Performance of Single-Chamber Microbial Fuel Cells Using Different Carbohydrate-Rich Wastewaters and Different Inocula

Abstract

Non-renewable energy sources are becoming increasingly limited; therefore, the development of sustainable energy alternatives is necessary due to environmental pollution, energy depletion, and climate change [1,2]. Because bacteria gain metabolic energy through transferring electrons from an electron donor (substrate) to an electron acceptor, many researchers believe that fuel cell systems could be an acceptable alternative to nonrenewable energy. Microbial fuel cells (MFCs) can offer great economic and environmental benefi ts through the Pol. J. Environ. Stud. Vol. 25, No. 2 (2016), 503-510 AbstractA microbial fuel cell (MFC) can use wastewater as a substrate; hence, it is essential to understand its performance when seeded with different inocula and during the treatment of carbohydrate-rich wastewaters to simultaneously optimize electricity production and wastewater treatment. This study investigates the performance of single-chamber membraneless MFCs used to treat three different carbohydrate-rich synthetic wastewaters (glucose, sucrose, and soluble starch) while seeding with two different inocula (a microbial solution containing different species of microorganisms, and anaerobic sludge). The results showed that the highest voltages, power densities, and COD removal effi ciencies were obtained using microbial fuel cells fed with glucose-based synthetic wastewater, and were 351 mV, 218 mW/m 2 , and 98.8%, respectively, for the microbial solution, and 508 mV, 456.8 mW/m 2 , and 94.3%, respectively, for the anaerobic sludge. The lowest results of voltages, power densities, and COD removal effi ciencies were obtained using microbial fuel cells fed with the soluble starch-based synthetic wastewater, and were 281 mV, 139.8 mW/m 2 , and 86.4%, respectively, for the microbial solution, and 396 mV, 277.6 mW/m 2 , and 79.4%, respectively, for the anaerobic sludge. In all experiments, the voltages and power densities obtained for the anaerobic sludge were higher than those obtained for the microbial solution, and the COD removal effi ciencies obtained for the anaerobic sludge were less than those obtained for the microbial solution. This study determined that voltage generation, power densities, and COD removal effi ciencies were inversely proportional to the complexity of the carbohydrate used in single-chamber microbial fuel cells.

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

“…A single‐chamber membrane‐less MFC was used in the experiments in a batch mode as shown in Fig (Ahmed et al, ). The chamber had a circular cross‐section with an effective volume of 0.5 liters.…”

“…Increasing the recovery of electrons from the substrate, increasing power generation and reducing material costs are among the primary challenges in improving MFC performance (Zhang et al, ). Mixed cultures have been shown to be robust and more productive in MFCs than single strains, and their extraction can be easily achieved from natural sources (Ahmed et al, ). The substrate is considered one of the important biochemical factors affecting power production in MFCs.…”

Growth Inhibition of Various Pathogenic Microorganisms Using Effective Microorganisms (EM)

“…Domestic wastewater contains a wide variety of nonpathogenic and pathogenic bacteria. Among these pathogenic bacteria is the genus salmonella which can cause disease in humans and animals [1][2]. Fungi can be found in wastewater, but their presence is undesirable.…”

Performance Evaluation of IFAS System Using Honeycomb PVC Media

“…The media on which the biofilm develops are carefully designed with high internal surface area having density slightly less than that of water so that it can easily buoy. There are various types of media which can be used for the microbial growth but the most commonly used solid surface for attached growth processes are stones, clinker, sand, activated charcoal, ceramic, metals, plastic sheets, and foams (Shrestha 2013;ahmed et al 2016). (Ngo et al 2006) used prism-shaped sponge in wastewater treatment and obtained significant increase in performance in terms of both organic and nutrient removal efficiencies.…”