Using sediment microbial fuel cells (SMFCs) for bioremediation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs)

• PAHs bioremediation using a microbial fuel cell.
• PAHs bioremediation in aerobic or anaerobic environment of cathodic chamber.
• A consistent power density output for more than two months.
• Smaller internal resistance compared to literatures.
• A prospective method for in situ bioremediation.

In this study, a sediment microbial fuel cell (SMFC) was explored to bioremediate polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in water originated from soil. The results showed consistent power generations of 6.02 ± 0.34 and 3.63 ± 0.37 mW/m2 under an external resistance of 1500 Ω by the aerobic and anaerobic SMFC, respectively. Although the power generations were low, they had relatively low internal resistances (i.e., 436.6 ± 69.4 and 522.1 ± 1.8 Ω for the aerobic and anaerobic SMFC, respectively) in comparison with the literature. Nevertheless, the significant benefit of this system was its bioremediation capabilities, achieving 41.7%, 31.4% and 36.2% removal of naphthalene, acenaphthene and phenanthrene, respectively, in the aerobic environment and 76.9%, 52.5% and 36.8%, respectively, in the anaerobic environment. These results demonstrated the ability of SMFCs in stimulating microorganisms for bioremediation of complex and recalcitrant PAHs.