Evaluation of‏ ‏electro coagulation‏ ‏process‏ ‏for the removal of‏ ‏sulfate‏ ‏and sulfite ‎‏ ‏Ions‏ ‏from aqueous

Background: Sulfate is one of the major ions in natural waters and wastewaters. The presence of sulfite is important in terms of that is converted into sulfate and sulfide in environment. Because of the high solubility and stability of these ions and consequently their health problems, removal of them from aqueous solutions is a sophisticated issue. This study was conducted aiming to evaluating the impact of electro coagulation process in the removal of highly concentrated sulfate and sulfite ions from aqueous.

Methods: This experimental study

was carried out on laboratory scale using a glass tank with the volume of 500 ml and 2 aluminum electrodes. Then, the synthesized samples containing concentrations of 500 and 1,000 and 1,500 ppm sulfate and sulfite were transferred to a reservoir and the removal of ions in the retention time intervals of, 30, 60 and 90 min and voltages of 10, 20 and 30 volts were examined.

Results: The most sulfite removal rate was 80 percent and voltage 30 and retention time of 90 minutes with concentration of 1000 mg/l.  And the most sulfate removal rate was 72 percent and voltage10 and retention time of 90 min with concentration of 1500 mg/l.

Conclusions: The results show that the electrocoagulation technology can also be used in high concentrations by adjusting the suitable retention time, initial concentration and voltage.