Abstract
The aim of the present study is to investigate the potential of electrolytic process on textile dyebath dump wastewater (sulfate concentration ~30 g/L) collected from the cotton fabric dyeing process to remove color and COD concentration. Four different electrode combinations were tested i.e. stainless steel–stainless steel, iron–iron, aluminum–aluminum, and iron (anode)–aluminum (cathode) for best removal efficiency and minimum power consumption along with sludge generation rate. The significant process parameters (voltage/current density and treatment time) were optimized for real industrial wastewater using response surface methodology approach. COD removal efficiency and color removal efficiency were taken as two responses. The best electrode combination was Fe–Al to achieve 75% COD removal efficiency and 91% color removal efficiency. The optimized process conditions are 7.6 V (1242 A/m2) and 14 min treatment time consuming 59 kWh/kg of COD removal with sludge generation rate of 24.1 g/L.