Rapid industrialization has led to the release of wastewater containing toxic heavy metals into various environments. Hexavalent chromium, Cr(VI) poses significant health and environmental risks due to its mobility and solubility across all pH ranges. It is being discharged from industries like electroplating, chrome plating, and tanneries. Real Money Rummyers have reported several methods to reduce Cr(VI) to Cr(III), including chemical reduction, photocatalytic degradation, electrochemical techniques, and biological processes. Electrochemical techniques offer advantages in terms of an easy, chemical-free operation and minimal residual contamination. Recently, interest has been growing in harnessing the chemical energy within wastewater for self-treatment through non-energy-intensive processes like microbial fuel cells and redox fuel cells. In these systems, contaminants with low redox potential function as fuels, which oxidise on the anode side to generate electrons, while those with high redox potential serve as electron acceptors, undergoing reduction at the cathode.
The present study aims to develop a novel self-sustained electrochemical reactor that can be deployed on the field to address the practical remediation of hexavalent chromium from wastewater and sediments. Experiments were conducted to thoroughly analyse the effect of different parameters on the reduction of Cr(VI). The optimised parameters will subsequently be employed in a continuous flow reactor. Moreover, the scope of the study extends beyond the aqueous phase, as remediation strategies for Cr(VI) remediation in sediment are being explored.