Treatment of dilute methylene blue-containing wastewater by coupling sawdust adsorption and electrochemical regeneration

In the present work, the coupling of adsorption and electrochemical oxidation on a boron-doped diamond (BDD) electrode to treat solutions containing dyes is studied. This coupling may be convenient for the treatment of diluted pollutant that is limited by the low rate of electrooxidation due to mass-transfer limitation. A pre-concentration step by adsorption could minimize the design of the electrochemical reactor. The adsorbent chosen was mixed with softwood sawdust, and methylene blue was chosen as the model dye molecule. Isotherms of adsorption and kinetics were investigated as well as the effects of current density and regeneration time. The BDD electrochemical oxidation of methylene blue adsorbed onto sawdust led simultaneously to its degradation and sawdust regeneration for the next adsorption. It was observed that multiple adsorption and electrochemical regeneration cycles led to an enhancement of adsorption capacity of the sawdust. This study demonstrated that adsorption–electrochemical degradation coupling offers a promising approach for the efficient elimination of organic dyes from wastewater.