title: Use of cassette-electrode microbial fuel cell for wastewater treatment.
abstract: Cassette-electrode microbial fuel cells (CE-MFCs) have been developed for the conversion of biomass wastes into electric energy. The present study modified CE-MFC for its application to wastewater treatment and examined its utility in a long-term (240 days) experiment to treat a synthetic wastewater, containing starch, yeast extract, peptone, plant oil, and a detergent (approximately 500 mg of total chemical oxygen demand [COD] per liter). A test MFC reactor (1 l in capacity) was equipped with 10 cassette electrodes with total anode and cathode projection areas of 1440 cm(2), and the operation was initiated by inoculating with rice paddy-field soil. It was demonstrated that CE-MFC achieved COD removal rates of 80% at hydraulic-retention times of 6 h or greater, and electricity was generated at a maximum power density of 150 mW m(-2) and Coulombic efficiency of 20%. Microbial communities established on anodes of CEs were analyzed by pyrosequencing of PCR-amplified 16S rRNA gene fragments, showing that Geobacter, Clostridium, and Geothrix were abundantly detected in anode biofilms. These results demonstrate the utility of CE-MFC for wastewater treatment, in which Geobacter and Geothrix would be involved in the electricity generation.
authors.affiliation: Hashimoto Light Energy Conversion Project, ERATO/JST, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-8656, Japan.
authors.forename: Morio
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Miyahara
authors.forename: Kazuhito
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Hashimoto
authors.forename: Kazuya
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Watanabe
mesh_terms: D061271:Acidobacteria / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000378:metabolism; D001674:Bioelectric Energy Sources; D018441:Biofilms / Q000254:growth & development; D018533:Biomass; D019149:Bioreactors; D003013:Clostridium / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000378:metabolism; D003902:Detergents / Q000378:metabolism; D004560:Electricity; D004566:Electrodes; D045302:Geobacter / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000378:metabolism; D010100:Oxygen / Q000378:metabolism; D010461:Peptones / Q000378:metabolism; D010938:Plant Oils / Q000378:metabolism; D012722:Sewage / Q000737:chemistry / Q000382:microbiology; D012987:Soil; D013213:Starch / Q000378:metabolism; D013997:Time Factors; D062065:Wastewater / Q000737:chemistry*; D018508:Water Purification / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods; D015003:Yeasts / Q000737:chemistry
chemical_list: D003902:Detergents; D010100:Oxygen; D010461:Peptones; D010938:Plant Oils; D012722:Sewage; D012987:Soil; D013213:Starch; D062065:Wastewater