RESUMEN

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) are organic pollutants that require remediation due to their detrimental impact on human and environmental health. In this study, we used a novel approach of sequestering a model PAH, phenanthrene, onto a solid carbon matrix bioanode in a microbial fuel cell (MFC) to assess its biodegradation coupled with power generation. Here, the bioanode serves as a site for enrichment of electroactive and hydrocarbon-degrading microorganisms, which can simultaneously act to biodegrade a pollutant and generate power. Carbon cloth electrodes loaded with two rates of phenanthrene (2 and 20 mg cm-2) were compared using dual chamber MFCs that were operated for 50 days. The lower loading rate of 2 mg cm-2 was most efficient in the degradation of phenanthrene and had higher power production capacities (37 mW m-2) as compared to the higher loading rate of 20 mg cm-2 (power production of 19.2 mW m-2). FTIR (Fourier-Transform Infrared Spectroscopy) analyses showed a depletion in absorbance peak signals associated with phenanthrene. Microbes known to have electroactive properties or phenanthrene biodegradation abilities like Pseudomonas, Rhodococcus, Thauera and Ralstonia were enriched over time in the MFCs, substantiating the electrochemical and FTIR analyses. The MFC approach taken here thus offers great promise towards PAH bioelectroremediation.

Asunto(s)

Fuentes de Energía Bioeléctrica/microbiología , Técnicas Electroquímicas/métodos , Consorcios Microbianos , Fenantrenos/análisis , Contaminantes del Suelo/análisis , Anaerobiosis , Biodegradación Ambiental , ADN/genética , Electrodos , Consorcios Microbianos/genética , Suelo/química , Microbiología del Suelo , Hollín/química

RESUMEN

Catalyst coated perfluorosulfonic acid ionomer membranes (CCMs) were subjected to a combined chemical/mechanical accelerated stress test (AST) designed for rapid benchmarking of in situ membrane stability in polymer electrolyte fuel cells. In order to understand the evolution of the ionomer water sorption characteristics during combined chemical/mechanical degradation, CCM samples were periodically extracted from the AST and analyzed for ionomer mass fraction and water sorption properties. In spite of severe fluoride release and membrane thinning, the water uptake per unit mass of the partially degraded CCMs was found to be essentially constant. The mass fraction of ionomer in the CCM samples determined from thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) showed significant material loss throughout the AST process due to ionomer degradation and fluoride release, up to roughly 50% at end-of-life. The effects proceeding at different stages of degradation were therefore more accurately revealed by ionomer mass-normalized data. The water uptake per unit gram of ionomer was shown to increase significantly with degradation, in contrast to the previous results normalized by CCM dry mass. Although increased water sorption may indicate enlarged solvated hydrophilic domains in the membrane, which would be beneficial for enhanced proton mobility, the proton conductivity was found to decrease. This finding suggests that the additional water sorbed in the membrane was not contributing to proton conduction and was therefore likely situated in non-ionic cavities formed through degradation rather than in the ionic clusters.