Biomass-derived composite anode electrode: Synthesis, characterizations, and application in microbial fuel cells (MFCs)

Abstract

Nowadays, the biomass-derived graphene oxide (GO) material as an anode electrode and its modification with metal oxide (TiO2) was considered the most promising for microbial fuel cells (MFCs). Moreover, the biomass-derived GO and modified GO electrodes encountered electrode challenges such as electron transfer rate, biocompatibility, and durability. In the present study, GO and modified GO/TiO2 composite anode were used in MFCs to enhance the electron transportation and bioremediation rate of the Cd2+ from synthetic wastewater. The GO offered 25.43 mA/m2 current density and 0.105 mW/m2 power density with 83% bioremediating efficiency while GO/TiO2 composite significantly showed 5.7 times higher energy output with 87.25% bioremediating efficiency. During the biological characterization, it was found that Klebsiella pneumoniae, Lysinibacillus, and Acinetobacter strains are the most dominant species on the surface of GO and GO/TiO2 composite anodes. Further, several other electrochemical, and biological characterizations are also carried out to support the performance of the presently prepared anodes in MFCs. Additionally, multiple parameters optimization was also considered to analyze the durability and stability of the presently prepared anodes at different environmental conditions.