Ibnu Maulana Hidayatullah, Rita Arbianti, Tania Surya Utami, Dheniza Nathalya Tiwiwijaya, Tarisa Amalia, Najah Fadilah Putri, Fauzi Yusupandi, Muhammad Irfan
Tapioca starch production generates large volumes of wastewater containing high levels of organic matter and cyanide, which, if left treated, pose significant environmental and health risks. Conventional treatment methods are often inadequate for eliminating high cyanide concentrations. Herein, a two-chambered Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) was developed and optimized by varying the catholyte composition and enriching the natural microbial consortium present in the tapioca wastewater with Pseudomonas aeruginosa. The effects of elevated cyanide exposure on MFC performance and microbial community dynamics were also explored. MFC was operated for 72 h during which degradation efficiency, electricity generation, and microbial community composition were evaluated to assess both the remediation potential and bioelectrochemical performance of the MFC. COD and cyanide removal were determined using the pyridine–pyrazolone and closed reflux methods, respectively, whereas 16S rRNA gene sequencing was performed to assess the microbial community composition. The optimized MFC achieved a COD removal of 47.24 ± 3.08% and an average power density of 12,517 µW/m2. Microbial analysis revealed that Pseudomonas aeruginosa thrived in the enriched system (39.29%), while Serratia became dominant under cyanide stress (51.05%), suggesting adaptive shifts in the microbial community. These findings demonstrate the promise of MFCs as a dual-function platform for toxic wastewater remediation and bioelectricity generation, offering a scalable and eco-friendly alternative for industrial wastewater management, particularly for cyanide-laden effluents. © 2026 The Authors
Bioprocess Engineering Study Program, Faculty of Engineering, Universitas Indonesia, West Java, Depok, 16424, Indonesia; Department of Chemical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Universitas Indonesia, West Java, Depok, 16424, Indonesia; Research Center for Biomass Valorization, Universitas Indonesia, West Java, Depok, 16424, Indonesia; Department of Chemical Engineering, Institut Teknologi Sumatera, Lampung Selatan, Lampung, 35365, Indonesia; Department of Biotechnology, University of Sargodha, Punjab, Sargodha, 40100, Pakistan; Department of Bioengineering, King Fahd University of Petroleum & Minerals, Dhahran, 31261, Saudi Arabia
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