Energy Efficient Phosphorus Recovery by Microbial Electrolysis Cell Induced Calcium Phosphate Precipitation

Phosphorus (P) removal and recovery from waste streams is essential for a sustainable world. Here, we updated a previously developed abiotic electrochemical P recovery system to a bioelectrochemical system. The anode was inoculated with electroactive bacteria (electricigens) which are capable of oxidizing soluble organic substrates and releasing electrons. These electrons are then used for the reduction of water at the cathode, resulting in an increase of pH close to the cathode. Hence, phosphate can be removed with coexisting calcium ions as calcium phosphate at the surface of the cathode with a much lower energy input. Depending on the available substrate (sodium acetate) concentration, an average current density from 1.1 ± 0.1 to 6.6 ± 0.4 A/m2 was achieved. This resulted in a P removal of 20.1 ± 1.5% to 73.9 ± 3.7%, a Ca removal of 10.5 ± 0.6% to 44.3 ± 1.7% and a Mg removal of 2.7 ± 1.9% to 16.3 ± 3.0%. The specific energy consumption and the purity of the solids were limited by the relative low P co...