Degradation Of Organic Substrates Research Articles

Cobalt(VI)-oxo species-mediated selective oxidation of electron-rich organic contaminants by Co-loaded hydroxylated g-C3N4 with high resistance to an inhibitory effect of background constituents

Understanding of the selectivity of high-valent cobalt-oxo species (Co(IV)O) toward diverse organic pollutants with different characteristics in the presence of background constituents remains limited. Here, we prepared Co-loaded hydroxyl group-grafted graphitic carbon nitride (Co-OHCN) using a facile method for the effective formation of Co(IV)O. The role of the hydroxyl group in anchoring Co ions was investigated using several characterization methods (TEM, XRD, FT-IR, and XPS). Co-OHCN exhibited superior efficiency in degrading 4-chlorophenol (4-CP) (98.0 % ± 0.3 %) within 15 min of peroxymonosulfate (PMS) activation reaction. In the Co-OHCN/PMS system, Co(IV)O had the highest steady-state concentration ([Co(IV)O] = 1.40 × 10−10 M), significantly exceeding that of other reactive oxygen species (ROS) ([SO4−] = 9.22 × 10−13 M, [OH] = 1.82 × 10−13 M). The dominant role of Co(IV)O in 4-CP degradation was further revealed through scavenger tests, probe methods, and electrochemical analysis. Additionally, the anti-interference of Co(IV)O in the degradation of electron-rich organic substrates to background constituents (NOM and halide ions) was systemically validated using three organic pollutants with different ionization potential values (diclofenac, 4-CP, and benzoic acid). This study provides insight into an efficient strategy for Co(IV)O -mediated pollutant elimination and organic substrate-dependent selectivity of Co(IV)O during water decontamination.

Biological Hydrogen Energy Production by Novel Strains Bacillus paramycoides and Cereibacter azotoformans through Dark and Photo Fermentation

In daily life, energy plays a critical role. Hydrogen energy is widely recognized as one of the cleanest energy carriers available today. However, hydrogen must be produced as it does not exist freely in nature. Various methods are available for hydrogen production, including electrolysis, thermochemical technology, and biological methods. This study explores the production of biological hydrogen through the degradation of organic substrates by anaerobic microorganisms. Bacillus paramycoides and Cereibacter azotoformans strains were selected as they have not yet been studied for biological hydrogen fermentation. This study investigates the ability of these microorganisms to produce biological hydrogen. Initially, the cells were identified using cell morphology study, gram staining procedure, and 16S ribosomal RNA (rRNA) gene polymerase chain reaction. The cells were revealed as Bacillus paramycoides (MCCC 1A04098) and Cereibacter azotoformans (JCM 9340). Moreover, the growth behaviour and biological hydrogen production of the dark and photo fermentative cells were studied. The inoculum concentrations experimented with were 1% and 10% inoculum size. This study found that Bacillus paramycoides and Cereibacter azotoformans are promising strains for hydrogen production, but further optimization processes should be performed to obtain the highest hydrogen yield.

Enhancing the Anaerobic Biodegradation of Petroleum Hydrocarbons in Soils with Electrically Conductive Materials.

Anaerobic bioremediation is a relevant process in the management of sites contaminated by petroleum hydrocarbons. Recently, interspecies electron transfer processes mediated by conductive minerals or particles have been proposed as mechanisms through which microbial species within a community share reducing equivalents to drive the syntrophic degradation of organic substrates, including hydrocarbons. Here, a microcosm study was set up to investigate the effect of different electrically conductive materials (ECMs) in enhancing the anaerobic biodegradation of hydrocarbons in historically contaminated soil. The results of a comprehensive suite of chemical and microbiological analyses evidenced that supplementing the soil with (5% w/w) magnetite nanoparticles or biochar particles is an effective strategy to accelerate the removal of selected hydrocarbons. In particular, in microcosms supplemented with ECMs, the removal of total petroleum hydrocarbons was enhanced by up to 50% relative to unamended controls. However, chemical analyses suggested that only a partial bioconversion of contaminants occurred and that longer treatment times would have probably been required to drive the biodegradation process to completion. On the other hand, biomolecular analyses confirmed the presence of several microorganisms and functional genes likely involved in hydrocarbon degradation. Furthermore, the selective enrichment of known electroactive bacteria (i.e., Geobacter and Geothrix) in microcosms amended with ECMs, clearly pointed to a possible role of DIET (Diet Interspecies Electron Transfer) processes in the observed removal of contaminants.

Microbial population properties in the hierarchically structured aerobic granular sludge: Phenotype and genotype

Aerobic granular sludge (AGS) is a layered microbial aggregate formed by the ordered self-assembly of different microbial populations. In this study, the outer layer (OL), middle layer (ML), and the inner layer (IL) of matured AGS were obtained by circular cutting. The adhesion of microorganisms in IL was significantly higher than that in OL and ML during the famine period, while the adhesion of microorganisms in ML and OL was significantly higher than that in IL during the feast period, confirming that the formation of AGS started in the famine period, and the feast period promoted the increase of particle size. Microorganisms in the three-layer structure were highly diverse and rich in genes for cytochrome c oxidase synthesis with oxygen as the electron acceptor. G_Pseudoxanthomonas was the dominant bacterium in OL. Its spatial distribution increased gradually from the inside to the outside. G_Rhodanobacter was the dominant bacterium in IL. Its spatial distribution gradually decreased from the inside to the outside. The microorganisms in IL contained abundant pili genes. During the self-assembly process of particle formation, G_ Rhodanobaker adhered stronger than G_ Pseudoxanthomonas. The interface between aerobic and anoxic was about 0.6 mm away from the granule surface. Combined with the electron mediator properties of the extracellular polymeric substance (EPS) in granules, it was speculated that the degradation of organic substrates located in the anoxic layer relied on EPS as a mediator for long-range electron transfer, and finally transferred electrons to O2. This study provides a new viewpoint on the formation mechanism of AGS from the perspective of the ordered self-assembly of microorganisms, offering a theoretical basis for the optimal selection of culture conditions and the application of AGS technology.

Comparative Experimental and Computational Studies of Hydroxyl and Sulfate Radical-Mediated Degradation of Simple and Complex Organic Substrates.

Persulfate (PS)-based advanced oxidation processes (AOPs) have been promoted as alternatives to H2O2-based AOPs. To gauge the potential of this technology, the PS/Fe(II) and Fenton (H2O2/Fe(II)) processes were comparatively evaluated using formate as a simple target compound and nanofiltration concentrate from a municipal wastewater treatment plant as a complex suite of contaminants with the aid of kinetic modeling. In terms of the short-term rate and extent of mineralization of formate and the nanofiltration concentrate, PS/Fe(II) is less effective due to slow Fe(II)/Fe(III) cycling attributable to the scavenging of superoxide by PS. However, in the concentrate treatment, PS/Fe(II) provided a sustained removal of total organic carbon (TOC), with ∼81% removed after 7 days with SO4•- consistently produced via homolysis of the long-life PS. In comparison, H2O2/Fe(II) exhibited limited TOC removal over ∼57% after 10 h due to the futile consumption of H2O2 by HO•. PS/Fe(II) also offers better performance at transforming humic-like moieties to more biodegradable compounds as a result of chlorine radicals formed by the reaction of SO4•- with the matrix constituents present in the concentrate. The application of PS/Fe(II) is, however, subject to the limitations of slow oxidation of organic contaminants, release of sulfate, and formation of chlorinated byproducts.

Sequential anaerobic-aerobic treatment of rice mill wastewater and simultaneous power generation in microbial fuel cell

Microbial fuel cells (MFCs) have attracted widespread interest due to their capability to generate power while treating wastewater. In the present investigation, rice mill wastewater (RMW) was treated in a dual-chamber MFC with a biological cathode (MFCB), in which anaerobic treatment was provided in the anode compartment, and aerobic treatment was enployed in the cathode compartment. The performance was compared with an identical MFC with an abiotic cathode (MFCA). During continuous operation, the hydraulic retention time (HRT) of the anode compartments of both MFCs was kept at 12 h. The maximum volumetric power density obtained in MFCB (379.53 mW/m3) was lower than MFCA (791.72 mW/m3). Similarly, the maximum open-circuit voltage (OCV) and operating voltages were 0.519 V and 0.170 V for MFCB, while for the MFCA, they were 0.774 V and 0.251 V, respectively. The internal resistance of MFCA was 372.34 Ω while the MFCB showed a higher internal resistance of 533.89 Ω. The linear sweep voltammetry and cyclic voltammetry also demonstrated high electrochemical activity in MFCA compared to MFCB. However, MFCB has shown a higher chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal efficiency (96.8%) than MFCA (88.4%) under steady-state conditions. Both anaerobic and aerobic degradation of organic substrates significantly reduced the COD of RMW. Furthermore, the absence of an expensive catalyst in the cathode substantially reduces the cost of the system. The electrical performance of the system can be enhanced by employing novel cathode material with surface modification.

Sources of CO2 Produced in Freshly Thawed Pleistocene-Age Yedoma Permafrost

The release of greenhouse gases from the large organic carbon stock in permafrost deposits in the circumarctic regions may accelerate global warming upon thaw. The extent of this positive climate feedback is thought to be largely controlled by the microbial degradability of the organic matter preserved in these sediments. In addition, weathering and oxidation processes may release inorganic carbon preserved in permafrost sediments as CO2, which is generally not accounted for. We used 13C and 14C analysis and isotopic mass balances to differentiate and quantify organic and inorganic carbon released as CO2 in the field from an active retrogressive thaw slump of Pleistocene-age Yedoma and during a 1.5-years incubation experiment. The results reveal that the dominant source of the CO2 released from freshly thawed Yedoma exposed as thaw mound is Pleistocene-age organic matter (48–80%) and to a lesser extent modern organic substrate (3–34%). A significant portion of the CO2 originated from inorganic carbon in the Yedoma (17–26%). The mixing of young, active layer material with Yedoma at a site on the slump floor led to the preferential mineralization of this young organic carbon source. Admixtures of younger organic substrates in the Yedoma thaw mound were small and thus rapidly consumed as shown by lower contributions to the CO2 produced during few weeks of aerobic incubation at 4°C corresponding to approximately one thaw season. Future CO2 fluxes from the freshly thawed Yedoma will contain higher proportions of ancient inorganic (22%) and organic carbon (61–78%) as suggested by the results at the end, after 1.5 years of incubation. The increasing contribution of inorganic carbon during the incubation is favored by the accumulation of organic acids from microbial organic matter degradation resulting in lower pH values and, in consequence, in inorganic carbon dissolution. Because part of the inorganic carbon pool is assumed to be of pedogenic origin, these emissions would ultimately not alter carbon budgets. The results of this study highlight the preferential degradation of younger organic substrates in freshly thawed Yedoma, if available, and a substantial release of CO2 from inorganic sources.

Cu(II)-metalated Silica-based Inorganic-Organic Hybrid: Synthesis, Characterization and Its Evaluation for Dye Degradation and Oxidation of Organic Substrates

Cu(II)-metalated Silica-based Inorganic-Organic Hybrid: Synthesis, Characterization and Its Evaluation for Dye Degradation and Oxidation of Organic Substrates

Marketability Prospects of Microbial Fuel Cells for Sustainable Energy Generation

Microbial fuel cells (MFCs) are bioelectrochemical devices, which produce electrical energy from wastewater through degradation of biodegradable organic substrates. The use of MFCs for energy gener...

Singlet Oxygen-Mediated Electrochemical Filter for Selective and Rapid Degradation of Organic Compounds

Singlet oxygen (1O2)-based homogeneous oxidation processes have been extensively investigated for selective degradation of organic substrates. Herein, to address the existing limitations of these h...

Cathodic selenium recovery in bioelectrochemical system: Regulatory influence on anodic electrogenic activity

Metal(loid)s are used in various industrial activities and widely spread across the environmental settings in various forms and concentrations. Extended releases of metal(loid)s above the regulatory levels cause environmental and health hazards disturbing the ecological balance. Innovative processes for treating the metal(loid)-contaminated sites and recovery of metal(loid)s from disposed waste streams employing biotechnological routes provide a sustainable way forward. Conventional metal recovery technologies demand high energy and/or resource inputs, which are either uneconomic or unsustainable. Microbial electrochemical systems are promising for removal and recovery of metal(loid)s from metal(loid)-laden wastewaters. In this communication, a bioelectrochemical system (BES) was designed and operated with selenium (Se) oxyanion at varied concentrations as terminal electron acceptor (TEA) for reduction of selenite (Se4+) to elemental selenium (Se0) in the abiotic cathode chamber. The influence of varied concentrations of Se4+ towards Se0 recovery at the cathode was also evaluated for its regulatory role on the electrometabolism of anode-respiring bacteria. This study observed 26.4% Se0 recovery (cathode; selenite removal efficiency: 73.6%) along with organic substrate degradation of 74% (anode). With increase in the initial selenite concentration, there was a proportional increase in the dehydrogenase activity. Bioelectrochemical characterization depicted increased anodic electrogenic performance with the influence of varied Se4+ concentrations as TEA and resulted in a maximum power density of 0.034 W/m2. The selenite reduction (cathode) was evaluated through spectroscopic, compositional and structural analysis. X-ray diffraction and Raman spectroscopy showed the amorphous nature, while Energy Dispersive X-ray spectroscopy confirmed precipitates of the deposited Se0 recovered from the cathode chamber. Scanning electron microscopic images clearly depicted the Se0 depositions (spherical shaped; sized approximately 200 nm in diameter) on the electrode and cathode chamber. This study showed the potential of BES in converting soluble Se4+ to insoluble Se0 at the abiotic cathode for metal recovery.

Perbandingan Zat Penyusun Dalam Pemanfaatan Limbah Cair Tahu Sebagai Energi Alternatif Biogas

Limbah padat dan cair pada pembuatan tahu cukup menggangu masyarakat. Pembuatan tahu di kediri masih menggunakan cara tradisional sehingga tingkat efisiensi penggunaan sumber daya (air dan bahan baku) dirasakan masih rendah dan tingkat produksi limbahnya juga relatif tinggi. Bioenergy merupakan sumber energi yang dihasilkan oleh sumber daya hayati seperti tumbuh - tumbuhan, minyak nabati, dan limbah peternakan dan pertanian. Jenis energi yang dihasilkan berupa energi dalam bentuk gas, cair, atau padat. Energi tersebut selanjutnya dapat digunakan untuk menghasilkan panas, gerak, dan listrik tergantung pada alat yang digunakan dan kebutuhan pengguna. Biogas adalah campuran gas yang dihasilkan dari aktivitas bakteri metanogenik pada kondisi anaerobik atau fermentasi bahan-bahan organik. Biogas merupakan produk dari pendegradasian substrat organik secara anaerobik. Karena proses ini menggunakan kinerja campuran mikroorganisme dan tergantung terhadap berbagai faktor seperti suhu, pH, hydraulic retention, rasio C:N dan sebagainya sehingga proses ini berjalan lambat. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengetahui erbandingan zat penyusun dalam pemanfaatan limbah cair produksi tahu sebagai energi alternatif biogas. Untuk membuat biogas alat yang digunakan antara lain: Digester dan manometer. Bahan baku yang digunakan untuk komposisi pertama adalah limbah tahu cairan pertama 30 liter dengan 50 ml Em4 dan air kelapa 2 liter. Sedangkan untuk komposisi kedua adalah limbah tahu cairan pertama sebanyak 30 liter dengan 50 ml Em4 dan molase 500 ml. Data diambil selama 14 hari dengan pengamatan dilakukan setiap hari. Dari hasil uji prasyarat normalitas, diperoleh bahwa kedua data berdistribusi normal. Sedangkan hasil uji prasyarat homogenitas, dinyatakan bahwa data bersifat homogen. Karena yang dibandingkan adalah 2 data, maka cukup menggunakan Uji-T. Dari hasil Uji-T, diperoleh bahwa komposisi kedua lebih baik daripada komposisi pertama. Sehingga daat disimpulkan bahwa pembuatan biogas dari limbah cair yang ditambahkan dengan molase memberikan hasil yang lebih baik daripada pembuatan biogas dari limbah cair tahu ditambah dengan air kelapa.

Taxonomic Distribution of Cytochrome P450 Monooxygenases (CYPs) among the Budding Yeasts (Sub-Phylum Saccharomycotina).

Cytochrome P450 monooxygenases (CYPs) are ubiquitous throughout the tree of life and play diverse roles in metabolism including the synthesis of secondary metabolites as well as the degradation of recalcitrant organic substrates. The genomes of budding yeasts (phylum Ascomycota, sub-phylum Saccharomycotina) typically contain fewer families of CYPs than filamentous fungi. There are currently five CYP families among budding yeasts with known function while at least another six CYP families with unknown function (“orphan CYPs”) have been described. The current study surveyed the genomes of 372 species of budding yeasts for CYP-encoding genes in order to determine the taxonomic distribution of individual CYP families across the sub-phylum as well as to identify novel CYP families. Families CYP51 and CYP61 (represented by the ergosterol biosynthetic genes ERG11 and ERG5, respectively) were essentially ubiquitous among the budding yeasts while families CYP52 (alkane/fatty acid hydroxylases), CYP56 (N-formyl-l-tyrosine oxidase) displayed several instances of gene loss at the genus or family level. Phylogenetic analysis suggested that the three orphan families CYP5217, CYP5223 and CYP5252 diverged from a common ancestor gene following the origin of the budding yeast sub-phylum. The genomic survey also identified eight CYP families that had not previously been reported in budding yeasts.

In Situ Photoelectrochemical Chloride Activation Using a WO3 Electrode for Oxidative Treatment with Simultaneous H2 Evolution under Visible Light.

Reactive chlorine species (RCS) such as HOCl and chlorine radical species is a strong oxidant and has been widely used for water disinfection. This study investigated a photoelectrochemical (PEC) method of RCS production from ubiquitous chloride ions using a WO3 film electrode and visible light. The degradation of organic substrates coupled with H2 evolution using a WO3 electrode was compared among electrochemical (EC), photocatalytic (PC), and PEC conditions (potential bias: +0.5 V vs Ag/AgCl; λ > 420 nm). The degradation of 4-chlorophenol, bisphenol A, acetaminophen, carbamazepine, humic acid, and fulvic acid and the inactivation of E. coli were remarkably enhanced by in situ RCS generated in PEC conditions, whereas the activities of the PC and EC processes were negligible. The activities of the WO3 film were limited by rapid charge recombination in the PC condition, and the potential bias of +0.5 V did not induce any significant reactions in the EC condition. The PEC activities of WO3 were limited in the absence of Cl- but significantly enhanced in the presence of Cl-, which confirmed the essential role of RCS in this PEC system. The PEC mineralization of organic compounds was also markedly enhanced in the presence of Cl- where dark chemical chlorination by NaOCl addition induced a negligible mineralization. The H2 generation was observed only at the PEC condition and was negligible at PC and EC conditions. On the other hand, the oxidation of chloride on a WO3 photoanode produced chlorate (ClO3-) as a toxic byproduct under UV irradiation, but the visible light-irradiated PEC system generated no chlorate.

Seasonal variation induced stability of municipal solid waste compost: an enzyme kinetics study

An investigation was carried out in laboratory to find out the effect of ambient temperature and different treatments on passive bin composting of municipal solid waste (MSW). A potent cellulase degrading inoculum (Bacillus subtilis, B. amyloliquefaciens, B. nakamurai and B. velezensis) sourced from dumpsite soil and cow dung slurry was used as addon to MSW composters. Treatments were tested during summer (26–45 °C) and winter (5–22 °C) season to profile the physio-chemical, enzymatic and microbial changes during 90-day study. In addition, a kinetics model for MSW composting was derived for the rate of organic load degradation deducing the first order kinetics rate (Kr), limiting velocity (Km) and dissociation constant (Kd). The results of the present investigation revealed that ambient temperature hastened the degradation of organic substrates in case of MSW amended with microbes and cow dung (60 days) as indicated by the achieved maximum kinetics reaction rate, 0.0131 day−1 (R2 = 0.993) and reduced C/N ratio (11.6%). Also, enzymatic profiles; dehydrogenase (170.1 µg TPF g−1 day−1), cellulase (96.1 µg glucose g dwt−1 h−1) and urease (539.1 μg NH4+–Ng dwt−1 h−1) with a high temperature profile (47–63 °C) in the finished summer compost, Cs4 supported the results. Whereas, winter composting could not attain the desired results and produced immature compost even after 90 days. Statistical analysis (proximal cluster analysis, hierarchical cluster analysis and ANOVA) and kinetics study showed that ambient temperature in collaboration with addons significantly influenced the compost maturity.

Temperature sensitivity of mineral-enzyme interactions on the hydrolysis of cellobiose and indican by β-glucosidase

Extracellular enzymes are mainly responsible for depolymerizing soil organic matter (SOM) in terrestrial ecosystems, and soil minerals are known to affect enzyme activity. However, the mechanisms and the effects of mineral-enzyme interactions on enzymatic degradation of organic matter remain poorly understood. In this study, we examined the adsorption of fungal β-glucosidase enzyme on minerals and time-dependent changes of enzymatic reactivity, measured by the degradation of two organic substrates (i.e., cellobiose and indican) under both cold (4 °C) and warm (20 and 30 °C) conditions. Hematite, kaolinite, and montmorillonite were used, to represent three common soil minerals with distinctly different surface charges and characteristics. β-glucosidase was found to sorb more strongly onto hematite and kaolinite than montmorillonite. All three minerals inhibited enzyme degradation of cellobiose and indican, likely due to the inactivation or hindrance of enzyme active sites. The mineral-bound β-glucosidase retained its specificity for organic substrate degradation, and increasing temperature from 4 to 30 °C enhanced the degradation rates by 2–4 fold for indican and 5–9 fold for cellobiose. These results indicate that enzyme adsorption, mineral type, temperature, and organic substrate specificity are important factors influencing enzymatic reactivity and thus have important implications in further understanding and modeling complex enzyme-facilitated SOM transformations in terrestrial ecosystems.

Macroporous composite capacitive bioanode applied in microbial fuel cells

Interfacial electron transfer between electroactive biofilm and the electrode was crucial step for microbial fuel cells (MFCs). A three-dimensional multilayer porous sponge coating with nitrogen-doped carbon nanotube/polyaniline/manganese dioxide (S/N-CNT/PANI/mnO2) electrode has been developed for MFC anode. Here, the S/N-CNT/PANI/MnO2 anode can function as a biocapacitor, able to store electrons generated from the degradation of organic substrate under the open circuit state and release the accumulated electrons upon requirement. Thus, the mismatching of the production and demand of the electricity can be overcome. Comparing with the sponge/nitrogen-doped carbon nanotube (S/N-CNT) bioanode, S/N-CNT/PANI/MnO2 capacitive bioanode displays a strong interaction with the microbial biofilm, advancing the electron transfer from exoelectrogens to the bioanode. The maximum power density of MFC with S/N-CNT/PANI/MnO2 capacitive bioanode is 1019.5 mW/m2, which is 2.2 and 5.8 times as much as that of S/N-CNT/MnO2 bioanode and S/N-CNT bioanode (470.7 mW/m2 and 176.6 mW/m2), respectively. During the chronoamperometric experiment with 60 min of charging and 20 min of discharging, the S/N-CNT/PANI/MnO2 capacitive bioanode was able to store 10743.9 C/m2, whereas the S/N-CNT anode was only able to store 3323.4 C/m2. With a capacitive bioanode, it is possible to use the MFC simultaneously for production and storage of electricity

Simultaneous biomethanisation of endogenous and imported CO2 in organically loaded anaerobic digesters

In-situ biomethanisation reduces the CO2 in biogas to CH4 via direct H2 injection into an anaerobic digester, but volumetric methane production (VMP) is limited by organic loading. Ex-situ biomethanisation, where gaseous substrates are fed to pure or mixed cultures of hydrogenotrophic methanogens, offers higher VMP but requires an additional reactor and supply of essential nutrients. This work combined the two approaches in a novel hybrid application achieving simultaneous in-situ and ex-situ biomethanisation within an organically-loaded anaerobic digester receiving supplementary biogas. Conventional stirred-tank digesters were first acclimated to H2 addition, increasing biogas methane content from 50% to 95% and VMP from 0.86 to 1.51 L L−1 day−1 at a moderate loading rate of 3 g organic chemical oxygen demand per L per day (g CODorg L−1 day−1). Externally-produced biogas was then added to demonstrate simultaneous biomethanisation of endogenous and imported CO2. This further increased VMP to 2.76 L L−1 day−1 without affecting organic substrate degradation. In-situ CO2 reduction can alter digester pH by reducing bicarbonate buffering: the combined process operated stably at around pH 8.0 with 3–5% CO2 in the headspace. Microbial community analysis indicated the process was mediated by bacterial syntrophic acetate oxidation and highly enriched hydrogenotrophic methanogenic archaea (up to 97% of the archaeal population). This approach presents the opportunity to retrofit a single digester for H2 injection to convert and upgrade biogas from several others, minimising capital and operating costs by utilising both existing infrastructure and waste-derived feedstock nutrients for simultaneous biogas upgrading and power-to-methane.

Assisting the biofilm formation of exoelectrogens using nanostructured microbial fuel cells

Exoelectrogens have drawn global concerns with their ability of spontaneous conversion of chemical energy into electrical energy. Thus, in the present study, nanostructured-microbial fuel cell systems, which are used for direct electron transfer via the anodic formed biofilm, were constructed. The impact of electrode materials on the selective capturing of exoelectrogens from mixed bacterial cultures was determined using cyclic voltammetry and mediatorless-microbial fuel cells. The electrochemical activities of the matured biofilm formed on the MnO2 modified electrode confirmed the direct electron transfer, whereas the outer redox species were involved in the extracellular electron transfer. Thus, efficient electrochemical signals were obtained and the optimized conditions have reached to maintain the viability of biofilm. Moreover, the morphological structures of the biofilms formed on the electrode surface were characterized by the scanning electron microscopy. From several mixed bacterial cultures, three exoelectrogenic strains were identified from the surface of the modified electrodes. Among the identified strains, Enterobacter cloacae DSM 30054 showed the highest electrochemical signals, while its electrocatalytic degradation of organic substrates and the productions of bioelectricity demonstrated the power density of 52.8 mW/m3 at 265.3 mA/m2 of current density.

Dispersal-competition tradeoff in microbiomes in the quest for land colonization

Ancestor microbes started colonizing inland habitats approximately 2.7 to 3.5 billion years ago. With some exceptions, the key physiological adaptations of microbiomes associated with marine-to-land transitions have remained elusive. This is essentially caused by the lack of suitable systems that depict changes in microbiomes across sufficiently large time scales. Here, we investigate the adaptive routes taken by microbiomes along a contemporary gradient of land formation. Using functional trait-based metagenomics, we show that a switch from a microbial ‘dispersal’ to a ‘competition’ response modus best characterizes the microbial trait changes during this eco-evolutionary trajectory. The ‘dispersal’ modus prevails in microbiomes at the boundary sites between land and sea. It encompasses traits conferring cell chemosensory and motile behaviors, thus allowing the local microbes to exploit short-lived nutritional patches in high-diffusion microhabitats. A systematic transition towards the ‘competition’ modus occurs progressively as the soil matures, which is likely due to forces of viscosity or strain that favor traits for competition and chemical defense. Concomitantly, progressive increases in the abundances of genes encoding antibiotic resistance and complex organic substrate degradation were found. Our findings constitute a novel perspective on the ecology and evolution of microbiome traits, tracking back one of the most seminal transitions in the evolutionary history of life.