Practical study on the electrochemical simultaneous removal of copper and zinc from simulated binary-metallic industrial wastewater using a packed-bed cathode

In this work, electrochemical-simultaneous removal of copper and zinc from simulated binary-metallic industrial wastewater containing different ratios of copper to zinc was studied using a packed-bed continuous-recirculation flow electrolytic reactor. The total nominal initial concentration of both metals, circulating rate of flow and nominal initial pH were held constant. Parameters affecting the removal percent and current efficiency of removal, such as applied current and time of electrolysis were investigated. Results revealed that increased current intensity accelerated the removal of metals and diminish current efficiency. It was also observed that selective removal of both metals is possible when the applied current was of small intensity. Moreover, the factors that led to loss of faradaic efficiency were discussed.