Research Article

Enhanced Wastewater Treatment by Combination of Bioelectrochemical and Electrochemical Oxidation Processes

Volume: 13 Number: 1 July 29, 2026
TR EN

Enhanced Wastewater Treatment by Combination of Bioelectrochemical and Electrochemical Oxidation Processes

Abstract

The electrochemical oxidation process (EOP) has been successfully applied to a wide range of wastewaters; however, its high energy consumption limits practical application. To overcome this drawback, EOP can be integrated with other treatment technologies. Despite extensive studies on EOP and bioelectrochemical systems (BES) individually, their integrated application for domestic wastewater treatment remains limited, particularly regarding simultaneous evaluation of treatment performance and energy consumption. This study investigates a combined BES–EOP system for real domestic wastewater, focusing on chemical oxygen demand (COD) and nitrogen removal efficiencies as well as energy consumption. A BES was used as a pre-treatment step prior to EOP. The effects of reaction time and pH on pollutant removal and energy consumption were evaluated, and the mechanisms of COD and nitrogen removal were also examined. The results showed that the combined BES–EOP system achieved a COD removal efficiency of 68.2±3.4% after 5 hours of BES treatment followed by 1 hour of EOP treatment, which was higher than that of standalone BES (42.5±0.9%) and EOP (58.6±2.8%) systems after 6 hours of operation. Similarly, NH₃–N removal reached 26.9±1.6%, compared with 10.0±0.9% and 10.3±0.2% for BES and EOP, respectively. While COD removal did not significantly improve beyond 6 hours, extended operation enhanced nitrogen removal. Notably, the integrated system reduced treatment cost by approximately 81.3% compared with standalone EOP. Overall, the combined BES–EOP system demonstrated higher treatment efficiency and lower energy demand, indicating strong potential for sustainable domestic wastewater treatment applications.

Keywords

Electrochemical oxidation, bioelectrochemical systems, wastewater treatment

Supporting Institution

Office of Naval Research and US National Science Foundation

Project Number

Award number N000141512471 and CBET #1706889

Thanks

This research was supported by a grant from Office of Naval Research award number N000141512471 and US National Science Foundation award CBET #1706889.

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APA
Tutar Öksüz, S. (2026). Enhanced Wastewater Treatment by Combination of Bioelectrochemical and Electrochemical Oxidation Processes. Adıyaman Üniversitesi Mühendislik Bilimleri Dergisi, 13(1), 1-15. https://doi.org/10.54365/adyumbd.1787260
AMA
1.Tutar Öksüz S. Enhanced Wastewater Treatment by Combination of Bioelectrochemical and Electrochemical Oxidation Processes. Adıyaman Üniversitesi Mühendislik Bilimleri Dergisi. 2026;13(1):1-15. doi:10.54365/adyumbd.1787260
Chicago
Tutar Öksüz, Seçil. 2026. “Enhanced Wastewater Treatment by Combination of Bioelectrochemical and Electrochemical Oxidation Processes”. Adıyaman Üniversitesi Mühendislik Bilimleri Dergisi 13 (1): 1-15. https://doi.org/10.54365/adyumbd.1787260.
EndNote
Tutar Öksüz S (July 1, 2026) Enhanced Wastewater Treatment by Combination of Bioelectrochemical and Electrochemical Oxidation Processes. Adıyaman Üniversitesi Mühendislik Bilimleri Dergisi 13 1 1–15.
IEEE
[1]S. Tutar Öksüz, “Enhanced Wastewater Treatment by Combination of Bioelectrochemical and Electrochemical Oxidation Processes”, Adıyaman Üniversitesi Mühendislik Bilimleri Dergisi, vol. 13, no. 1, pp. 1–15, July 2026, doi: 10.54365/adyumbd.1787260.
ISNAD
Tutar Öksüz, Seçil. “Enhanced Wastewater Treatment by Combination of Bioelectrochemical and Electrochemical Oxidation Processes”. Adıyaman Üniversitesi Mühendislik Bilimleri Dergisi 13/1 (July 1, 2026): 1-15. https://doi.org/10.54365/adyumbd.1787260.
JAMA
1.Tutar Öksüz S. Enhanced Wastewater Treatment by Combination of Bioelectrochemical and Electrochemical Oxidation Processes. Adıyaman Üniversitesi Mühendislik Bilimleri Dergisi. 2026;13:1–15.
MLA
Tutar Öksüz, Seçil. “Enhanced Wastewater Treatment by Combination of Bioelectrochemical and Electrochemical Oxidation Processes”. Adıyaman Üniversitesi Mühendislik Bilimleri Dergisi, vol. 13, no. 1, July 2026, pp. 1-15, doi:10.54365/adyumbd.1787260.
Vancouver
1.Seçil Tutar Öksüz. Enhanced Wastewater Treatment by Combination of Bioelectrochemical and Electrochemical Oxidation Processes. Adıyaman Üniversitesi Mühendislik Bilimleri Dergisi. 2026 Jul. 1;13(1):1-15. doi:10.54365/adyumbd.1787260