Nitrogen removal in a two-chambered microbial fuel cell: Establishment of a nitrifying-denitrifying microbial community on an intermittent aerated cathode

A microbial fuel cell (MFC) was used to study nitrogen dynamics and its feasibility for high strength wastewater treatment. Intermittent aeration was applied on the cathode chamber accomplishing the establishment of a simultaneous nitrifying-denitrifying microbial community. A total of 30.4% of the...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores: Sotres Fernandez, Ana, Cerrillo Moreno, Míriam|||0000-0002-2189-1127, Viñas Canals, Marc, Bonmatí Blasi, August
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Fecha de publicación:2016
País:España
Institución:Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (UPC)
Repositorio:UPCommons. Portal del coneixement obert de la UPC
Idioma:inglés
OAI Identifier:oai:upcommons.upc.edu:2117/116774
Acceso en línea:https://hdl.handle.net/2117/116774
https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.cej.2015.08.100
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:Biocarburants
454-Pyrosequencing
Ammonia nitrogen migration Cathodic nitrification-denitrification
Microbial fuel cell
QPCR
Biocombustibles
Àrees temàtiques de la UPC::Enginyeria agroalimentària
Descripción
Sumario:A microbial fuel cell (MFC) was used to study nitrogen dynamics and its feasibility for high strength wastewater treatment. Intermittent aeration was applied on the cathode chamber accomplishing the establishment of a simultaneous nitrifying-denitrifying microbial community. A total of 30.4% of the N-NH4 + migrated through the ion exchange membrane being primarily nitrified at the cathode chamber. When intermittent aeration was applied in the cathode, denitrification also occurred achieving 17.8% of nitrate removal without acetate addition, and 41.2% with acetate addition. The microbial community analysis revealed that the nitrification process at the cathode chamber could be explained due to a high predominance of Nitrosomonas sp. as ammonia-oxidising bacteria and other Comamonadaceae phylotypes as potential denitrifiers. Parallel batch denitrification assays, carried out outside the MFC using the cathode effluent, confirmed the existence of heterotrophic denitrification processes with other well known denitrifying dominant phylotypes enrichment (Burkholderiadaceae, Comamonadaceae, Alcaligenaceae).