Producing electrical energy in microbial fuel cells based on sulphate reduction: a review
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REVIEW ARTICLE
Producing electrical energy in microbial fuel cells based on sulphate reduction: a review Isabel Cristina Braga Rodrigues 1,2
&
Versiane A. Leão 1
Received: 29 January 2020 / Accepted: 12 June 2020 # Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature 2020
Abstract Combination of the treatment of effluents with high organic loads and the production of electricity is the driving forces stimulating the development of microbial fuel cells (MFC). The increase in electricity production in MFCs requires not only the optimization of the operational parameters but also the inhibition of the metabolic pathways, which compete with electricity production, such as methanogenesis. The presence of both sulphate and sulphide ions in conventional anaerobic reactors hampers the growth of methanogenic archaea and justifies the use of sulphate and therefore sulphate-reducing bacteria (SRB) in the anodic half-cell of MFC. Most importantly, the literature on the subject reveals that SRB are able to directly transfer electrons to solid electrodes, enabling the production of electrical energy. This technology is versatile because it associates the removal of both sulphate and the chemical oxygen demand (COD) with the production of electricity. Therefore, the current work revises the main aspects related to the inoculation of MFC with SRB focusing on (i) the microbial interactions in the anodic chamber, (ii) the electron transfer pathways to the solid anode, and also (iii) the sulphate and COD removal yields along with the electricity production efficiencies. Keywords Bioelectrochemistry . Anaerobic digestion . Sulphate-reducing bacteria . Biofuel . Wastewater . Industrial effluents
Introduction Following an increasing awareness of the effects of fossil fuels on global warming, new and alternative energy-producing technologies have been intensively researched. Another important concept in modern society is the circular economy, which has changed the perception of residues and effluents, now regarded as valuable resources (Goglio et al. 2019; Manzano-Agugliaro et al. 2013). Both principles have induced the development of microbial fuel cells (MFC) aiming
Responsible editor: Weiming Zhang * Isabel Cristina Braga Rodrigues [email protected]; [email protected] Versiane A. Leão [email protected] 1
Programa de Pós-Graduação em Engenharia Ambiental da Universidade Federal de Ouro Preto, Ouro Preto, Brazil
2
Departamento de Bioquímica, Biotecnologia e Engenharia de Bioprocessos da Universidade Federal de São João del-Rei, Campus Alto Paraopeba, Ouro Branco, Brazil
at producing electricity from the anaerobic oxidation of organic matter (Pandey et al. 2016). A large-scale utilization of MFCs is still beyond reach, but energy recovery during wastewater treatment is most likely to happen in the near future (Logan 2009). An MFC layout comprises two electrically connected chambers. In the anodic half-cell, a biologically mediated oxidation reaction produces electrons, which are externally transferred t
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