AN ALTERNATIVE METHOD FOR THE REMOVAL OF OIL-IN-WATER: ELECTROOXIDATION

Feasibility of emulsion mineralization by electroxidation using a boron doped diamond (BDD) electrode was investigated in this study. Firstly, the electrochemical behaviour of lubricating solutions containing lauryl alcohol, lauric acid or oleic acid in the presence of sodium dodecylbenzenesulfonate, a common surfactant, was studied in a conventional three electrodes cell. A specific oxidation current is observed before the water discharge. Then galvanostatic electrolyses carried out in two different cells showed a total organic carbon removal higher than 70% in the presence of surfactant. Moreover, the comparison of electrolyses using BDD and commercial PbO2 anode confirmed that BDD is the most powerful anode for mineralization (80% with BDD, only 25% with PbO2).