Department of Chemical Engineering, Engineering Faculty, Al-Nahrain University, Jadriya, Iraq
10.30772/qjes.2025.161102.1582
Abstract
In this search article, an integrated hybrid treatment system combines adsorption activated carbon (AC) and electrocoagulation (EC) to remove lead metal from produced water. The novel used a batch reactor design that facilitates synergistic connections between the two treatment processes. The process was optimized under optimized conditions using Response Surface Methodology (RSM) with a Box-Behnken (BBD. The optimization process conditions include the electrolysis time, pH, activated carbon dose, and current. Lead removal efficiencies reached 88.4\% for activated carbon alone, 95.4\% for electrocoagulation alone, and 99.8\% for the hybrid method at 45 min electrolysis time, pH 3.0, 1 gm of activated carbon dose, and 1 Amp. The results indicate that the combined scheme significantly enhances the lead metal removal rates from the produced water compared to the individual process methods, providing an active solution for the production of clean water. The hybrid process offers an eco-friendly, cost-effective, and sustainable approach to removing metal pollutants from water resources.
R. El Kaim Billah et al., “A novel chitosan/nano-hydroxyapatite composite for the adsorptive removal of cd(ii) from aqueous solution,” Polymers (Basel), vol. 15, no. 6, 2023. [Online]. Available: https://doi.org/10.3390/polym15061524
N. M. Hosny, I. Gomaa, and M. G. Elmahgary, “Adsorption of polluted dyes from water by transition metal oxides: A review,” Applied Surface Science Advances, vol. 15, p. 100395, 2023. [Online]. Available: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apsadv.2023.100395
A. S. Jafer, R. Al-Khateeb, B. Alobaid, A. Atiyah, and A. A. Hassan, “Copper removal from produced water by photo fenton oxidation,” in AIP Conference Proceedings. AIP Publishing, 2023.
A. T. Nawaf and B. A. Abdulmajeed, “Design of oscillatory helical baffled reactor and dual functional mesoporous catalyst for oxidative desulfurization of real diesel fuel,” Chemical Engineering Research and Design, vol. 209, pp. 193–209, 2024. [Online]. Available: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cherd.2024.07.032
H. R. D. Alamery, A. A. Hassan, and A. H. Rashid, “Copper removal in simulated wastewater by solar fenton oxidation,” AIP Conference Proceedings, vol. 2806, no. 1, 2023. [Online]. Available: https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0167259
S. B. Farise, H. A. Alabdly, and A. A. Hasan, “Lead removal from simulated wastewater using magnetite as adsorbent with box-behnken design,” IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science, vol. 790, no. 1, p. 012020, 2021. [Online]. Available: https://doi.org/10.1088/1755-1315/790/1/012020
S. M. Alardhi et al., “Artificial neural network and response surface methodology for modeling reverse osmosis process in wastewater treatment,” Journal of Industrial and Engineering Chemistry, vol. 133, pp. 599–613, 2024. [Online]. Available: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jiec.2024.02.039
H. M. Al-Tamimi and F. Y. Al-Jaberi, “Treatment of refinery wastewater using electrocoagulation with aluminum electrodes: Optimization via response surface methodology,” Al-Qadisiyah Journal for Engineering Sciences, vol. 14, no. 2, pp. 45–56, 2021.
S. A. Hameed, A. T. Nawaf, Q. A. Mahmood, L. T. Abdulateef, A. T. Jarullah, and I. M. Mujtaba, “Production of green fuel: A digital baffle batch reactor for enhanced oxidative desulfurization of light gas oil using nano-catalyst,” Iranian Journal of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, vol. 42, no. 3, pp. 740–753, 2023. [Online]. Available: https://doi.org/10.30492/IJCCE.2022.547416.5138
A. A. Al-Hassan and I. Shakir, “Enhanced photocatalytic activity of cuo/ncw via adsorption optimization for refinery wastewater,” Iranian Journal of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, 2024.
A. A. Moneer, W. M. Thabet, M. Khedawy, M. M. El-Sadaawy, and N. A. Shaaban, “Electrocoagulation process for oily wastewater treatment and optimization using response surface methodology,” International Journal of Environmental Science and Technology, vol. 20, no. 12, pp. 13 859–13 872, 2023. [Online]. Available: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13762-023-05003-7
M. A. Jasim and F. Y. Aljaberi, “Treatment of oily wastewater by electrocoagulation technology: A general review (2018-2022),” Journal of Electrochemical Science and Engineering, vol. 13, no. 2, pp. 361–372, 2023. [Online]. Available: https://doi.org/10.5599/jese.1472
S. A. Hameed and Q. A. Mahmood, “Hybrid adsorption and electrochemical treatment of oilfield wastewater using agricultural waste-based activated carbon,” Al-Qadisiyah Journal for Engineering Sciences, vol. 15, no. 1, pp. 33–42, 2022.
M. A. Jasim et al., “Investigating the influences of the cathode configuration on the electrocoagulation performance: A comparative study,” Case Studies in Chemical and Environmental Engineering, vol. 8, p. 100364, 2023. [Online]. Available: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cscee.2023.100364
F. Y. AlJaberi, B. A. Abdulmajeed, A. A. Hassan, and M. L. Ghadban, “Assessment of an electrocoagulation reactor for the removal of oil content and turbidity from real oily wastewater using response surface method,” Recent Innovations in Chemical Engineering, vol. 13, no. 1, pp. 55–71, 2020. [Online]. Available: https://doi.org/10.2174/2405520412666190830091842
P. P. Das, M. Sharma, and M. K. Purkait, “Recent progress on electrocoagulation process for wastewater treatment: A review,” Separation and Purification Technology, vol. 292, p. 121058, 2022.
R. D. Nsaif, S. F. Alturki, M. S. Suwaed, and A. A. Hassan, “Lead removal from refinery wastewater by using photovoltaic electro fenton oxidation,” in AIP Conference Proceedings. AIP Publishing, 2023.
A. A. Jock, M. Ibrahim, S. K. Nuhu, and A. J. Anietie, “Preparation of activated carbon adsorbent from coconut husk for the adsorption of lead (ii) ions from aqueous solution,” Nigerian Journal of Tropical Engineering, vol. 16, no. 1, pp. 1–10, 2022. [Online]. Available: https://doi.org/10.59081/njte.16.1.001
S. M. Jida and E. A. Zerefa, “Preparation and photocatalysis of zno/bentonite based on adsorption and photocatalytic activity,” Materials Research Express, vol. 10, no. 3, 2023. [Online]. Available: https://doi.org/10.1088/2053-1591/acbf0f
K. C. Jun, A. Buthiyappan, and A. A. Abdul Raman, “Application of magnetic-biomass-derived activated carbon as an adsorbent for the treatment of recalcitrant wastewater,” Chemical Papers, vol. 75, no. 10, pp. 5279–5295, 2021. [Online]. Available: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11696-021-01679-8
A. H. Alfattal and A. S. Abbas, “Synthesized 2nd generation zeolite as an acid-catalyst for esterification reaction,” Iraqi Journal of Chemical and Petroleum Engineering, vol. 20, no. 3, pp. 67–73, 2019. [Online]. Available: https://doi.org/10.31699/ijcpe.2019.3.9
N. Pandi, S. H. Sonawane, and K. Anand Kishore, “Synthesis of cellulose nanocrystals (cncs) from cotton using ultrasound-assisted acid hydrolysis,” Ultrasonics Sonochemistry, vol. 70, p. 105353, 2021. [Online]. Available: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ultsonch.2020.105353
S. Altunay, H. Kilic¸, M. K. O¨ den, and B. C¸ akmak, “Pollutant removal from mining processing wastewater by electrochemical method,” Global NEST Journal, vol. 23, no. 2, pp. 178–185, 2021. [Online]. Available: https://doi.org/10.30955/gnj.003683
X. Hu, H. Wang, and Y. Liu, “Statistical analysis of main and interaction effects on cu(ii) and cr(vi) decontamination by nitrogen-doped magnetic graphene oxide,” Scientific Reports, vol. 6, pp. 1–11, 2016. [Online]. Available: https://doi.org/10.1038/srep34378
A. A. Hassan and I. K. Shakir, “Synthesis of nanocellulose using ultrasound-assisted acid hydrolysis for adsorption/oxidation of organic pollutants in wastewater under uv and solar light,” Journal of Sustainability Science and Management, vol. 19, no. 12, pp. 120–140, 2024. [Online]. Available: https://doi.org/10.46754/jssm.2024.12.008
A. A. Hassan and K. M. M. Al-Zobai, “Chemical oxidation for oil separation from oilfield produced water under uv irradiation using titanium dioxide as a nano-photocatalyst by batch and continuous techniques,” International Journal of Chemical Engineering, vol. 2019, 2019. [Online]. Available: https://doi.org/10.1155/2019/9810728
K. M. M. Al-Zobai and A. A. Hassan, “Utilization of iron oxide nanoparticles (hematite) as adsorbent for removal of organic pollutants in refinery wastewater,” in Materials Science Forum. Trans Tech Publications, 2022, pp. 91–100.
M. A. Jasim and H. M. Kareem, “Advanced electrocoagulation reactor design for heavy metal removal from industrial effluents,” Al-Qadisiyah Journal for Engineering Sciences, vol. 15, no. 2, pp. 59–70, 2023.
A. A. Hassan, “Fabrication of solar-driven new composite heterostructure cowo4/ncw photo catalysts for enhanced adsorption/photo degradation activity of organic pollutants,” Progress in Color, Colorants and Coatings, vol. 18, pp. 201–218, 2025.
K. C. Jun, A. A. Abdul Raman, and A. Buthiyappan, “Treatment of oil refinery effluent using bio-adsorbent developed from activated palm kernel shell and zeolite,” RSC Advances, vol. 10, no. 40, pp. 24 079–24 094, 2020. [Online]. Available: https://doi.org/10.1039/d0ra03307c
A. Baiju, R. Gandhimathi, S. T. Ramesh, and P. V. Nidheesh, “Combined heterogeneous electro-fenton and biological process for the treatment of stabilized landfill leachate,” Journal of Environmental Management, vol. 210, pp. 328–337, 2018. [Online]. Available: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2018.01.019
S. U˘gurlu, A. Aldemir, and E. Bakkalbas¸ı, “Investigating the effects of a novel combined infrared-vacuum dryer on the drying kinetics and quality parameters of apple chips,” Iranian Journal of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, vol. 42, no. 12, pp. 4225–4237, 2023. [Online]. Available: https://doi.org/10.30492/ijcce.2023.1975814.5743
A. A. Hassan and K. M. Al-Zobai, “Utilization of iron oxide nanoparticles for removal of heavy metals from produced water,” Al-Qadisiyah Journal for Engineering Sciences, vol. 16, no. 1, pp. 22–31, 2024.
A. A. Hassan and I. K. Shakir, “Kinetic insights into solar-assisted fabrication and photocatalytic performance of cowo4/ncw heterostructure,” Bulletin of Chemical Reaction Engineering and Catalysis, 2024.
F. Y. AlJaberi, “New design of an electrocoagulation reactor to remove pollutants from groundwater: Analysis and optimization using response surface methodology,” South African Journal of Chemical Engineering, vol. 46, pp. 205–216, 2023. [Online]. Available: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sajce.2023.08.008
H. T. Naeem, A. A. Hassan, and R. T. Al-Khateeb, “Wastewater-(direct red dye) treatment-using solar fenton process,” Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences and Research, vol. 10, no. 9, pp. 2309–2313, 2018.
L. Jaber et al., “Adsorptive removal of lead and chromate ions from water by using iron-doped granular activated carbon obtained from coconut shells,” Sustainability, vol. 14, no. 17, pp. 1–24, 2022. [Online]. Available: https://doi.org/10.3390/su141710877
H. A. Ibrahim, A. A. Hassan, A. H. Ali, and H. M. Kareem, “Organic removal from refinery wastewater by using electro catalytic oxidation,” in AIP Conference Proceedings. AIP Publishing, 2023.
A. S. Atiyah, A. A. A. Al-Samawi, and A. A. Hassan, “Photovoltaic cell electro-fenton oxidation for treatment oily wastewater,” AIP Conference Proceedings, vol. 2235, 2020. [Online]. Available: https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0008937
F. Y. Aljaberi and W. T. Mohammed, “Analyzing the removal of lead from synthesis wastewater by electrocoagulation technique using experimental design,” Desalination and Water Treatment, vol. 111, pp. 286–296, 2018. [Online]. Available: https://doi.org/10.5004/dwt.2018.22208
Ali,N D., Hadi,H J. and Hameed,V M.. (2026). Integrated hybrid treatment for heavy metal by activated carbon and electro coagulation via new batch design reactor: Clean water production. Al-Qadisiyah Journal for Engineering Sciences, 19(2), 170-178. doi: 10.30772/qjes.2025.161102.1582
MLA
Ali,N D., , Hadi,H J., and Hameed,V M.. "Integrated hybrid treatment for heavy metal by activated carbon and electro coagulation via new batch design reactor: Clean water production", Al-Qadisiyah Journal for Engineering Sciences, 19, 2, 2026, 170-178. doi: 10.30772/qjes.2025.161102.1582
HARVARD
Ali N D., Hadi H J., Hameed V M.. (2026). 'Integrated hybrid treatment for heavy metal by activated carbon and electro coagulation via new batch design reactor: Clean water production', Al-Qadisiyah Journal for Engineering Sciences, 19(2), pp. 170-178. doi: 10.30772/qjes.2025.161102.1582
CHICAGO
N D. Ali, H J. Hadi and V M. Hameed, "Integrated hybrid treatment for heavy metal by activated carbon and electro coagulation via new batch design reactor: Clean water production," Al-Qadisiyah Journal for Engineering Sciences, 19 2 (2026): 170-178, doi: 10.30772/qjes.2025.161102.1582
VANCOUVER
Ali N D., Hadi H J., Hameed V M.. Integrated hybrid treatment for heavy metal by activated carbon and electro coagulation via new batch design reactor: Clean water production. QJES. 2026;19(2):170-178. doi: 10.30772/qjes.2025.161102.1582
