Drinking water softening with electrocoagulation process: Influence of direct and alternating currents as inductive with different arrangement rod electrodes and polarity inverter

This study investigates the process of electrocoagulation with direct and alternating currents as inductive using Fe and Al rods with different arrangements and a polarity inverter and based on the factors related to the efficacy of the process for drinking water softening. The efficacy of the electrocoagulation (EC) process was investigated in the batch mode under different conditions. Further, the amount of energy and electrode consumption and the amount of sludge produced were determined. Total hardness (98.26) and calcium hardness (87.69) were reduced with the highest efficiency using alternating current with Fe-Al electrode arrangement under optimal conditions (pH of 9, current density of 9 m A / c m 2, and electrolysis time of 12 min). Optimum charge loading was 0.54F/m3. Maximum energy and electrode were consumed at the optimum current density using direct current, which were measured at 2.47 k W h / m 3 and 2.12 k g / m 3, respectively Maximum sludge was produced at optimum current density using alternating current of 0.098 k g / m 3 with the settleability of 0.075 L/g and, also, usine: direct current of 0.109 k g / m 3 with the settleability of 0.063 L/g. This study showed that through the alternating current and using Fe electrodes, EC technology could be used as an alternative, new method for reducing water hardness with high efficiency and low energy consumption. © 2020 Sharif University of Technology. All rights reserved