Startup of Microbial Fuel Cells with Pure Ferric Iron-reducing Bacteria Isolates

Lihong Liu; Duu-Jong Lee; Aijie Wang; Nanqi Ren; Lei Zhang; Jia-Nian Shen

Authors

Lihong Liu School of Earth Sciences, Northeast Petroleum University, Daqing 163318, China | State Key Laboratory of Urban Water Resource and Environment, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin 150090, China
Duu-Jong Lee Department of Chemical Engineering, National Taiwan University of Science and Technology, Taipei 106, Taiwan | Department of Chemical Engineering, National Taiwan University, Taipei 106, Taiwan
Aijie Wang State Key Laboratory of Urban Water Resource and Environment, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin 150090, China
Nanqi Ren State Key Laboratory of Urban Water Resource and Environment, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin 150090, China
Lei Zhang School of Earth Sciences, Northeast Petroleum University, Daqing 163318, China
Jia-Nian Shen School of Earth Sciences, Northeast Petroleum University, Daqing 163318, China

Keywords:

Microbial fuel cell, Iron-reducing bacteria, Gram - positive, Gram-negative

Abstract

Ferric iron-reducing bacteria (FRB) can transfer intercellular electrons to a surrounding solid, a function also exhibited by the anode-respiring bacteria for microbial fuel cells (MFC). This study isolated from river sediment two FRB, a Gram-negative strain (Geobaccter sp. LAR-2, GenBank No. KC211015) and a Gram-positive strain (Clostridium sp. LAR-3, GenBank No. KC211016), and individually started up MFC using these two isolates as inocula at anodic compartment. The LAR-2-MFC had an open-circuit voltage (OCV) of 610 mV and maximum power density (Pmax ) of 860 mW m-2. The corresponding OCV and Pmax of LAR-3-MFC were 630 mV and 310 mW m-2 , respectively. The resistances of electron transfer across anodic biofilms, eletrolytes and cathodes were characterized. The tests with these two FRB support the hypothesis with FRB being effectively functioned as anode-respiring bacteria for MFC. Keywords: Microbial fuel cell; Iron-reducing bacteria; Gram-positive; Gram-negative.