Utilization of single-chamber microbial fuel cells as renewable power sources for electrochemical degradation of nitrogen-containing organic compounds

By employing promising single-chamber microbial fuel cells (MFCs) as renewable power sources, an aerated electrochemical system is proposed and for nitrogen-containing organic compounds (pyridine and methyl orange) removals. Carbon felt performed the best as electrode material while lower initial contaminant concentration and lower initial pH value could improve the performance. A degradation efficiency of 82.9% for pyridine was achieved after 360 min electrolysis with its initial concentration of 200 mg/L, initial pH of 3.0 and applied voltage of 700 mV. Mechanisms study implied that indirect electrochemical oxidation by generated hydrogen peroxide was responsible for their degradation. This study provides an alternative utilization form of low bioelectricity from MFCs and reveals that applying it to electrochemical process is highly-efficient as well as cost-effective for degradation of nitrogen-containing organic compounds.