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Updated: Jan 22, 2026

Biology of Microbial Communities - Interview
Published on: May 28, 2007
High-efficiency salt, sulfate and nitrogen removal and microbial community in biocathode microbial desalination cell
Linfang Zhang1, Guokai Fu1, Zhi Zhang1
1Faculty of Urban Construction and Environmental Engineering, Chongqing University, Chongqing 400044, China; Key Laboratory of Three Gorges Reservoir Region's Eco-Environment, Ministry of Education, Chongqing University, Chongqing 400044, China.
Abstract:
Considering there is no study involving simultaneous salt, sulfate and nitrogen removal from high-salinity mustard tuber wastewater (MTWW), biocathode microbial desalination cell (BMDC) was first constructed and used to treat MTWW. The results showed that 97.4% of salt, 99.7% of sulfate and 99.8% of nitrogen could be removed from MTWW. The relative abundances of electrgenic bacteria in anode and cathode were 15.95% and 15.10%, respectively, which greatly promoted the electricity generation and desalination. The bacteria involved in sulfate reduction in anode were the dominant population, with relative abundance of 13.94%. Microbial community analysis of cathode biofilm indicated that autotrophic nitrification-anaerobic denitrification, electrochemical reduction and anaerobic ammonium oxidation might coexist for high-efficiency nitrogen removal. Besides, the BMDC showed stable power output for 150 days. These findings provide a promising approach for efficient treatment of MTWW.
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