BioStar Technologies - Electrocoagulation

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Electrocoagulation

Electrocoagulation Overview

Coagulation is one of the most important physiochemical operations used in water treatment. This is a process

used to cause the destabilization and aggregation of smaller particles into larger particles. Water contaminants

such as ions (heavy metals) and colloids (organics and inorganics) are primarily held in solution by electrical

charges. Schulze, in 1882, showed that colloidal systems could be destabilized by the addition of ions having a

charge opposite to that of the colloid (Benefield et al., 1982). The destabilized colloids can be aggregated and

subsequently removed by sedimentation and/or filtration.

Coagulation can be achieved by chemical or electrical means. Chemical coagulation is becoming less

acceptable today because of the higher costs associated with chemical treatments (i.e., the large volumes of

sludge generated, and the hazardous waste categorization of metal hydroxides, to say nothing of the costs of

the chemicals required to effect coagulation).

Electrocoagulation (EC), the passing of electrical current through water, has proven very effective in the

removal of various contaminants from water. Electrocoagulation systems have been in existence for many

years (Dieterich, patented 1906), using a variety of anode and cathode geometries, including plates, balls,

fluidized bed spheres, wire mesh, rods, and tubes. BST has taken a quantum leap in refining the EC process

to increase removal rates and to lower capital and operating costs.

The electrocoagulation process is based on valid scientific principles involving responses of watercontaminants to strong electric fields and electrically induced oxidation and reduction reactions. This process

is able to take out over 99 percent of some heavy metal cations and is also able to totally eliminate

microorganisms in the water. It is also able to precipitate charged colloids and remove significant amounts of

other ions, colloids, and emulsions.

How it works

The electrocoagulation process destabilizes suspended, emulsified or dissolved contaminants in an aqueous

medium by introducing an electrical current into the medium. The electrical current provides the

ar Technologies - Electrocoagulation http://www.biostartechnologies.com/electroco

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electromotive force to drive the chemical reactions. When reactions are driven or forced, the elements or

compounds will approach the most stable state. Generally, this state of stability produces a solid that is either

less colloidal or less emulsified (or soluble) than the compound at equilibrium values. As this occurs, the

contaminants form hydrophobic entities precipitate and can easily be removed by a number of secondary

separation techniques. Stated another way:

Electrocoagulation utilizes direct current (DC) to cause sacrificial electrode ions to remove undesirable

contaminants either by chemical reaction and precipitation, or by causing colloidal materials to coalesce and

then be removed by electrolytic flotation. The electrochemical system has proven to be viable with a widevariety of wastewaters. These waters are paper pulp mill waste, metal plating, tanneries, canning factories,

steel mill effluent, slaughterhouses, chromate, lead and mercury-laden effluents, as well as domestic sewage.

These wastewaters will be reduced to clear, clean, odorless and reusable water. In most cases, especially

domestic sewage, the treated water effluent will be better than the raw water from which it originated.

System Capabilities

Removes heavy metals as oxides that pass TCLP (Toxic Classification Leaching Procedure)

Removes suspended and colloidal solids

Breaks oil emulsions in water

Removes fats, oil, and grease

Removes complex organics

Destroys & removes bacteria, viruses & cysts

Processes multiple contaminants

Key Applications

Ground water cleanup

Process rinse and wash water

Potable water

Sewage treatment

Cooling towers

Radioactive isotope removal

Pretreatment for reverse osmosis, ultra filtration, nanofiltration, photocatalytics

Water reuse resulting in zero discharge

Metal recoveryIndustrial waste water

Benefits

Low capital costs

Low operating costs

Low power requirements

Generally no chemical additions

Metal oxide formation passing TCLP


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Low maintenance

Minimal operator attention

Handles wide variations in the waste stream

Consistent and reliable results

Sludge minimization

Treats multiple contaminants

Still have questions? Please contact us anytime! We look forward to hearing from you.

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BioStar Technologies - Electrocoagulation