Electrocoagulation cell for the production of hydrogen without carbon emission and simultaneous treatment of textile wastewater

This study aimed to verify the efficiency of an electrocoagulation reactor to generate low carbon hydrogen and treat textile effluent simultaneously. The electrolytic cell comprised a hermetically sealed polypropylene container containing 800 mL of effluent and a pair of immersed stainless steel 304 L electrodes powered by a photovoltaic solar panel (540 W). A gas chromatograph with a dielectric-barrier discharge ionization detector (GC-BID) measured the hydrogen gas produced. The efficiency of the textile effluent treatment was evaluated using the parameters of dissolved organic carbon, turbidity, pH, conductivity, and color. The electrical energy consumed by hydrogen generation and effluent treatment was also measured. The maximum concentration of hydrogen produced was 89.87% (v/v) with 898676.9 ppm. The process removed 100% of color, 92% of dissolved organic carbon, and 99.53% of turbidity. The electrical energy consumed for hydrogen generation ranged from 19.02 to 55.74 KW h/m 3 H 2 .