Electrochemical Water Treatment Methods

Electrochemical methods can be applied for the treatment of municipal and industrial waters and wastewaters. The only prerequisite for the use of electrochemical methods is to preliminarily remove large particles and other physical inclusion from water, which is usually made in conventional treatment as well. When this condition is satisfied, electrochemical methods can remove any kind of pollutants, including organic and inorganic compounds, microorganisms, and ions, allowing to obtain clean water of distilled water quality. The most common electrochemical water treatment methods are electrochemical oxidation used for mineralization of organic pollutants, water disinfection, removal of cyanides, and sulfides; electrochemical reduction used for metals recovery and transformation of persistent organic compounds to less toxic forms; electrocoagulation and electroflotation used for suspended particles removal; and electrodialysis used for water desalination. Theoretical background of these methods as well as the main area of their application will be considered in this chapter.