Electrochemical Reduction Of Nitrate

Olin Corporation has developed an innovative electrochemical reduction technology named ElectroReduction™ aimed at environmentally treating aqueous streams containing oxyhalide and oxynitrogen species while minimizing hazardous effluent waste. This study investigates the efficacy of the ElectroReduction™ technology in reducing disinfection by-products such as chlorite and chlorine dioxide into harmless chloride ions, alongside reducing oxynitrogen species like nitrate and nitrite to nitrogen using specialized cathode materials. The methodology employed involves bench-scale testing to evaluate the reduction efficiencies of various oxychlorine and oxynitrogen species through the electrolytic system, focusing on the selection of high surface area cathodes to achieve optimal current efficiencies. Results demonstrate a significant capability of this technology in reducing unproductive nitrate and nitrite concentrations while maintaining low power consumption at varying feed concentrations. While initial findings suggest its potential for municipal drinking water treatment and point-of-use applications, further engineering design and scale-up will be necessary to address full-scale deployment in diverse water treatment contexts. This paper presents in-depth information regarding the reduction chemistry of oxynitrogen species and the performance data obtained during testing.