Influence of two polarization potentials on a bioanode microbial community isolated from a hypersaline coastal lagoon of the Yucatan peninsula, in México

Abstract In recent years, halotolerant biofilms have become a subject of interest for its application in Bioelectrochemical systems for wastewater treatment. To determine if the polarization potential affects the microbial community of a halotolerant bioanode, four bioanodes were poised at potentials of +0.34 V/SHE and − 0.16 V/SHE and the 16S rRNA gene was analyzed through a MiSeq (Ilumina) system. Oceanospirillum , Halomonas and Marinobacterium were the most predominant genus; no previous studies have reported the presence of Oceanospirillum in anodic biofilms. The fitness with the dataset for +0.34 V/SHE with a modified Butler Volmer Monod model, gives a value of K 1 was 0.0002 (2.64 A m −2 and 38% coulombic efficiency), indicating the fastest electrochemical reaction. Whereas that −0.16 V/SHE case, the high value of K 1 (12.2 with 1.82 A m −2 and 10% coulombic efficiency) indicated that the electron transfer was far from being reversible (Nernstian).