Simultaneous degradation of persistent organic pollutants and heavy metal removal via an electrochemical filtration system: A case study on a pulp mill wastewater effluent

Abstract

An electrochemical filtration system via a continuous flow electrochemical reactor was designed, and its application was tested for para-nitroaniline (PNA) and industrial wastewater degradation. Optimization of operational parameters such as nature of electrode, electrolyte, and catalyst concentration was performed for electrochemical treatment of synthetic and discharged pulp mill wastewater effluent (obtained from the Boat Harbour (BH) remediation site, Nova Scotia, Canada). At the optimized conditions, 72% degradation of BH TOC (initially 105.4 mg L−1) with significant reductions of heavy metals Cd (99.9%), Cr (98.8%), and metalloid (As (99.8%) concentrations, was achieved at circumneutral pH values and overall operational cost of 0.05 USD L−1. Results demonstrate an effective and efficient simultaneous removal of organic and inorganic contaminants from industrial pulp mill wastewater effluent.

Keywords

• Pulp mill wastewater
• Persistent organic pollutants (POPs)
• Heavy metals
• Reactive species
• Total organic carbon (TOC)