Microbial electrochemical snorkels (MESs): A budding technology for multiple applications. A mini review

Hoareau, Morgane; Erable, Benjamin; Bergel, Alain

doi:10.1016/j.elecom.2019.05.022

Cited by 44 publications

(29 citation statements)

References 28 publications

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“…( Sleutels et al, 2012 ). However, the development of MET-based treatment concepts such as snorkels ( Hoareau et al, 2019 , Viggi et al, 2015 ) or METlands ( Aguirre-Sierra et al, 2020 , Prado et al, 2020 ) highlights the importance of the microbial ecology function over reactor materials and engineering ( Koch et al, 2018 ). In consequence, only two components might be needed to reach an improvement of bioremediation activities: the appropriate microbiome inhering electroactive microorganisms and a conductive support serving as electrode.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Electrifying biotrickling filters for the treatment of aquaponics wastewater

Pous

Korth

Osset-Álvarez

et al. 2021

Bioresource Technology

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Highlights Non-conductive filling material brought insufficient and uncontrollable N removal. Polarized conductive filling material provided limited but controllable N removal. Mix of non-conductive and polarized conductive material were the most active. The electrified biotrickling filter met the N standards, closing aquaponics loop.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Electrifying biotrickling filters for the treatment of aquaponics wastewater

Pous

Korth

Osset-Álvarez

et al. 2021

Bioresource Technology

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“…A snorkel is a short-circuited MFC, where a microbial anode is directly coupled with a biotic or abiotic cathode. The snorkel does not produce (or require) power, but it works at the maximum current sustainable by the system, and at the same time, hence, at the maximum electrochemical reaction rate (Hoareau et al, 2019). This systems is characterized by its extreme simplicity, as it may be constituted by a single rod (graphite, steel or carbon), exposed to two different redox environments (Viggi et al, 2017(Viggi et al, , 2015.…”

Section: Energy Consumption: An Often-neglected Parametermentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, the snorkel is a relatively new type of BESs, and some challenges might be unsolved, such as the inability of fully controlling the electrode potential, the lack of accurate delimitation of anodic and cathodic zones, and the possible presence of oxygen in the anodic zone. Some solutions, including numerical and mathematical modelling and use of anocathodophilic biofilms have been proposed (Hoareau et al, 2019).…”

Section: Energy Consumption: An Often-neglected Parametermentioning

confidence: 99%

<em>In situ</em> Groundwater Treatment with Bioelectrochemical Systems (BES): Critical Review and Future Perspectives

Cecconet¹,

Sabba²,

Devecseri³

et al. 2019

Preprint

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Groundwater contamination is an ever-growing environmental issue, that has attracted much and undiminished attention for the past half century. Groundwater contamination originates from anthropogenic (e.g. hydrocarbons), natural compounds (e.g. nitrate and arsenic), or both; to tackle these contaminants different technologies have been tested during the years. Recently, bioelectrochemical systems (BESs) have emerged as a potential treatment for groundwater contamination, with in situ applications reported, that showed promising results. Nitrate and hydrocarbons (toluene, phenanthrene, benzene, BTEX and light PAHs) have been successfully removed, due to the interaction of microbial metabolism with poised electrodes, other than physical migration due to the electric field generated in BES. The selection of proper BESs relies on several factors and problems such as complexity of the groundwater, scale-up and energy requirements that need to be taken into account. Modelling efforts could help predict case scenarios and choose an ideal design and approach to solve these issues. In this review, we critically analyze in situ BES applications for groundwater remediation, focusing in particular on the different setups proposed, and we identify and discuss the existing research gaps in the field.

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“…Originally, the concept of such a microbial electrochemical snorkel, a simplified design of a "short-circuited" microbial fuel cell (MFC), was proposed as a means to accelerate the anaerobic treatment of wastewater relative to a traditional MFC. More recently, the potential of this technology to sustain redox processes over long periods, with no need for continued maintenance, has attracted the interest for broader applications, including environmental remediation [15,16,23] and also metal recovery [24]. However, application of BES to environments exposed to enhanced HP (i.e., 5 MPa) has been explored marginally: Reimers et al operated benthic microbial fuel cells at a cold seep (~10 MPa [25,26]), and Kobayashi et al conducted electromethanogenesis tests in laboratory-scale systems (5 MPa [27]).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Enhanced Hydrocarbons Biodegradation at Deep-Sea Hydrostatic Pressure with Microbial Electrochemical Snorkels

et al. 2021

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In anaerobic sediments, microbial degradation of petroleum hydrocarbons is limited by the rapid depletion of electron acceptors (e.g., ferric oxide, sulfate) and accumulation of toxic metabolites (e.g., sulfide, following sulfate reduction). Deep-sea sediments are increasingly impacted by oil contamination, and the elevated hydrostatic pressure (HP) they are subjected to represents an additional limitation for microbial metabolism. While the use of electrodes to support electrobioremediation in oil-contaminated sediments has been described, there is no evidence on their applicability for deep-sea sediments. Here, we tested a passive bioelectrochemical system named ”oil-spill snorkel” with two crude oils carrying different alkane contents (4 vs. 15%), at increased or ambient HP (10 vs. 0.1 MPa). Snorkels enhanced alkanes biodegradation at both 10 and 0.1 MPa within only seven weeks, as compared to nonconductive glass controls. Microprofiles in anaerobic, contaminated sediments indicated that snorkels kept sulfide concentration to low titers. Bulk-sediment analysis confirmed that sulfide oxidation by snorkels largely regenerated sulfate. Hence, the sole application of snorkels could eliminate a toxicity factor and replenish a spent electron acceptor at increased HP. Both aspects are crucial for petroleum decontamination of the deep sea, a remote environment featured by low metabolic activity.

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Microbial electrochemical snorkels (MESs): A budding technology for multiple applications. A mini review

Cited by 44 publications

References 28 publications

Electrifying biotrickling filters for the treatment of aquaponics wastewater

Electrifying biotrickling filters for the treatment of aquaponics wastewater

<em>In situ</em> Groundwater Treatment with Bioelectrochemical Systems (BES): Critical Review and Future Perspectives

Enhanced Hydrocarbons Biodegradation at Deep-Sea Hydrostatic Pressure with Microbial Electrochemical Snorkels

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