A Prototype for the On-site Generation of a Chlorinated Disinfectant for Use in Rural Aqueducts

Abstract

The production of sodium hypochlorite in situ is useful for the disinfection of water in aqueducts located in areas of difficult access; published studies on the optimum parameters of electrolysis for the production of sodium hypochlorite are carried out at laboratory scale. The paper includes the results of the evaluation of a prototype for the production of 22 liters of hypochlorite solution, the optimum operating parameters were identified through a design of experiments; the electrodes of the equipment are made of graphite with an anodic surface of 1868 cm2, the retention times, current intensities and the initial concentration of chlorides were varied. The iodometry technique was used to quantify the hypochlorite ion, obtaining 4.46 g.l-1 in conditions of 120 min, 80 A and 150 g Cl-.l-1, with an energy efficiency of 42.58 mgCl2.(kJ)-1. According to the results in the statistical analysis of variance correlate the influence of each variable in the hypochlorite production and energy efficiency of the process.