Novel graphite rod electrode modified with iron-functionalized nanozeolite for efficient wastewater treatment by microbial fuel cells

Microbial fuel cells (MFCs) are a green and efficient approach to treat wastewater and generate energy. According to the present research, a novel MFC fabricate based on graphite rod electrodes (GRE). The surface of this cathode was modified with iron-functionalized ZSM-5 nanozeolite. The characterization of Iron doping in nanozeolite structure and electrode surface modification were obtained by XRD and EDX analyzes, respectively. Chemical analysis of square wave (Sqw) and cyclic voltammetry (CV) determined for all of three graphite electrodes (G, G-Z and G-Z/Fe) with higher efficiency. Morover, the comparison of experimental results from 72-hour fuel cell steering was evaluated and showed that the G-Z/Fe graphite electrodes has maximum efficiency and effectiveness. Thus, the efficiency of fuel cell output current and residual chemical oxygen demand removal with this electrode increased up to 21.8% and 36.9%, respectively. The effiucient recovery for the modification of the graphite electrode was achieved due to increasing of the specific surface area, the active sites of functionalized nanozeolite and the elevation in the electrical conductivity through the presence of iron particles doped in the ZSM-5/Fe nanocatalyst structure. Therefore, the G-Z/Fe cathode can be used as a favorite electrode for the construction of MFCs based on GRE .