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Removal of microplastics in food packaging industry wastewaters with electrocoagulation process: Optimization by Box-Behnken design
Summary
This study tested an electrocoagulation method for removing microplastics from food packaging factory wastewater, achieving 99% removal under optimized conditions. The treatment cost was calculated at just $0.125 per cubic meter of wastewater, making it a cost-effective option. This is significant because most microplastic research focuses on household wastewater, while industrial sources like packaging factories are major but understudied contributors to microplastic pollution.
Currently, the vast majority of studies on microplastics (MPs) focus on determining the quantity and presence of these particles in various receiving environments and their treatment in domestic wastewater treatment plants. However, little research has been conducted on the treatment of microplastics in industrial effluent. Therefore, in this study, effluent samples from the cooling water tank of a local food packaging manufacturing company were analyzed to determine the presence and quantity of MPs for the first time. MPs removal from industrial wastewater using the electrocoagulation (EC) method was optimized using the Box Behnken Design (BBD). A second-order model was developed to estimate the microplastic removal efficiency, and the R, adjusted R, and predicted R of the model were 0.9994, 0.9985, and 0.9962, respectively. The optimal reaction parameters resulting in the maximum removal rate of microplastics (99 %) were determined to be pH 6.74, current density of 3.16 mA cm, and duration of 13.58 min. The cost of microplastic treatment per m of wastewater in the EC system, operated under optimal conditions, was calculated as 0.125 $. In this study, it was concluded that the EC process is a highly efficient technique for the removal of MPs from industrial wastewater at a low cost. Determining the most favorable conditions with BBD for the EC process at the feasibility stage of treatment plants will provide economic benefits and increase treatment efficiency during the installation of large-scale plants.