Optimisation of Microbial Electrolysis Cells Through Computational Modelling

废水处理每年耗电量210亿千瓦时，但典型的废水含有7.6kJ/L的能量。开发有效地从废水处理(WWT)过程中获取能量的战略和技术是实现水务行业低碳未来的根本步骤。微生物电解槽(MECs)可能是减少WWT工厂能源需求的一种可行方法，可以直接从废水中回收能源，作为电力或氢气等产品。这些MEC的结构与包含阳极和阴极等部件的经典电化学系统相似，但主要不同之处在于这些系统的运行方式以及所需的规模。此外，MEC不是纯粹的化学系统，而是依靠微生物作为生物催化剂，将化学能转化为电能或其他可用资源，形成生物电化学系统。目前，这些系统已经在小规模上进行了开发和测试，并显示出令人振奋的结果，但主要是由于财务成本和微生物群落的不可预测性，尚未形成可与处理厂相媲美的规模。虽然已经产生了一些用于模拟MEC的模型，但这些模型大多集中在实验室规模实验的复制和建模上。虽然小规模模型的生产是帮助设计和整体理解的基础，但仍需要进行更大规模的开发，以评估和优化与处理厂规模相当的MEC的实施。该项目的主要目标和总体目标是开发一个大规模的数学模型，能够准确地模拟废水处理环境中的MEC。一旦开发出这一点，就可以将重点转移到该实现的优化上，包括调整单元布局和大小，同时考虑优化设计参数。这将主要集中在通过最优控制或其他优化算法在当前生产的同时最大限度地提高底物去除。开发这种模型将允许快速、轻松地测试潜在的设计，消除构建和测试未经优化的布局的需要，进一步降低测试这些系统的成本开销。虽然模型不能消除物理测试的需要，但它可以在整个设计过程中用作一个非常有效的工具。

Wastewater treatment accounts for 21 billion kWh of electrical consumption per year, yet wastewater typical contains 7.6 kJ/L of energy. Developments of strategies and technologies to effectively capture energy from the wastewater treatment (WWT) process is a fundamental step to obtaining a low carbon future for the water industry. Microbial electrolysis cells (MECs) could be a feasible method to reduce energy demand at WWT plants, recapturing energy from the wastewater either directly as electricity or as products such as hydrogen. These MECs have similar structures to classical electrochemical systems containing parts such as anodes and cathodes, however major differences lie in how the systems operate, and the scale at which they would need to do so. Furthermore rather than being purely a chemical system MECs rely on microorganisms to act as a biocatalyst to convert chemical energy into electricity or other usable resources forming a bioelectrochemical system. Currently these systems have been developed and tested for small scales and show promising results but have not been built at scales comparable to treatment plants, mainly due to financial costs and unpredictability of microbial communities. Although a number of models for the simulation of MECs have been produced, these are mostly focused on replication and modelling of lab scale experiments. While production of small scale models is fundamental to aid with design and overall understanding, there is still need for larger scale development to assess and optimise MECs implementation at a scale comparable to that of a treatment plant. The main aim and overall goal of this project is to develop a large scale mathematical model that will accurately simulate MECs in a wastewater treatment setting. Once this has been developed focus can then be shifted into optimisation of this implementation, including adjustment of cell layout and size while considering optimisation of design parameters. This would primarily focus on maximisation of substrate removal alongside current production via optimal control or other optimisation algorithms. Development of such a model will allow for quick and easy testing of potential designs, removing the need to build and test un-optimised layouts, further reducing the cost overhead of testing these systems. While a model cannot remove the need for physical testing, it can be used as a highly effective tool throughout the design process.