Polythiophene modified carbon cloth as anode in microbial fuel cell for heavy metal removal

Abstract

Water is an incredibly crucial hotspot for the survival of life on newlineEarth. It is both a source of life and a necessity, but a vast number of people newlinearound the world lack access to fresh and safe drinking water. Heavy metals newlineare one of the most dangerous pollutants in the environment, and they can newlinecome from a variety of sources, including industrial effluents and sludge newlinedisposal. As a result of these concerns, scientists and industries have shown newlineinterest in metal-microbe interactions to find effective methods for fixing, newlinerecovering, and stabilizing heavy metals in seawaters, soils, and effluents. newlineIn this study, the performance of Carbon Cloth (CC) modified with newlineiodine (I2) doped polythiophene nanoparticles (PTh-NP) as an anode was newlineinvestigated in double chamber microbial fuel cell (DCMFC) for newlinesimultaneous power generation and heavy metal (Pb2+, Cr6+ and Cu2+) newlineremoval using Shewanella Putrefaciens as the biocatalyst. Initially, the newlinethiophene monomers, carbon fabric and other chemicals for the preparation of newlinesynthetic or simulated wastewater containing lead, chromium and copper newlinewere obtained. Then, the PTh-NPs were doped with iodine vapors to enhance newlinethe conductivity. The obtained carbon fabric was modified and used as an newlineanode in the DCMFC for power generation and heavy metal removal at the newlinesame time. Scanning Electron Microscopy was used to examine the PTh-NP newlinethat was synthesized. The functional groups of the iodine doped PTh-NP, newlineunmodified, and modified electrodes were determined using Fourier newlineTransform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR). Thermogravimetric Analysis was newlinealso used to characterize the deterioration nature of both the normal and newlinemodified anodes (TGA). newline