A microbial fuel cell equipped with a biocathode for organic removal and denitrification.

Microbial fuel cells (MFCs) are a promising anaerobic technology but they are limited by the high cost of the catalyst used at the cathode (typically platinum). In this study, we designed a novel type of two-chambered MFC wherein an autoheterotrophic denitrifying biofilm replaced the costly catalyst on the cathode surface. Micro-organisms performed denitrification by using electrons supplied by bacteria oxidizing domestic wastewater and acetate as substrates in the anode chamber. This two-chambered MFC equipped with a biocathode generated during more than 1.5 month up to 9.4 mW m(-2) of anode surface or 0.19 W m(-3) of anode chamber volume, while removing over 65% of COD, 84% of total nitrogen and nearly 30% of suspended solids with domestic wastewater as a substrate, and nearly 95% of acetate in the subsequent experiments.

[1]  Bruce E Logan,et al.  Cathode performance as a factor in electricity generation in microbial fuel cells. , 2004, Environmental science & technology.

[2]  Hong Liu,et al.  Production of electricity from acetate or butyrate using a single-chamber microbial fuel cell. , 2005, Environmental science & technology.

[3]  L. T. Angenent,et al.  Application of Bacterial Biocathodes in Microbial Fuel Cells , 2006 .

[4]  Tingyue Gu,et al.  A state of the art review on microbial fuel cells: A promising technology for wastewater treatment and bioenergy. , 2007, Biotechnology advances.

[5]  A. Al-Mamun,et al.  An insight into cathode options for microbial fuel cells. , 2008, Water science and technology : a journal of the International Association on Water Pollution Research.

[6]  Yong-Jin Choi,et al.  Nitrate reduction using an electrode as direct electron donor in a biofilm-electrode reactor , 2005 .

[7]  Willy Verstraete,et al.  Biological denitrification in microbial fuel cells. , 2007, Environmental science & technology.

[8]  C. Woese,et al.  Methanogens: reevaluation of a unique biological group , 1979, Microbiological reviews.

[9]  D. Lovley,et al.  Rapidly growing rumen methanogenic organism that synthesizes coenzyme M and has a high affinity for formate , 1984, Applied and environmental microbiology.

[10]  B. Min,et al.  Electricity generation from swine wastewater using microbial fuel cells. , 2005, Water research.

[11]  Stefano Freguia,et al.  Microbial fuel cells: methodology and technology. , 2006, Environmental science & technology.