Microbial Fuel Cells Coupled with Hydroponics for Wastewater Treatment

Abstract

Global warming and the energy crisis caused by human activities, water scarcity and the diminishing land area are becoming more and more urgent problems to be solved. This paper summarizes the technologies of Microbial Fuel Cells (MFCs) and hydroponics for wastewater treatment respectively, and describes the coupled wastewater treatment technology formed by the combination of the two. The two methods are mainly analyzed in terms of the working principle of wastewater purification, the efficiency and their benefits and shortcomings. In addition, it provides a detailed analysis and summary of the working principles and previous research on coupling MFCs to hydroponics, a novel technology for treating wastewater, and gives reasonable suggestions on aspects of the field that still need to be developed and improved. MFCs coupled hydroponics (Hyp-MFC) for wastewater treatment still has great potential as a new wastewater treatment process, including the search for suitable fungal or bacterial communities to enhance the uptake of nitrogen and phosphorus in wastewater by hydroponics, as well as the application of electricity generated by MFCs to other processes. The purpose of this study is to have significance in improving the Hyp-MFC system for wastewater treatment technology, finding greener wastewater treatment methods and plant cultivation.