Enhanced organic and microbial contaminant removal using planted constructed wetland-microbial fuel cells for university wastewater treatment

This study aimed to evaluate the organic matter and bacteriological removal performance of a vertical subsurface flow constructed wetland microbial fuel cell (VSSFCW-MFC) for treating wastewater generated from a university. Microcosm-scale VSSFCW-MFC systems were developed, including one planted with Scirpus atrovirens and one unplanted for comparison. The experiments were conducted at a hydraulic retention time (HRT) of 3 days with a flow rate of 2.8 L/day. Water quality parameters analyzed included temperature, pH, dissolved oxygen (DO), 5-day biochemical oxygen demand (BOD₅), chemical oxygen demand (COD), total coliforms (TC), and Escherichia coli (E. coli). The planted CW-MFC demonstrated removal efficiencies of 91.51 ± 2.44 % for BOD₅, 96.28 ± 1.78 % for COD, 99.45 ± 0.21 % for TC, and 99.98 ± 0.01 % for E. coli. In comparison, the unplanted CW-MFC achieved removal rates of 85.49 ± 3.69 % (BOD₅), 93.11 ± 4.70 % (COD), 98.43 ± 0.30 % (TC), and 96.53 ± 0.38 % (E. coli). These results indicate that the planted CW-MFC met regulatory discharge limits for surface and inland water bodies and that vegetation plays a significant role in enhancing treatment performance. Overall, the findings suggest that micro-scale VSSFCW-MFC systems are effective for removing organic and bacteriological contaminants and hold promise for scaling up in university wastewater treatment applications. • Evaluated VSSFCW-MFC for organic and bacterial removal in university wastewater. • Study compared planted and unplanted CW-MFCs for organc matter and bacteriological removal efficiency. • Planted CW-MFC achieved 91 % BOD5 and 96.3 % COD removal. • Scirpus atrovirens plants enhanced organic and bacterial removal in CW-MFC. • Results suggest VSSFCW-MFC scalability for university wastewater treatment.