Case Studies in the Electrochemical Treatment of Wastewater Containing Organic Pollutants Using BDD

A critical review is presented in this chapter on the possible applications of boron-doped diamond (BDD) as anode material to perform oxidation of organic compounds in aqueous solution. The oxidation of model substances is studied as well as that of the main classes of pollutants, such as phenols, dyes, pesticides and drugs, surfactants, which make some problems of degradation with the traditional wastewater treatments. The presented results indicate that organic compounds refractory to other oxidation techniques are successfully oxidized at BDD, even if the reaction mechanism is differently dependent on the organic compound and the electrolyte composition. Economic considerations reveal that electrochemical oxidations at BDD are less expensive than other advanced oxidation processes, indicating that in the near future this technology can become a competitive treatment for the removal of refractory compounds from wastewater.