Reclamation and characterization of value-added products from pulp and paper mill effluent using microbial fuel cell

Abstract

Pulp and paper industry is considered as the most polluted industry due to its toxic effect on environment. In the present investigation we report the novel method for the modification of highly complex organic substrates present in pulp and paper mill wastewater into value added products by using microbial fuel cell strategy. Microbial fuel cell (MFC) is an eco-friendly and energy-efficient technology to treat variety of wastewater with the simultaneous production of electricity. The sun-dried residue after the MFC treatment was characterized by FT-IR spectroscopy and SEM analysis. The microbial action breaks down, depolymerizes, and degrades the complex polymeric organic substrates present in pulp and paper mill effluent, resulting in the creation of small aromatic and aliphatic molecules. Upon treatment the surface morphology of residue changed significantly as it became extremely rough. The analysis of the by-products obtained via Microbial degradation was carried out using GC–MS. It has been observed that the pulp and paper mill wastewater which rich in lignin get converted into value-added products such as vanillin, acetic acid, valeric acid, glycerol and various alcohols. The number of peaks comprising the low-molecular weight compounds reached the maximum value upon 60 h of operation of GC–MS.