TREATMENT OF SUGAR INDUSTRY WASTEWATER USING ELECTROCOAGULATION TECHNIQUE

C.B.Shivayogimath, Rashmi Jahagirdar

Abstract: The cost effective treatment of sugar industry wastewater is a challenging task. In the present work, an attempt was made for the treatment of sugar industry wastewater using electrocoagulation technique with iron electrodes as sacrificial anode in bipolar connection system. The effects of operating parameters such as pH, voltage and electrolysis duration on the removal of COD and turbidity were investigated. The optimum value for each operating variable was experimentally determined. The optimum values of voltage, initial pH and electrolysis time were found to be 12V, 6.0 and 4 hours respectively. The experiments revealed that COD and turbidity in aqueous phase was effectively removed. The analysis of the treated water showed that the maximum COD and turbidity removal efficiencies were 92.8% and 92.4% respectively at optimum conditions. The effluent was very clear and its quality meets the discharge standard. Consequently, the electrocoagulation process can be considered as a reliable, safe and cost effective method for the treatment of sugar industry wastewater

Keywords: Electrocoagulation, sugar industry wastewater, electrolysis time, voltage, COD, turbidity

DOI: https://doi.org/10.15623/ijret.2013.0213046