Effect of different acclimation methods on the performance of microbial fuel cells using phenol as substrate

Abstract

Single-chamber microbial fuel cells (MFCs) with air-cathode were constructed. MFCs were fed different feedstocks during their inoculation, their role on phenol degradation and MFC performance were investigated. The results showed that the MFC inoculated using glucose exhibited the highest power density (31.3 mW m(-2)) when phenol was used as the sole substrate for MFC. The corresponding biodegradation kinetic constant was obtained at 0.035 h(-1), at an initial phenol concentration of 600 mg L(-1). Moreover, the phenol degradation rates in this MFC with closed circuit were 9.8-16.5% higher than those in MFC with opened circuit. The cyclic voltammograms revealed a different electrochemical activity of the anode biofilms in the MFC, and this led to differences in performance of the MFCs with phenol as sole substrate. These results demonstrated that phenol degradation and power production are affected by current generation and type of acclimation.