Bioremediation enhancement by current-powered solenoid magnetic field in microbial fuel cell.

External magnetic field technology has been utilized in wastewater treatment. In this study, a current-powered solenoid magnetic field is implemented beyond a dual-chamber cubed MFC to investigate the effects of various current strengths (0, 20, 40, 60, and 80 mA) on bioelectricity generation and microbial community diversity in the anode chamber. The results show that adding a solenoid magnetic field (MF) can increase both electricity performance and pollutant removal efficiency. Applying a solenoid MF powered by 80 mA (MF-80) resulted in a peak current density of 130 ± 18.2 mA/m² and a power density of 66.3 ± 16.8 mW/m², which are 2.1 times and 3.6 times higher, respectively, compared with the value from MF-0. Moreover, the coulombic efficiency can also be increased from 12.0 to 23.6% without MF to a maximum value of 71.4% by adding solenoid MF-80. More diverse bacterial communities were found with the addition of MF. Without MF, the dominant populations were Pseudomonas (27%); however, with MF-80, Pseudomonas decreased to 4.0%, and Geobacter increased to 12.0%. MF intensity also resulted in varying microbial communities on the anode.