Combined electrocoagulation and electrooxidation process in electro membrane bioreactor to improve membrane filtration effectiveness

Abstract

Membrane bioreactor is a trustworthy and encouraging technology for wastewater treatment and reuse. However, intensive research studies for fouling control of the MBR technology are still proceeding. Recently, the combination of MBR with electrochemical processes (eMBR)has been adopted as an alternative technological method for membrane fouling mitigation. The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of electrode materials on the permeate flux, filterability, and cake characterization deposited on the membrane surface in eMBR. Iron (Fe)and titanium (Ti)anodes were used in eMBR system to test electrocoagulation and electrooxidation effectiveness on membrane fouling, respectively. PES 005 membrane was operated under two different voltages (15 and 30 V)and membrane performance was compared to membrane without electrical field. The permeate fluxes were 30, 47, 82 L/m2/h for Fe anode and 30, 42, 70 L/m2/h for Ti anode at 0, 15, and 30 V for 120 min filtration period. © 2021 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.