Electrochemical precipitation is a novel method for recovering phosphorus (P) from wastewater as hydroxyapatite, utilizing the OH− generated at the cathode to avoid the need for external chemicals. The role of electrolytes in the effects of fulvic acid (FA), NaHCO3, and Mg2+ on electrochemical P recovery was studied using a Flow-through cathode. The mechanisms were analyzed by X-ray Diffraction, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. FA inhibited the precipitation process by adsorbing on the surface of the precipitates in the Na2SO4 solution, whereas FA was oxidized by active chlorine generated at the anode in the NaCl solution. The smaller steric hindrance and stronger bridging interaction make it easier for FA fragments to enter the interior of the precipitates and alter their structure. NaHCO3 promoted the removal of P and Ca2+ by consuming H+, with the highest P removal achieved at 2 mM NaHCO3 as 87.5 % and 88.7 % in the NaCl and Na2SO4 solutions, respectively. The higher concentration of NaHCO3 led to more CO32− generated near the cathode, promoting the formation of CaCO3, and inhibiting the further improvement of P removal. Although more net OH− could be produced in the NaCl solution to promote P recovery at the same current density as in the Na2SO4 solution, it promoted the formation of Mg(OH)2 in the presence of Mg2+. As the concentration of Mg2+ increased from 0 to 2 mM, the P removal decreased from 75.2 % (NaCl) and 68.6 % (Na2SO4) to 46.7 % and 55 %, respectively. The presence of FA, NaHCO3, and Mg2+ all caused a decrease in the crystallinity of P recovery products and transformed their morphologies from petal-shaped to stacked-particle shape.
Read full abstract