Water disinfection via nature-inspired electrochemical flow cells in resource-limited settings

Abstract

Access to clean drinking water remains a challenge in many developing countries, emphasizing the critical need for affordable, scalable and sustainable water treatment technologies. This study employs an electrochemical flow cell incorporating a 3D-printed biomimetic flow field for efficient in situ electrochlorination, avoiding water recirculation or external chloride dosing. The impact of varied ionic compositions of groundwater on electrochlorination efficiency is examined using synthetic groundwater samples, reflecting diverse hydrogeological conditions within a region in a developing country. Employing a Multilevel Factorial Design (MFD), the study highlights the significant influence of water ionic composition, flow rate, and applied current on free chlorine production. The results affirm the capability of the reactor to generate free chlorine species in a range of 0.32–6.13 mg·L⁻¹. The specific energy consumptions oscillate between 0.49 and 19.67 Wh·mg⁻¹ for chloride concentration in the samples ranging from 24 to 146 mg·L⁻¹. This confirms the potential of the suggested electrochemical cell design for broad use in the studied region, and possibly in similar settings worldwide.