Untreated domestic wastewater normally contains ammonia, nitrogen compounds and phosphorus compounds. An over-concentration of nitrogen can cause significant environmental issues, such as ecological imbalance, increased instance of toxic algae overgrowth in waterways, depleting oxygen levels wiping out marine life, polluting drinking water supplies, etc.

Because of health and environmental dangers, denitrification is a vital step in wastewater treatment to comply with stringent discharge limitations. Distinguished from biological method, electrochemical denitrification is a sustainable way due to its high removal efficiency with lower operational cost and ease of operation. It directly converts nitrate-nitrogen content into a benign gas which can be safely discharged into the environment.