Towards a zero liquid discharge process from brine treatment: Water recovery, nitrate electrochemical elimination and potential valorization of hydrogen and salts

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Title: Towards a zero liquid discharge process from brine treatment: Water recovery, nitrate electrochemical elimination and potential valorization of hydrogen and salts
Authors: Sanchis-Carbonell, Javier | Carrero-Ferrer, Iván | Sáez, Alfonso | Pedro-Monzonís, María | Campíns-Falcó, Pilar | Montiel, Vicente
Research Group/s: Electroquímica Aplicada y Electrocatálisis
Center, Department or Service: Universidad de Alicante. Departamento de Química Física | Universidad de Alicante. Instituto Universitario de Electroquímica
Keywords: Nitrate electrochemical reduction | Ionic exchange | Reverse osmosis | Water cycle | Valorization | Brine treatment
Issue Date: 28-Mar-2024
Publisher: Elsevier
Citation: Science of The Total Environment. 2024, 926: 172060. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.172060
Abstract: This research addresses the issues related with treatment and valorization of brines and nitrate decontamination of surface and ground waters. The objective was to approximate to zero liquid discharge (ZLD) minimizing the environmental impact of brines of an electrodialysis reversal water treatment plant (EDRWTP) as an example. The innovative in flow process was developed from lab to pre-industrial scale and joined several main concepts: ion-exchange equilibrium for softening or demineralization of brines; reversed osmosis to recover suitable water and to enrich the waste in nitrate for efficient electrochemical reduction of NO3− to N2; valorization of subproducts by direct use or by precipitation; and assessment of the whole process by measuring in-line several parameters. The achieved softening was around 98 % and the recovered water from this current by reversed osmosis was 75 %. The brine of this step (25 %) contained around 1500 mg/L of nitrate and it was treated by electrochemical reduction with a Bi/Sn cathode providing a gas current of 60 % of initial nitrate reduced to N2, O2, H2O, NH3 and at least 97 % of H2. The aqueous current contained around 40 % of initial nitrate as ammonium and nitrite lower than 50 and 5 mg/L, respectively. Hypochlorite was added to this last current for oxidizing ammonium and nitrite to N2 and nitrate, respectively, being nitrate and ammonium lower than 50 and 5 mg/L, respectively. After the obtained water was demineralized and conducted to the EDRWTP inlet. The recovery of insoluble salts as calcium carbonate, reuse of saline solutions for the regeneration of process resins and the potential use of hydrogen generated as a by-product during the electrochemical reduction are other possible utilities.
Sponsor: Authors acknowledge to the Agencia Valenciana de la Innovación-GV (INNEST/2021/20) and EU (Programme for Environment and Climate Action LIFE) 101113771 LIFE22-ENV-ES-LIFE ELEKTRA for financial support. I. C.-F. thanks to the Generalitat Valenciana-EU for his predoctoral grant CIACIF/2021/079.
URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10045/142087
ISSN: 0048-9697 (Print) | 1879-1026 (Online)
DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.172060
Language: eng
Type: info:eu-repo/semantics/article
Rights: © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).
Peer Review: si
Publisher version: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.172060
Appears in Collections:INV - LEQA - Artículos de Revistas

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