Sustainable Electrocoagulation Treatment for the Efficient Removal of Terasil Red Dye using Recycled Aluminum Electrodes

The contamination of natural water reservoirs by dye compounds poses a significant threat to water quality and human health, necessitating comprehensive studies to explore effective removal methods. This research focuses on the elimination of Terasil Red (TR), a synthetic dye extensively using in the textile industry, applying the Electrocoagulation (EC) technique. Notably, this investigation uses two specially selected aluminum electrodes derived from reclaimed metalworking materials wastes in their pristine state. The key parameters investigated in this study included the added NaCl concentration, pH levels, applied current intensity, electrode spacing, and the submerged surface area. The analyses for TR dye concentration and the removal mechanism were studied by ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy at λ max of 527nm turbidity and COT analyses. The findings showed exceptional efficacy in dye removal, surpassing the 95%, particularly under optimal EC conditions. Including a neutral pH solution at 7.35, an electrolysis time of 20 minutes, a current intensity of 0.15 A, an electrode separation of 1 cm, a submerged surface area of 56 cm 2, and a sodium chloride concentration set at 1 g/L. The study suggests that the adoption of recycled aluminum electrodes within the EC framework not only environmental sustainability but also presents an economically viable strategy for mitigating dye pollution.