Development of Bioelectrochemical Systems for Environmental Engineering

A special issue of Bioengineering (ISSN 2306-5354). This special issue belongs to the section "Biochemical Engineering".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 April 2025 | Viewed by 1208

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
Department of Environmental Science and Engineering, Tunghai University, No.1727, Sec.4, Taiwan Boulevard, Xitun District, Taichung 40704, Taiwan
Interests: environmental microbiology; electromicrobiology; waste biodegradation and treatment

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Bioelectrochemical systems (BESs) are electrochemical systems driven by biocatalysts like microorganisms or enzymes. By the means of infinitely absorbing/delivering electrons, the electrodes could serve as sustainable electron donors/acceptors. For example, by cultivating extracellular-electron-transfer (EET)-capable bacteria on the anode of a microbial fuel cell (MFC), the organic waste can be converted into electricity; when using electrodes of a microbial electrolysis cell (MEC) as an endless electron source, hydrogen or valuable products can be formed on the cathode. 

With the accumulated knowledge of EET, the progress of BES research has never slowed down in the past decades. In addition to the advantages of energy production and chemical synthesis created by bioelectrochemistry, BESs are capable of treating a wide range of organic loading of wastewater (applicable to low-strength to high-strength wastewater) and can be applied to highly conductive sewage (such as discharged urine). Moreover, due to the concept of net-zero carbon emissions garnering increasing attentions, BESs provide new developing orientation on biological processes, which make the wastewater treatment process more energy-saving (such as reducing the power consumption of blower operation in the aerobic processes, and so on). Due to the biological and mechanical diversities of EET-capable bacteria, all researchers working on this topic still do not have sufficient consensus on many issues. These issues include the microbial community on the electrode, EET mechanism, effectively enriching EET-capable bacteria, and so on.

Submissions to this Special Issue of Bioengineering on Development of Bioelectrochemical Systems for Environmental Engineering are now invited. Possible topics include (but are not limited to) the following:

Topics

Development/design for MFC/MEC; 

Developing BESs to offer a solution for net zero carbon emissions;

Bioelectrosynthesis of high-added value chemicals;

Characterization of novel electroactive community/isolates.

Contributory authors are invited to submit the research manuscripts for the Special Issue; we also welcome review articles that provide a balanced and comprehensive overview of the latest discoveries in the BES discipline.

Dr. Shiue-Lin Li
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • bioelectrochemical systems
  • microbial fuel cells
  • bioelectrosynthesis
  • high-added value chemicals
  • environmental engineering

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

31 pages, 2973 KiB  
Article
Metagenomic Insights into Pollutants in Biorefinery and Dairy Wastewater: rDNA Dominance and Electricity Generation in Double Chamber Microbial Fuel Cells
by Khaya Pearlman Shabangu, Manimagalay Chetty and Babatunde Femi Bakare
Bioengineering 2025, 12(1), 88; https://doi.org/10.3390/bioengineering12010088 - 19 Jan 2025
Viewed by 579
Abstract
This study evaluates the potential of biorefinery and dairy wastewater as substrates for electricity generation in double chamber Microbial Fuel Cells (DCMFC), focusing on their microbial taxonomy and electrochemical viability. Taxonomic analysis using 16S/18S rDNA-targeted DGGE and high-throughput sequencing identified Proteobacteria as dominant [...] Read more.
This study evaluates the potential of biorefinery and dairy wastewater as substrates for electricity generation in double chamber Microbial Fuel Cells (DCMFC), focusing on their microbial taxonomy and electrochemical viability. Taxonomic analysis using 16S/18S rDNA-targeted DGGE and high-throughput sequencing identified Proteobacteria as dominant in biorefinery biomass, followed by Firmicutes and Bacteriodota. In dairy biomass, Lactobacillus (77.36%) and Clostridium (15.70%) were most prevalent. Biorefinery wastewater exhibited the highest bioelectrochemical viability due to its superior electrical conductivity and salinity, achieving a voltage yield of 65 mV, compared to 75.2 mV from mixed substrates and 1.7 mV from dairy wastewater. Elevated phosphate levels in dairy wastewater inhibited bioelectrochemical processes. This study recommends Biorefinery wastewater as the most suitable purely organic substrate for efficient bioelectricity generation and scaling up of MFCs, emphasising the importance of substrate selection for optimal energy output for practical and commercial viability. Full article
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