Water reuse of an industrial effluent by means of electrodeionisation

The reuse of water coming from electrolysis manufactory effluents is studied by means of the electrodeionisation technique. A neutral water stream which contains small quantities of zinc, copper, cadmium and lead is treated. Results obtained by electrodialysis and ion exchange by resins are presented and compared towards electrodeionisation. By this technique, heavy metals are removed showing that the resulting water can constitute an unconventional source of water supply.

This work shows the opportunity of the use of electrodeionisation to purify water effluent with recovering some ions. It is an interesting in situ process which can be integrated in the outlet of the electrolysis manufactory. Electrodeionisation is recommended for the treatment of very diluted solutions, not only to produce ultra pure water but also for the purification of some kind of effluents. Our case constitutes a typical example and the proposed solution gives rise both to saving water and solving an environmental problem.