In situ investigation of tubular microbial fuel cells deployed in an aeration tank at a municipal wastewater treatment plant

To examine the feasibility of integrating microbial fuel cells (MFCs) into an activated sludge process, three MFCs with different ion exchange membranes and/or cathode catalysts were installed in an aeration tank to treat primary effluent. Both contaminant treatment and electricity generation were studied during the operation for more than 400 days. The effects of membrane/catalysts on MFC performance were not observed, likely due to the low removal of chemical oxygen demand (COD) (<53%) caused by low electricity generation. The MFCs did not achieve any obvious removal of nutrients. The produced energy was lower than the theoretic energy consumption. The performance was seriously affected by cathode biofouling, variation of wastewater quality, and other operating conditions. Unlike prior lab studies by others, the results of this study suggest that MFCs may not be suitable for deployment in an aeration tank, unless the key problems such as biofouling are solved.