Photochem. Photobiol. A: Chem. 289 (2014) 73–80.
(2003) 4513–4523.
[46] O. Monago-Maraña, I. Durán-Merás, T. Galeano-Díaz, A. Muñoz de la Peña,
[21] M. Tir, N. Moulai-Mostefa, Optimization of oil removal from oily wastewater
Fluorescence properties of flavonoid compounds. Quantification in paprika
by electrocoagulation using response surface method, J. Hazard. Mater. 158
samples using spectrofluorimetry coupled to second order chemometric tools,
(2008) 107–115.
Food Chem. 196 (2016) 1058–1065.
[22] T. Yang, B. Qiao, G.-C. Li, Q.-Y. Yang, Improving performance of dynamic
[47] S. Zhang, J. Zhang, W. Wang, F. Li, X. Cheng, Removal of phosphate from
membrane assisted by electrocoagulation for treatment of oily wastewater:
landscape water using an electrocoagulation process powered directly by
effect of electrolytic conditions, Desalination 363 (2015) 134–143.
photovoltaic solar modules, Sol. Energy Mater. Sol. Cells 117 (2013) 73–80.
[23] M. Ren, Y. Song, S. Xiao, P. Zeng, J. Peng, Treatment of berberine hydrochloride
wastewater by using pulse electro-coagulation process with Fe electrode,
Chem. Eng. J. 169 (2011) 84–90.