On the design of electrochemical reactors for the treatment of polluted water

Over the last twenty years considerable attention has been focused on the elimination of pollutants through reactions activated by non-traditional methods. Electrochemical methods such as direct oxidation, indirect oxidation and electroFenton have been demonstrated to be effective on a number of organic pollutants dissolved in water. In addition, direct reduction and metal deposition have been proved to be viable techniques for the elimination of nitrates and heavy metals from aqueous solutions. In this area, the literature mainly focus on fundamental research: considerable results have been achieved in terms of detailed scientific knowledge of the reaction mechanisms, but very few data are available on the behaviour of laboratory-scale reactors; furthermore, the energetic balance of the overall process has rarely been analysed. Owing to this fact, a proposal for a suitable reactor design necessitates an accurate discussion. In this paper we summarise the results reported in the literature and then we use that data to propose a new methodology for the evaluation of the feasibility of industrial-scale reactors.