Abstract
In this study, whether wastewater contaminated with SARS-CoV2 virus can be disinfected using microbial fuel cells was modeled using the S1 anchor protein of the virus. The disinfection potential and simultaneous electricity production of wastewater contaminated with SARS-CoV-2 mixed with wastewater using microbial fuel cells, an innovative technology, were investigated. Bioremediation of SARS-CoV-2 contaminated wastewater was modeled using SARS-CoV-2 surface antigen (S1) and studied in microbial fuel cells at different temperatures (30 °C vs. 25 °C). Our results show that microbial fuel cells gradually reduced the SARS-CoV-2 viral concentration from 213 ng/mL, especially at ambient temperature, and simultaneously achieved a power density of 184.19±21.31 mW/m2 at a current density of 0.073±0.029 mA/cm2. The log reduction rates of closed-circuit microbial fuel cells increased steadily from 0.005 to 0.163. In conclusion, microbial fuel cells can be used to simultaneously generate electricity to enable biological treatment of wastewater contaminated by SARS-CoV-2.
