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The electrokinetic transport of sulfate was investigated as a means of treating and restoring a sulfateaccumulating saline soil. The electrokinetic treatment decreased the electrical conductivity of the soil, an indicator of soil salinity, to 58.6%, 73.1%, and 83.5% for 7, 14 and 21 days, respectively. More than 96% of the chloride and nitrate were removed within 7 days. However, the removal of sulfate was highly influenced by the anode material. An iron anode removed sulfate effectively, whereas, sulfate was hyper-accumulated in the anodic region when an inert anode was used. The iron anode was oxidized in a sacrificial anodic reaction, which competed with the electrolysis reaction of water at the anode, and finally the reaction prevented the severe acidification of the soil in the anodic region. However, the competing reactions produced hydrogen ions at the anode, and the ions were transported toward the cathode, which, in turn, acidified the soil, especially, in the anodic region. The acidification switched the surface charge of the soil from negative to positive, increasing the interaction between the soil surface and sulfate, and thus inhibiting the transport of sulfate under the electric field. The zeta potential 2 analysis of the soil provided an explanation. The results indicate that preventing severe acidification is an important factor which influences the transport of anions and iron anode for the enhanced removal of anionic pollutants by electrokinetic remediation.

The influence of operation time on electrokinetic restoration was investigated to remove salts from sulfate-accumulated greenhouse soil. Operation time is directly related to the process cost, therefore, we determined the relationship between operation time and removal of salts. Nitrate and sodium were removed almost completely within 2 weeks, chloride and calcium was removed in proportion to the operation time. Sulfate was accumulated at the center of anode and cathode. The soil electrical conductivity (EC), an indicator for soil salinity, showed similar shape with the residual sulfate after electrokinetic treatment. The soil EC was not changed after 2 weeks, however, the energy consumption increased with operation time. Based on the experimental results, most salts except sulfate were removed within 2 weeks, but sulfate was not removed during same time period. For the further removal of sulfate, longer operation time is in need.