Yun-Kun Wang

Development of a Novel Bioelectrochemical Membrane Reactor for Wastewater Treatment

A novel bioelectrochemical membrane reactor (BEMR), which takes advantage of a membrane bioreactor (MBR) and microbial fuel cells (MFC), is developed for wastewater treatment and energy recovery. In this system, stainless steel mesh with biofilm formed on it serves as both the cathode and the filtration material. Oxygen reduction reactions are effectively catalyzed by the microorganisms attached on the mesh. The effluent turbidity from the BEMR system was low during most of the operation period, and the chemical oxygen demand and NH(4)(+)-N removal efficiencies averaged 92.4% and 95.6%, respectively. With an increase in hydraulic retention time and a decrease in loading rate, the system performance was enhanced. In this BEMR process, a maximum power density of 4.35 W/m(3) and a current density of 18.32 A/m(3) were obtained at a hydraulic retention time of 150 min and external resister of 100 Ω. The Coulombic efficiency was 8.2%. Though the power density and current density of the BEMR system were not very high, compared with other high-output MFC systems, electricity recovery could be further enhanced through optimizing the operation conditions and BEMR configurations. Results clearly indicate that this innovative system holds great promise for efficient treatment of wastewater and energy recovery.

A Novel Electrochemical Membrane Bioreactor as a Potential Net Energy Producer for Sustainable Wastewater Treatment

One possible way to address both water and energy shortage issues, the two of major global challenges, is to recover energy and water resource from wastewater. Herein, a novel electrochemical membrane bioreactor (EMBR) was developed to recover energy from wastewater and meantime harvest clean water for reuse. With the help of the microorganisms in the biocatalysis and biodegradation process, net electricity could be recovered from a low-strength synthetic wastewater after estimating total energy consumption of this system. In addition, high-quality clean water was obtained for reuse. The results clearly demonstrate that, under the optimized operating conditions, it is possible to recover net energy from wastewater, while at the same time to harvest high-quality effluent for reuse with this novel wastewater treatment system.

In-situ utilization of generated electricity in an electrochemical membrane bioreactor to mitigate membrane fouling

How to mitigate membrane fouling remains a critical challenge for widespread application of membrane bioreactors. Herein, an antifouling electrochemical membrane bioreactor (EMBR) was developed based on in-situ utilization of the generated electricity for fouling control. In this system, a maximum power density of 1.43 W/m(3) and a current density of 18.49 A/m(3) were obtained. The results demonstrate that the formed electric field reduced the deposition of sludge on membrane surface by enhancing the electrostatic repulsive force between them. The produced H2O2 at the cathode also contributed to the fouling mitigation by in-situ removing the membrane foulants. In addition, 93.7% chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal and 96.5% NH4(+)-N removal in average as well as a low effluent turbidity of below 2 NTU were achieved, indicating a good wastewater treatment performance of the EMBR. This work provides a proof-of-concept study of an antifouling MBR with high wastewater treatment efficiency and electricity recovery, and implies that electrochemical control might provide another promising avenue to in-situ suppress the membrane fouling in MBRs.

A bio-photoelectrochemical cell with a MoS3-modified silicon nanowire photocathode for hydrogen and electricity production

Hydrogen production by solar energy conversion is an attractive and promising sustainable energy technology. Tremendous research effort has been directed towards the development and application of photoelectrochemical cells for hydrogen generation. Here, we report a novel bio-photoelectrochemical cell, which consists of a MoS3 modified p-type Si nanowire photocathode and a microbially catalyzed bioanode, for hydrogen production under visible light illumination. Microbial pollutant oxidation occurs spontaneously in the bioanode, which provides sufficient electrons for the photocathode reaction without external bias. The recombination of the photogenerated hole (hvb+) and electron (ecb−) pairs at the photocathode is retarded by the supply of electrons from the bioanode, leaving more available photogenerated electrons for hydrogen evolution reactions. As a result, the hydrogen production performance is improved. Under light illumination, hydrogen is continuously produced from the bio-photoelectrochemical cell, with a maximum power density of 71 mW m−2 and an average hydrogen-producing rate of 7.5 ± 0.3 μmol h−1 cm−2.

Bioelectrochemical Chromium(VI) Removal in Plant-Microbial Fuel Cells

Plant-microbial fuel cell (PMFC) is a renewable and sustainable energy technology that generates electricity with living plants. However, little information is available regarding the application of PMFC for the remediation of heavy metal contaminated water or soil. In this study, the potential for the removal of heavy metal Cr(VI) using PMFC was evaluated, and the performance of the PMFC at various initial Cr(VI) contents was investigated. The Cr(VI) removal efficiency could reached 99% under various conditions. Both the Cr(VI) removal rates and the removal efficiencies increased with the increasing initial Cr(VI) concentration. Furthermore, the long-term operation of the PMFC indicated that the system was stable and sustainable for Cr(VI) removal. The mass balance results and XPS analysis results demonstrate that only a small amount of soluble Cr(III) remained in the PMFC and that most Cr(III) precipitated in the form of the Cr(OH)3(s) or was adsorbed onto the electrodes. The PMFC experiments of without acetate addition also show that plants can provide carbon source for MFC through secrete root exudates and bioelectrochemical reduction of Cr(VI) was the main mechanism for the Cr(VI) removal. These results extend the application fields of PMFC and might provide a new insight for Cr(VI) removal from wastewater or soil.

Impact of a static magnetic field on the electricity production of Shewanella-inoculated microbial fuel cells

The electricity production of Shewanella-inoculated microbial fuel cells (MFCs) under magnetic field (MF) exposure was investigated in different reactor systems. The persistency of the MF effect and the influences of MF intensity and direction on MFC performance were also studied. Application of a 100-mT static MF to the MFCs improved electricity production considerably, with an increase in the maximum voltage by 20-27% in both single- and two-chamber MFCs, while a more conspicuous improvement in the electricity generation was observed in a three-electrode cell. The MF effects were found to be immediate and reversible, and adverse effects seemed to occur when the MF was suddenly removed. The medium components analysis demonstrated that the application of MF led to an enhanced bioelectrochemical activity of Shewanella, and no significant promotion in mediator secretion was found. The improvement in the electricity production of MFCs under MF was mainly attributed to the enhanced bioelectrochemical activity, possibly through the oxidative stress mechanism. An accelerated cell growth under MF might also contribute to the enhanced substrate degradation and power generation.

A pilot investigation into membrane bioreactor using mesh filter for treating low-strength municipal wastewater

A pilot-scale submerged membrane bioreactor (MBR) using nylon mesh as filter was investigated for treatment of low-strength municipal wastewater (average influent COD=145.7±59.9 mg/L). During the operation, biomass was effectively retained by the nylon mesh with biofilm attached, and a low effluent turbidity of below 2 NTU was obtained. The average COD and NH(4)(+)-N removal efficiencies reached 86.3% and 98.1%, respectively, at a hydraulic retention time of 5 h. A sludge concentration of 4.15±0.15 g/L was maintained in the system without excess sludge discharge, attributed to the prolonged solid retention time and low organic loading rate. The low sludge concentration was also beneficial for mitigating the filter fouling. Thus, this mesh filter MBR provides a low-cost, efficient and simple approach to treat municipal wastewater, and shows a high potential for application in rural and sparsely populated areas.

Integration of aerobic granular sludge and mesh filter membrane bioreactor for cost-effective wastewater treatment

Conventional MBR has been mostly based on floc sludge and the use of costly microfiltration membranes. Here, a novel aerobic granule (AG)-mesh filter MBR (MMBR) process was developed for cost-effective wastewater treatment. During 32-day continuous operation, a predominance of granules was maintained in the system, and good filtration performance was achieved at a low trans-membrane pressure (TMP) of below 0.025 m. The granules showed a lower fouling propensity than sludge flocs, attributed to the formation of more porous biocake layer at mesh surface. A low-flux and low-TMP filtration favored a stable system operation. In addition, the reactor had high pollutant removal efficiencies, with a 91.4% chemical oxygen demand removal, 95.7% NH(4)(+) removal, and a low effluent turbidity of 4.1 NTU at the stable stage. This AG-MMBR process offers a promising technology for low-cost and efficient treatment of wastewaters.

Quorum quenching is responsible for the underestimated quorum sensing effects in biological wastewater treatment reactors.

Quorum sensing (QS) and quorum quenching (QQ) are two antagonistic processes coexisting in various bacterial communities in bioreactors, e.g., activated sludge for biological wastewater treatment. Although QS signal molecules are detected in activated sludge reactors and known to affect sludge properties and reactor performance, there has been no direct evidence to prove the endogenous existence of QQ effects in activated sludge. In this study, for the first time, acyl homoserine lactones-degrading enzymatic activity, a typical QQ effect, was discovered in activated sludge and found to considerably affect the QS detection results. The coexistence of QS and QQ bacteria in activated sludge was further confirmed by bacterial screening and denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis analysis. The method developed in this study could also be used to evaluate QQ activities in bioreactors, and a possible way is provided to tune bioreactor performance through balancing the QS and QQ processes.

Effect of bio-electrochemical system on the fate and proliferation of chloramphenicol resistance genes during the treatment of chloramphenicol wastewater

Bioelectrochemical systems can effectively degrade antibiotics, but there is the need to better understand the fate of antibiotic resistance bacteria and antibiotic resistance genes during the bioelectrochemical degradation of antibiotics. In this study, a BES was developed as a platform to investigate the fate of chloramphenicol resistance bacteria (CRB) and the expression of chloramphenicol resistance genes (CRGs) under different operating conditions during chloramphenicol biodegradation. The results indicated that chloramphenicol was effectively removed and chloramphenicol removal efficiency could be improved under less chloramphenicol concentration and more negative cathode potential. Higher chloramphenicol concentration enhanced the enrichment of CRB and expression of CRGs. Furthermore, the abundances of CRB were enhanced under more negative cathode potential, the expression of CRGs under less negative cathode potential were induced. However, both the enrichment of CRB and expression of CRGs could be moderated under a medium cathode potential. This result could provide the scientific reference for research about the fate of antibiotic resistance genes in bioelectrochemical systems.