Abstract
Abstract The primary goals of this study are to compare the efficiency of multiple oxidants that are produced using different commercially available anodes and separators and to optimize the reaction conditions for the recovery of multiple oxidants from brine. The brine produced in the desalination plants in Taiwan is the concentrated seawater that is recovered after the reverse osmosis process. The main component in the solution is NaCl. On average, chlorine concentration is approximately 3–5% by weight, which is slightly higher than the concentration for normal seawater. This concentrated brine can be used as raw material for the electrolyte to extract mixed disinfectant solutions. This study uses different catalytic electrolyzers to compare the efficiency with which multiple oxidants are produced using anodes that are coated in precious metal. A ruthenium-coated titanium anode generates the largest amount of active chlorine (chlorine dioxide). In terms of the diaphragms that are tested, the DuPont Nafion NE-2030 ion film produces active chlorine most efficiently. If no other chemicals are added to the brine (salinity 11.3%), Cl2 (302–376 mg L−1) is the primary oxidant generated from the original brine, and ClO2 (3.7–7.2 mg L−1) is the minor product in batch electrolysis. This article has been made Open Access thanks to the kind support of CAWQ/ACQE (https://www.cawq.ca).
Highlights
Membrane technologies including reverse osmosis (RO) and ultrafiltration (UF) are the most widely used technologies in desalination plants (Belmont ; Khawaji et al ; Oh et al ; Oh et al )
We aimed to investigate the efficiency of the production of multiple oxidants using different diaphragms in the electrolysis process and to explore the potential application of the optimized diaphragm electrolysis process for the production of disinfectants in desalination plant in Taiwan
In order to evaluate the efficiency of the production of multiple oxidants as disinfectants using concentrated brine derived from the desalination plant, we conducted various experiments by controlling electrolysis parameters, including composition of diaphragms, voltage, temperature, etc
Summary
Membrane technologies including reverse osmosis (RO) and ultrafiltration (UF) are the most widely used technologies in desalination plants (Belmont ; Khawaji et al ; Oh et al ; Oh et al ). The application of membranes in desalination has increased as membrane materials have improved dramatically and their costs have been reduced (Morillo et al ). When they are applied in desalination processes, the major waste product is concentrated brine. The concentrated brine that is generated from desalination is usually discarded into the surrounding sea and has a negative impact on the marine. Recovering valuable components and chemical derivatives from brine has the potential to resolve both environmental and economic concerns (Thiel et al )
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