Efficiency, operational stability and biofouling of novel sulfomethylated polystyrene-block-poly(ethylene-ran-butylene)-block-polystyrene cation exchange membrane in microbial fuel cells

[Display omitted] •Novel sulfomethylated PSEBS SU22 cation exchange membrane was examined in MFC.•The MFCs with PSEBS SU22 and Nafion 115 were compared using two inoculum.•Physicochemical characterization of the membranes was undertaken and discussed.•Fouling of the two polymeric membranes was studi...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Bioresource technology 2021-08, Vol.333, p.125153-125153, Article 125153
Main Authors: Koók, László, Žitka, Jan, Szakács, Szabolcs, Rózsenberszki, Tamás, Otmar, Miroslav, Nemestóthy, Nándor, Bélafi-Bakó, Katalin, Bakonyi, Péter
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Biofouling
Ion exchange membrane
Membrane characterization
Microbial consortia analysis
Microbial fuel cell
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Summary:[Display omitted] •Novel sulfomethylated PSEBS SU22 cation exchange membrane was examined in MFC.•The MFCs with PSEBS SU22 and Nafion 115 were compared using two inoculum.•Physicochemical characterization of the membranes was undertaken and discussed.•Fouling of the two polymeric membranes was studied in microbiological aspects.•Reactivation of PSEBS SU22 after biofouling revealed its benefits for reuse. In this work, a novel cation exchange membrane, PSEBS SU22 was deployed in microbial fuel cells (MFCs) to examine system efficacy in line with membrane characteristics and inoculum source. It turned out that compared to a reference membrane (Nafion), employing PSEBS SU22 resulted in higher current density and electricity generation kinetics, while the electron recoveries were similar (19–28%). These outcomes indicated more beneficial ion transfer features and lower mass transfer-related losses in the PSEBS SU22-MFCs, supported by membrane water uptake, ion exchange capacity, ionic conductivity and permselectivity. By re-activating the membranes after (bio)foulant removal, PSEBS SU22 regained nearly its initial conductivity, highlighting a salient functional stability. Although the particular inoculum showed a clear effect on the microbial composition of the membrane biofouling layers, the dominance of aerobic species was revealed in all cases. Considering all the findings, the PSEBS SU22 seems to be promising for application in MFCs.
ISSN:0960-8524
1873-2976
DOI:10.1016/j.biortech.2021.125153