| 22 June 2010
Researchers at Universidad de Alicante in Spain have shown that the direct current output from photovoltaic (PV) cells can directly power another green technology, electrooxidation wastewater treatment.
As reported in an Environmental Science & Technology paper, they studied how an industrial electrochemical filter press reactor would respond to the non-constant energy produced by a 40-module PV array. They tested the system by treating a dye-containing solution (Remazol RB 133), achieving a decolorization of more than 95%. The researchers found that the optimum PV array configuration changed with solar irradiation intensity, solution conductivity, and the pollutant concentration. They point out that studies on the energy efficiency of the coupled process and operating costs are still needed.
Paper:
Environmental Science & Technology, DOI: 10.1021/es100555z
