Effect of placement angles on wireless electrocoagulation for bipolar aluminum electrodes

A new electrocoagulation process based on bipolar aluminum electrode is proposed. The placement angles of bipolar electrode are key parameter. The numerical simulations support the experimental results. We in our previous study reported the wireless electrocoagulation (WEC) based on bipolar electrochemistry for water purification. One of the most important advantages of WEC is the omission of ohmic connection between bipolar electrode (BPE) and power supply, and thus the electrochemical reactions on BPE are driven by electric field in solution induced by driving electrodes. In this study, the impact of placement angle of bipolar aluminum electrode on WEC was investigated to provide a detailed analysis on the correlations between the bipolar electrode placement angle and bipolar electrocoagulation reactions. The results showed that the WEC cell with a horizontal BPE placed at 0° produced the maximum dissolved aluminum coagulant, accounting for 71.6 % higher than that with a vertical one placed at 90°. Moreover, the finite element simulations of current and potential distribution were carried out along the surface of BPE at different placement angles, revealing the mechanism of different BPE placement angles on aluminum dissolution rates in WEC system.