Electro-Regeneration of Ion Exchange Resins Used in Hexavalent Chrome Removal

Abstract

One of the treatments used in effluents with metallic content is ion exchange. This type of procedure involves the use of a semi-continuous treatment system, involving an elution stage of the exchanger, involving the use of acids or bases capable of causing said elution, in order to release the exchanged metal ion. On the other hand, there are electrochemical treatment systems, such as Electrodeionization, EDI, where the regeneration of ion exchange resins takes place in situ according to theory, and the way in which regeneration begins to occur is still poorly understood. In the present work, experiments were carried out, where an ion exchange system is evaluated for the treatment of a synthetic solution of Cr (VI), studying the electro-regeneration of the resin. The results show that it is indeed possible to induce the regeneration of the resin, thus prolonging its use in the effluent treatment system.