Post-treatment of pretreated paper mill effluent via the electro-persulfate process: Optimization with response surface methodology approach

Abdulkadir Çağlak; Ali Dogancan Dogan; Narin Kara; Hanife Sarı Erkan; Güleda Engin

doi:10.35208/ert.1800086

Authors

Abdulkadir Çağlak Yildiz Technical University Environmental Engineering Department https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7918-3740
Ali Dogancan Dogan Yildiz Technical University Environmental Engineering Department https://orcid.org/0009-0001-6080-5172
Narin Kara Yildiz Technical University Environmental Engineering Department https://orcid.org/0009-0005-8278-1748
Hanife Sarı Erkan Yildiz Technical University Environmental Engineering Department https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5888-6778
Güleda Engin Yildiz Technical University Environmental Engineering Department https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3841-8440

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.35208/ert.1800086

Keywords:

Paper mill effluent, electrooxidation, electro-persulfate process, oxone, COD removal, wastewater treatment

Abstract

This study examined the post-treatment of pre-treated paper industry wastewater obtained via electrocoagulation (EC) using Fe–Fe electrodes. The pre-treated wastewater was further treated with peroxymonosulfate (PMS) activation using platinium (Pt)/titanium dioxide (TiO2) anode and graphite cathode. Process optimization was conducted using a response surface methodology (RSM) based on a Box–Behnken design (BBD) to systematically evaluate the effects of applied current, initial pH, PMS dosage, and reaction time on COD removal efficiency and energy consumption. The ANOVA results confirmed the statistical significance and strong predictive ability of the developed model. The model exhibited high R² values (R² = 0.9615 and Adj R² = 0.9230), an adequate signal-to-noise ratio, and a non-significant lack of fit. The optimization results of the electro-persulfate (EP) process show that the main parameters influencing COD removal and specific energy consumption (SEC) are the applied current and time. These results indicate that the model reliably optimizes COD removal. Optimal conditions for maximizing COD removal were predicted to be a current of 4.32 A, a pH of 8, a PMS dose of 16.3 mM, and a reaction time of 80 min. These conditions were expected to achieve 99.9% COD removal. However, the experimental results showed 92.3% ± 2.3% COD removal, 86.3% ± 2.8% tannin/lignin removal, and 57.2% ± 6.03% additional color removal. These results underscore the EP process's effectiveness and flexibility for industrial wastewater post-treatment, allowing for adjustments in treatment performance and energy requirements.

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