Efficient hydrogen peroxide generation from organic matter in a bioelectrochemical system

Hydrogen peroxide (H(2)O(2)) is an important industrial chemical, but its current production methods are highly energy-intensive. This study presents a novel process for the production of H(2)O(2) based on the bioelectrochemical oxidation of wastewater organics at an anode coupled to the cathodic reduction of oxygen to H(2)O(2). At an applied voltage of 0.5 V, this system was capable of producing similar to 1.9 +/- 0.2 kg H(2)O(2)/m(3)/day from acetate at an overall efficiency of 83.1 +/- 4.8%. As most of the required energy was derived from the acetate, the system had a low energy requirement of similar to 0.93 kWh/kg H(2)O(2). (C) 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.