Electrokinetic and Sediment Remediation in Microbial Fuel Cell (RESEARCH NOTE)

Abstract

Recently developed man-made structures have caused environmental pollutions, and unfortunately, in spite of the deteriorating affairs and repeated warnings by scientists and experts, the degree of contamination is increasing considerably. One of the natural sources undergoing changes is the coasts. It is mainly due to human activities which have led to a change in the quality and quantity of sediments. These regions can be contaminated by a variety of hazardous pollutants such as heavy metals and hydrocarbons. In this work, a combination of electrokinetic and MFC process was used for Cr removal from contaminated sediments. According to the obtained results, a maximum power density and current of 1.06 W/m³ and 52.05 A/m³ were achieved during the process. Given the presence of chromium in the catholyte, it can be concluded that the chromium migration from sediment sample to the cathode chamber has been taken. In addition, the maximum Cr measured in catholyte was 0.056 mg/l. Overall, the results confirmed the high efficiency of the proposed cell for contaminant removal from sediments.