Factors affecting the performance of microbial fuel cells for sulfide and vanadium (V) treatment

Bioprocess Biosyst Eng. 2010 Feb;33(2):187-94. doi: 10.1007/s00449-009-0312-2. Epub 2009 Mar 28.

Abstract

Sulfide and vanadium (V) are pollutants commonly found in wastewaters. A novel approach has been investigated using microbial fuel cell (MFC) technologies by employing sulfide and V(V) as electron donor and acceptor, respectively. This results in oxidizing sulfide and deoxidizing V(V) simultaneously. A series of operating parameters as initial concentration, conductivity, pH, external resistance were carefully examined. The results showed that these factors greatly affected the performance of the MFCs. The average removal rates of about 82.2 and 26.1% were achieved within 72 h operation for sulfide and V(V), respectively, which were accompanied by the maximum power density of about 614.1 mW m(-2) under all tested conditions. The products generated during MFC operation could be deposited, resulting in removing sulfide and V(V) from wastewaters thoroughly.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Bioelectric Energy Sources*
  • Carbon / chemistry
  • Electric Conductivity
  • Electric Impedance
  • Electricity
  • Electrochemistry / methods
  • Equipment Design
  • Hydrogen-Ion Concentration
  • Models, Chemical
  • Sulfides / chemistry
  • Sulfides / isolation & purification*
  • Time Factors
  • Vanadium / chemistry
  • Vanadium / isolation & purification*
  • Waste Disposal, Fluid / instrumentation
  • Water Pollutants, Chemical / analysis
  • Water Pollutants, Chemical / isolation & purification*
  • Water Purification

Substances

  • Sulfides
  • Water Pollutants, Chemical
  • Vanadium
  • Carbon