Enzymatic Fuel Cell for Treatment of Water Pollutants and Resources Recovery

The ever increasing demand of clean water has stimulated intensive research activities in the field of treatment of waste water. Industrial development and urbanization become major factors for contamination of water sources. Different contaminant removal technologies such as adsorption, bio oxidation, aerobic treatment, chemical treatment, electro oxidation, electro coagulation, electro dialysis etc. requires large consumption of energy, higher operational cost and produces enormous amount of sludge. It is a need of hour to find out a sustainable solution for treatment of water pollutants. Enzymatic biofuel cells (EFCs) may provide an alternative to solve the treatment problems of water pollutants. Enzymatic biofuel cells are the category of fuel cell who converts chemical energy into other form of energy that is electrical, through electrochemical reactions with use of biochemical trajectory. Since enzymatic biofuel cells used renewable fuels and enzyme biocatalysts in benign operating conditions, they are recognized as sustainable energy sources. The conventional sludge activation technologies have difficulty degrading resistant contaminants such as oil, grease, chemicals, pesticides, medicines, and plastics in wastewater. Due to their widespread presence, toxicity, resistance to natural biodegradability, and other detrimental effects, these pollutants pose a major hazard to aquatic habitats and organisms. A highly effective, enzymatic fuel cell is proposed for the treatment of these resistant pollutants. As useful instruments of living things, enzymes provide a sustainable and biobased approach to removal of pollutants from contaminated water. Consequently, the use of enzymatic fuel cells has great promise for lowering pollution levels and creating a better atmosphere for both people and other animals. The functions and uses of enzymatic fuel cells in wastewater treatment and resource recovery are the main topics of this chapter. The impact of enzymes, their kinds, and their sources are covered, along with enzymatic techniques for remediating resistant pollutants, identifying and testing the eco-toxicity of enzymatic transformation products, and the use of enzymatic fuel cells in wastewater treatment systems.