Removal of chelated copper from wastewaters by Fe2+-based replacement–precipitation

We studied the removal mechanism and affecting factors of Fe2+-based replacement–precipitation process for treating CuEDTA-containing wastewaters. Since Fe2+ was easily oxidized to Fe3+ in the presence of oxygen, the chelated copper was removed by the synergetic effect of Fe3+ replacement and NaOH precipitation. Our experiments showed that the copper removal efficiency was considerably dependant on pH conditions of the solution and molar ratio of Fe2+/Cu2+.