Recent advances, challenges and prospects of in situ production of hydrogen peroxide for textile wastewater treatment in microbial fuel cells

Application of the Fenton process for textile wastewater treatment is limited due to high treatment cost, substantially contributed by the un-availability of cheap hydrogen peroxide. Therefore, alternative methods for hydrogen peroxide production are in demand. One such option is in situ hydrogen peroxide production using a wastewater based microbial fuel cell (WBMFC). However, not much have been published regarding in situ production of hydrogen peroxide for textile wastewater treatment in a WBMFC. Therefore, in this work the concept, advantages, challenges and prospects of using WBMFC to treat textile wastewater by simultaneously producing hydrogen peroxide (hence in situ hydrogen peroxide) and power are reviewed. The concept of WBMFC is the reduction of oxygen in the presence of electrons and protons from the anode chamber to produce hydrogen peroxide with simultaneous power production. This review confirms that use of dual chambers, proton exchange membrane, domestic or municipal wastewater/Geobacter Sulfurreducens or Shewanella species, pure graphite cathode, ammonia and heat treated carbon-based anode can treat most textile wastewaters. However, single chamber WBMFCs can be used as a low power source for an electro-Fenton reactor. Power produced can be used to provide energy for aeration required in the WBMFC, thus providing an integrated and sustainable solution for textile wastewater treatment. (c) 2014 Society of Chemical Industry