Effect of Configurations, Bacterial Adhesion, and Anode Surface Area on Performance of Microbial Fuel Cells Used for Treatment of Synthetic Wastewater

Abstract

This study shows the effects of various conditions on performance of microbial fuel cells (MFCs) used to treat synthetic wastewater that contained glucose. The conditions included the following: three different configurations (dual-chamber MFC with proton exchange membrane (PEM), single-chamber MFC with PEM, and single-chamber MFC without PEM); bacterial adhesion; and increasing the anode surface area by using activated alumina, extruded activated carbon, and granular activated carbon. The maximum voltage production, power density, and COD removal values were 28 mV, 0.46 mW/m 2 , and 68.8 %, respectively, in case of dual-chamber MFC with PEM; 3 mV, 0.0053 mW/ m 2 , and 54.5 %, respectively, in case of single-chamber MFC with PEM; and 78 mV, 10.77 mW/m 2 , and 83 %, respectively, in case of single-chamber MFC without PEM. The voltage generation, power density, and COD removal increased to 351 mV, 218 mW/m 2 , and 98.7 %, respectively, when using an anode electrode that was immersed in the microbial solution for 1 week beforehand in the single-chamber MFC without PEM. The voltage generation and power density improved to 420 mV and 312 mW/m 2 , respectively, after increasing the anode area through with 170 g activated alumina, but no improvement was observed when using extruded activated carbon or granular activated carbon under the same conditions.

A comparative study on treatment of wastewaters with various biodegradability and various pH values using single‐chamber microbial fuel cells

“…The chamber was sparged with nitrogen gas before performing the experiments to flush out any air inside the chamber. The wastewater was mixed at 100 rpm while the MFC was in operation (Ahmed et al, ).…”

“…The cathodes and anodes were connected with a titanium wire. The voltage ( V ), generated across the external resistance ( R ext = 50 Ω), was measured at 1‐h intervals using a data acquisition system (USB DrDAQ Data Logger, Pico Tech., UK) connected to a computer (Ahmed et al, ). The current intensity (I) through the external resistance was determined using Ohm's law (I = V/R).…”

“…These fuels range from glucose, sucrose and acetate to toxic chemicals including phenol (Pham et al, ; Antonopoulou et al, ; Sevda et al, ; Zhou et al, ). The single‐chamber MFC is considered to be the most simplified reactor configuration (Ahmed et al, ). In the single‐chamber MFC, the pH has a substantial effect on both anodic microbial activities and cathodic reactions (Oliveira et al, ).…”

Performance Evaluation of IFAS System Using Honeycomb PVC Media

“…Wastewater treatment systems depend mainly on the biological action of different types of microorganisms, primarily bacteria, for removing dissolved and suspended organic matter (Schultz 2005;Ahmed et al 2013). Biological treatment processes can be principally divided into aerobic and anaerobic processes where they can be further subdivided into suspended-growth processes, attached-growth processes or a combination of both (Ahmed et al 2015;Safwat et al 2018). In suspended growth processes, the microorganisms responsible for treatment are maintained in suspension by appropriate mixing methods as in Activated sludge process (ASP), sequencing batch reactor (SBR), stabilization ponds and extended aeration systems.…”

Upgrading Conventional Activated Sludge System Using Bio-media: A Case Study of Zenin Wastewater Treatment Plant, Egypt

“…There are several methods used around the world for biological treatment processes, some are based on suspended growth (e.g., the activated sludge system), and others are based on attached growth (e.g., the moving bed biofilm reactor) (Ahmed et al, 2016;Wei et al, 2016). Recently, the two methods of growth can be combined (e.g., Integrated Fixed Film Activated Sludge system (IFAS)) (Ahmed et al, 2015;Di Trapani et al, 2011;S. M. Safwat, 2018).…”