Disinfecting poultry slaughterhouse wastewater using copper electrodes in the electrocoagulation process

Insufficiencies and deficiencies in slaughterhouses could adversely affect public health. Wastewater from slaughtering, along with high microbial pollution, results in serious pollution to the surrounding environment if not treated. This study sought to investigate the efficiency of the electrocoagulation process using copper electrodes in the disinfection of poultry slaughterhouse wastewater without any initial controlling. The physical and chemical properties of samples of wastewater taken from a poultry slaughterhouse were first analyzed. Then the samples were subjected to the electrocoagulation process using copper electrodes in potential differences of 10, 20, and 30 V over a period of 60 min. Then the removal efficiency of total coliforms was examined in accordance with standard methods found in textbooks. The results obtained from this study indicated that the efficiency of the electrocoagulation process increased by an increase in process time as well as in electric potential difference. The maximum removal efficiency of total coliforms was 100% in potential difference, equal to 30 V in the reaction time of 10 min. Moreover, the results of this study revealed that the electrocoagulation process using a copper electrode was fully able to remove total coliform from poultry slaughterhouse wastewater.