AbstractAn electrochemical oxidation cell is used to reduce the concentrations of organic dyes and chemical oxygen demand in an aqueous effluent. The importance of the presence of an electrolyte is recorded and the effects of changing both electrolyte concentration and initial dye concentration are reported. The rate of the electrooxidation process is shown to be a pseudo‐first‐order kinetic process with the rate constant being affected by both the electrolyte concentration and the dye concentration. The use of different electrolytes is reported.