Evaluation of microbial electrolysis cells in the treatment of domestic wastewate

Wastewater can be an energy source and not a problem. This study investigates whether rapidly emerging bioelectrochemical technologies can go beyond working in a laboratory under controlled temperatures with simple substrates and actually become a realistic option for a new generation of sustainable wastewater treatment plants. The actual amount of energy available in the wastewater is established using a new methodology. The energy is found to be considerably higher than the previous measurement, or estimates based on the chemical oxygen demand with a domestic wastewater sample containing 17.8 kJ/gCOD and a mixed wastewater containing 28.7 kJ/gCOD. With the energy content established the use of bioelectrochemical systems is examined comparing real wastewater to the ‘model’ substrate of acetate. The abundance of exoelectrogenic bacteria within the sample, and the acclimation of these systems is examined through the use of most probable number experiments. It is found that there may be as few as 10-20 exoelectrogens per 100 mL. The impact of temperature, substrate and inoculum source on performance and community structure is analysed using pyrosequencing. Substrate is found to have a critical role, with greater diversity in acetate fed systems than the wastewater fed ones, indicating that something other than complexity is driving diversity. Laboratory scale microbial electrolysis cells are operated in batch mode fail when fed wastewater, whilst acetate fed reactors continue working, the reasons for this are examined. However a pilot scale, continuous flow microbial electrolysis cell is built and tested at a domestic wastewater treatment facility. Contrary to the laboratory reactors, this continues to operate after 3 months, and has achieved 70% electrical energy recovery, and an average 30% COD removal. This study concludes that wastewater is a very complex but valuable resource, and that the biological systems required to extract this resource are equally complex. Through the work conducted here a greater understanding and confidence in the ability of these systems to treat wastewater sustainably has been gained.EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceEPSRCSchool of Chemical Engineering and Advanced MaterialsGBUnited Kingdo

Bioelectrochemical Systems for Energy Valorization of Waste Streams

Bioelectrochemical systems (BES) encompass a group of technologies derived from conventional electrochemical systems in which the electrodic reactions are directly or indirectly linked to the metabolic activity of certain types of microorganisms. Although BES have not yet made the leap to the commercial scale, these technologies hold a great potential, as they allow to valorize different liquid and gas waste streams. This chapter is devoted to exploring some of the possibilities that BES offer in the management and valorization of wastes. More specifically, it focuses on analyzing practical aspects of using BES for energy valorization of wastewaters and CO2-rich streams. Here, it is shown how BES can compete, in terms of energy usage, with conventional wastewater treatment technologies by exploiting the energy content of some of the chemicals present in the wastewater. Moreover, it explores how BES could enable using wastewater treatment plants as load regulation system for electrical grids. It also includes some insights on the capability of BES to recover valuable products such as fertilizers form wastes, a feature that allows this technology to promote energy efficiency in the fertilizers industry, and a sector that demands substantial amounts of energy in our world today. Finally, some of the most relevant scale-up experiences in the field are also covered

Determination of the Relationship between the Energy Content of Municipal Wastewater and Its Chemical Oxygen Demand

Quantitatively evaluating progress toward energy neutral, or even energy positive, wastewater treatment necessitates reliable data on the intrinsic energy content of the wastewater. It has long been assumed that the amount of energy in wastewater is directly related to its chemical oxygen demand (COD), but the convoluted method for measuring the wastewater energy content has meant that a reliable, statistically robust relationship between COD and energy has never been drawn. In this research, we used a new drying method and analyzed a set of 107 municipal wastewater samples, with a range of COD values from 16.4 to 1151 mg/L. The results revealed a strong correlation between COD and energy content of 16.1 kJ/g of COD (p < 0.001). Reliable predictions of a wastewater’s energy content can now be made on the basis of the COD measurement alone

Community Assembly in Wastewater-Fed Pilot-Scale Microbial Electrolysis Cells

The formation of an electrochemically active biofilm is critical to the function of a Microbial Electrolysis Cell (MEC). We used Illumina 16S rDNA sequencing to analyse the formation and composition of anodic biofilms of two pilot-scale MECs, operated in continuous flow mode on domestic wastewater for over 6 months, and inoculated with that same wastewater. We observe: (i) a clear correlation between the frequency of detection of taxa in the MECs and their abundance in the metacommunity, (ii) the existence of a “core community” that was present across sites, and (iii) the percentage of Geobacter tended to increase with longevity of retention time of the wastewater in the reactor. This suggests that: (i) community composition was largely governed by stochastic processes, (ii) that the technology should work on most if not all domestic wastewaters, as long as the anodes are seeded with the target wastewater, and (iii) that deterministic factors may also play a role in establishing the anodic community. Geobacter, the archetypical electrogen in bioelectrochemical systems, comprised only 1.0 ± 0.7% of the sequences recovered from a functioning pilot-scale MEC anode. Our results imply that influent flow rate may need to be optimized separately for start-up and for operating conditions for maximal performance

Analysis of small RNA in fission yeast; centromeric siRNAs are potentially generated through a structured RNA

The formation of heterochromatin at the centromeres in fission yeast depends on transcription of the outer repeats. These transcripts are processed into siRNAs that target homologous loci for heterochromatin formation. Here, high throughput sequencing of small RNA provides a comprehensive analysis of centromere-derived small RNAs. We found that the centromeric small RNAs are Dcr1 dependent, carry 5′-monophosphates and are associated with Ago1. The majority of centromeric small RNAs originate from two remarkably well-conserved sequences that are present in all centromeres. The high degree of similarity suggests that this non-coding sequence in itself may be of importance. Consistent with this, secondary structure-probing experiments indicate that this centromeric RNA is partially double-stranded and is processed by Dicer in vitro. We further demonstrate the existence of small centromeric RNA in rdp1Δ cells. Our data suggest a pathway for siRNA generation that is distinct from the well-documented model involving RITS/RDRC. We propose that primary transcripts fold into hairpin-like structures that may be processed by Dcr1 into siRNAs, and that these siRNAs may initiate heterochromatin formation independent of RDRC activity

Roadmap for a sustainable circular economy in lithium-ion and future battery technologies

The market dynamics, and their impact on a future circular economy for lithium-ion batteries (LIB), are presented in this roadmap, with safety as an integral consideration throughout the life cycle. At the point of end-of-life (EOL), there is a range of potential options—remanufacturing, reuse and recycling. Diagnostics play a significant role in evaluating the state-of-health and condition of batteries, and improvements to diagnostic techniques are evaluated. At present, manual disassembly dominates EOL disposal, however, given the volumes of future batteries that are to be anticipated, automated approaches to the dismantling of EOL battery packs will be key. The first stage in recycling after the removal of the cells is the initial cell-breaking or opening step. Approaches to this are reviewed, contrasting shredding and cell disassembly as two alternative approaches. Design for recycling is one approach that could assist in easier disassembly of cells, and new approaches to cell design that could enable the circular economy of LIBs are reviewed. After disassembly, subsequent separation of the black mass is performed before further concentration of components. There are a plethora of alternative approaches for recovering materials; this roadmap sets out the future directions for a range of approaches including pyrometallurgy, hydrometallurgy, short-loop, direct, and the biological recovery of LIB materials. Furthermore, anode, lithium, electrolyte, binder and plastics recovery are considered in order to maximise the proportion of materials recovered, minimise waste and point the way towards zero-waste recycling. The life-cycle implications of a circular economy are discussed considering the overall system of LIB recycling, and also directly investigating the different recycling methods. The legal and regulatory perspectives are also considered. Finally, with a view to the future, approaches for next-generation battery chemistries and recycling are evaluated, identifying gaps for research. This review takes the form of a series of short reviews, with each section written independently by a diverse international authorship of experts on the topic. Collectively, these reviews form a comprehensive picture of the current state of the art in LIB recycling, and how these technologies are expected to develop in the future

An electrogenetic toggle switch model

Special Issue: Microbial electrochemical technologies and Synthetic Biology. 14 Pág.Synthetic biology uses molecular biology to implement genetic circuits that perform computations. These circuits can process inputs and deliver outputs according to predefined rules that are encoded, often entirely, into genetic parts. However, the field has recently begun to focus on using mechanisms beyond the realm of genetic parts for engineering biological circuits. We analyse the use of electrogenic processes for circuit design and present a model for a merged genetic and electrogenetic toggle switch operating in a biofilm attached to an electrode. Computational simulations explore conditions under which bistability emerges in order to identify the circuit design principles for best switch performance. The results provide a basis for the rational design and implementation of hybrid devices that can be measured and controlled both genetically and electronically.This work was supported by the grants BioSinT-CM (Y2020/TCS-6555) and CONTEXT (Atracción de Talento Program; 2019-T1/BIO-14053) Projects of the Comunidad de Madrid, MULTI-SYSBIO (PID2020-117205GA-I00) and the Severo Ochoa Program for Centres of Excellence in R&D (CEX2020-000999-S) from the Spanish MCIN/AEI /10.13039/501100011033, and the EPSRC studentship 2127432 (L.G.).With funding from the Spanish government through the ‘Severo Ochoa Centre of Excellence’ accreditation (CEX2020‐000999‐S)Peer reviewe

Optimising the Hydraulic Retention Time in a Pilot-Scale Microbial Electrolysis Cell to Achieve High Volumetric Treatment Rates Using Concentrated Domestic Wastewater

Bioelectrochemical systems (BES) have the potential to deliver energy-neutral wastewater treatment. Pilot-scale tests have proven that they can operate at low temperatures with real wastewaters. However, volumetric treatment rates (VTRs) have been low, reducing the ability for this technology to compete with activated sludge (AS). This paper describes a pilot-scale microbial electrolysis cell (MEC) operated in continuous flow for 6 months. The reactor was fed return sludge liquor, the concentrated filtrate of anaerobic digestion sludge that has a high chemical oxygen demand (COD). The use of a wastewater with increased soluble organics, along with optimisation of the hydraulic retention time (HRT), resulted in the highest VTR achieved by a pilot-scale MEC treating real wastewater. Peak HRT was 0.5-days, resulting in an average VTR of 3.82 kgCOD/m3∙day and a 55% COD removal efficiency. Finally, using the data obtained, a direct analysis of the potential savings from the reduced loading on AS was then made. Theoretical calculation of the required tank size, with the estimated costs and savings, indicates that the use of an MEC as a return sludge liquor pre-treatment technique could result in an industrially viable system