ABSTRACT
The water crisis increased over the last decades. Many researchers work in treating domestic wastewater through several technologies. Biological treatment by fabrication of biological cells shows great results in treating domestic wastewater. Microbial fuel cells or bio-electrochemical systems are newly developedtechnologies with high efficiency, low cost, and environmental sustainability. Current research has novelty in terms of treating the wastewater produced in the oilfield. A simple design had been fabricated to observe the possibility of biological growth on the outer surface of the membrane. The membrane biofilm reactor (MBfR) is composed of a hollow fiber membrane, feed tank, air compressor, and feed pump. Three samples of produced wastewater that were fed into membrane flow cells were examined at varying flow rates and retention times while at room temperature. To measure the thickness of bacterial adhesion to the membrane, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) is performed. By means of spectrophotometry, the Multiparameter Bench Photometer for Laboratories isused to measure the levels of COD, TP, TN, and oil content in the water. It is advised to use the produced oilfield wastewater in microbial fuel cells for treating wastewater and generating energy as a result of the observation of biological growth on the external surfaceof membranes with various thicknesses.
