TITLE:
Microbial Fuel Cells for Nitrate Removal in Ground Water
AUTHORS:
Xiao Xiao, Kangping Cui
KEYWORDS:
Microbial Fuel Cell, Groundwater, Nitrate
JOURNAL NAME:
Advances in Microbiology,
Vol.5 No.6,
June
23,
2015
ABSTRACT: The increasing nitrate concentration in groundwater has become a serious concern
all over the world. In this study, the double chamber microbial fuel cell (MFC)
and single chamber MFC systems were proposed for simultaneous removal of chemical
oxygen demand (COD) and nitrate (NO3- - N). Transforming the various variables (cathod materials, external
resistance and initial concentrations of NO3- - N) of double chamber MFC to determine the optimal operating parameters.
Observing the treatment effect of single chamber MFC when adding an external
resistance. The results showed: in the case of connecting external circuit, the
double chamber MFC could reach the best degradation effect of NO3- - N and COD when cathode and anode materials are made of stainless steel
velvet, the external resistance of 100 Ω and the initial concentrations of NO3- - N of around 250 mg/L. The best degradation rate of NO3- - N and COD reached 66.88% and 82.85% respectively. Adding an external solar
power to single chamber could enhance the treatment effect; specifically, NO3- - N and COD removal rate reached 65.06% and 70.42% respectively, 6.14% and
9.73% higher than without external power.