title: Activated carbon cloth as anode for sulfate removal in a microbial fuel cell.
abstract: By employing the sulfate-reducing bacterium Desulfovibrio desulfuricans we demonstrate the possibility of electricity generation in a microbialfuel cell (MFC) with concomitant sulfate removal. This approach is based on an in situ anodic oxidative depletion of sulfide produced by D. desulfuricans. Three different electrode materials, graphite foil (GF), carbon fiber veil (CFV), and high surface area activated carbon cloth (ACC), were evaluated for sulfide electrochemical oxidation. In comparison to CFV and GF electrodes, ACC was a superior materialfor sulfide adsorption and oxidation and showed significant potential for harvesting energy from sulfate-rich solutions in the form of electricity. Sulfate (3.03 g dm(-3)) was removed from a bacterial suspension, which represented 99% removal. A maximum power density of 0.51 mW cm(-2) (normalized to geometric electrode area) was obtained with a one-chamber, air-breathing cathode and continuous flow MFC operated in batch mode at 22 degrees C.
authors.affiliation: Chemical Sciences, Biological Sciences, University of Surrey, Guildford GU2 7XH, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Feng
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Zhao
authors.forename: Nelli
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Rahunen
authors.forename: John R
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Varcoe
authors.forename: Amreesh
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Chandra
authors.forename: Claudio
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Avignone-Rossa
authors.forename: Alfred E
authors.initials: AE
authors.lastname: Thumser
authors.forename: Robert C T
authors.initials: RC
authors.lastname: Slade
mesh_terms: D000327:Adsorption; D001673:Biodegradation, Environmental; D019149:Bioreactors; D002606:Charcoal / Q000378:metabolism*; D002852:Chromatography, Ion Exchange; D045285:Desulfovibrio desulfuricans / Q000378:metabolism*; D004563:Electrochemistry; D004566:Electrodes; D004736:Energy-Generating Resources; D010084:Oxidation-Reduction; D013431:Sulfates / Q000378:metabolism*; D014865:Waste Disposal, Fluid / Q000379:methods*
chemical_list: D013431:Sulfates; D002606:Charcoal