Abstract
The phosphorus present in wastewater is a global concern, given the environmental problems that its excessive presence in aquatic environments can cause, such as deterioration of water quality, eutrophication and loss of aquatic life. Thereby, its removal becomes highly desirable. Thus, the main purpose of this study was to evaluate the efficiency of the electrocoagulation process in the removal of the phosphorus present in municipal wastewater. This study was developed on a bench scale, using an electrocoagulation reactor associated with biological treatment, equipped with an aluminum anode and a stainless-steel cathode. In parallel, a bioreactor with no electric current was operated (control), for comparison purposes. The results showed that the phosphorus removal in the electrocoagulation reactor was 100% after 7 h. The phosphorous decay over time shows probable first-order kinetics. In the control reactor, the removal was 40.75% after the same operation time. The electric current application did not impair the biological process, providing an increase in NH4+-N and COD removal. Thus, electrocoagulation is proven to be an efficient technological method for the removal of phosphorus from municipal wastewater, with its application possible in association with biological processes.
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Abbreviations
- BOD:
-
Biological oxygen demand
- COD:
-
Chemical oxygen demand
- DO:
-
Dissolved oxygen
- EBPR:
-
Enhanced biological phosphorus removal
- PAO:
-
Phosphate accumulating organisms
- TSS:
-
Total suspended solids
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Acknowledgements
This study was financed in part by the Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior — Brasil (CAPES) — Finance Code 001, and by the National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq).
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Follmann, H.V.D.M., Rodrigues, C., Souza, E., Lapolli, F.R., Lobo-Recio, M.Á. (2020). Phosphorus Removal from Municipal Wastewater by Electrocoagulation Associated with Biological Treatment. In: Leal Filho, W., de Andrade Guerra, J.B.S. (eds) Water, Energy and Food Nexus in the Context of Strategies for Climate Change Mitigation. Climate Change Management. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-57235-8_1
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