2021-04-122017-09-150301479710958630WOS;000406564400052PUBMED;28628869SCOPUS;2-s2.0-85020551038http://hdl.handle.net/10784/28253Soluble coffee production generates wastewater containing complex mixtures of organic macromolecules. In this work, a sequential Electrocoagulation-Electrooxidation (EC-EO) process, using aluminum and graphite electrodes, was proposed as an alternative way for the treatment of soluble coffee effluent. Process operational parameters were optimized, achieving total decolorization, as well as 74% and 63.5% of COD and TOC removal, respectively. The integrated EC-EO process yielded a highly oxidized (AOS = 1.629) and biocompatible (BOD5/COD approximate to 0.6) effluent. The Molecular Weight Distribution (MWD) analysis showed that during the EC-EO process, EC effectively decomposed contaminants with molecular weight in the range of 10-30 kDa. In contrast, EO was quite efficient in mineralization of contaminants with molecular weight higher than 30 kDa. A kinetic analysis allowed determination of the time required to meet Colombian permissible discharge limits. Finally, a comprehensive operational cost analysis was performed. The integrated EC-EO process was demonstrated as an efficient alternative for the treatment of industrial effluents resulting from soluble coffee production. (C) 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.enghttps://v2.sherpa.ac.uk/id/publication/issn/0301-4797DecolorizationElectrochemical processesContaminants reductionOperational cost analysisinfo:eu-repo/semantics/article2021-04-12Ibarra-Taquez HNGilPavas EBlatchley ERGómez-García MÁDobrosz-Gómez I10.1016/j.jenvman.2017.05.095