Comparative Study of CO₂ Dissolution in Aqueous Media for Applications in Bioelectrochemical Systems
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.56532/mjsat.v6i2.647Keywords:
CO2 dissolution, Gas diffusion, pH, conductivity, TOCAbstract
In alignment with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG 13: Climate Action and SDG 7: Affordable and Clean Energy), the urgent need to mitigate the high atmospheric level of carbon dioxide (CO₂) has lead research toward sustainable carbon capture and utilization technologies. Bioelectrochemical systems (BESs), especially microbial electrosynthesis (MES), have emerged as promising technology for converting CO₂ into value-added products with the assistance of the electroactive microbial metabolisms. However, the efficiency of MES remains constrained by the inherently low solubility and limited mass transfer of CO₂ in aqueous systems, which minimizes the availability of CO2 for microbial uptake and conversion. This study investigates the CO₂ dissolution behavior in various aqueous media—deionized (DI) water, reverse osmosis (RO) water, tap water, phosphate-buffered saline (PBS), PBS with anode additives, and microbial growth media including acetogen and sulfate-reducing bacteria formulations. Carbon dioxide (CO₂) dissolution was observed through changes of pH and conductivity to examine dissolution efficiency and media stability. Based on results achieved, this study highlights DI and RO water enhances CO₂ uptake but lack of buffering leads to pH stability, while PBS-based medium not only offers superior pH stability but also effectively support CO₂ dissolution, making them more suitable for long-term operation in microbial electrosynthesis systems. These findings provide crucial insights for selecting optimal aqueous environments to enhance CO₂ dissolution and support the design of more robust, efficient MES systems for future carbon-neutral technologies.
References
S.Bajracharya, K. Vanbroekhoven, C. J. Buisman, D. Pant & D. P. Strik, “Application of gas diffusion biocathode in microbial electrosynthesis from carbon dioxide,” Environmental Science and Pollution Research, vol. 23, no. 22, pp. 22292-22308, 2016, doi: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-016-7196-x.
Lindsey Rebecca, “Climate change: atmospheric carbon dioxide,” 2025. Accessed: May 21, 2025. [Online]. Available: https://www.climate.gov/news-features/understanding-climate/climate-change-atmospheric-carbon-dioxide.
R. Ganigué, S. Puig, P. Batlle-Vilanova, M. D. Balaguer, and J. Colprim, “Microbial electrosynthesis of butyrate from carbon dioxide,” Chemical Communications, vol. 51, no. 15, pp. 3235–3238, 2015, doi: https://doi.org/10.1039/C4CC10121A.
S. Das, S. Das, I. Das, and M. M. Ghangrekar, “Application of bioelectrochemical systems for carbon dioxide sequestration and concomitant valuable recovery: A review,” Mater Sci Energy Technol, vol. 2, no. 3, pp. 687–696, Dec. 2019, doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mset.2019.08.003
Y. Chen, N. S. Lewis, and C. Xiang, “Operational constraints and strategies for systems to effect the sustainable, solar-driven reduction of atmospheric CO 2,” Energy Environ Sci, vol. 8, no. 12, pp. 3663–3674, 2015, doi: https://doi.org/10.1039/C5EE02908B.
R. Mateos, A. Sotres, R. M. Alonso, A. Morán, and A. Escapa, “Enhanced CO2 Conversion to Acetate through Microbial Electrosynthesis (MES) by Continuous Headspace Gas Recirculation,” Energies (Basel), vol. 12, no. 17, p. 3297, Aug. 2019, doi: https://doi.org/10.3390/en12173297.
T, Zheng, J. Li, Y. Ji, W. Zhang, Y. Fang, F. Xin & M. Jiang, “Progress and prospects of bioelectrochemical systems: electron transfer and its applications in the microbial metabolism,” Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechnology, vol.8, no.10, 2020, doi: https://doi.org/10.3389/fbioe.2020.00010.
S. Swee Lim, “Microbial electrolysis cells with both anode and cathode catalysed by microorganisms,” 2019.
R. M. Atlas, Handbook of microbiological media, Fourth. 2010, doi: https://doi.org/10.1201/EBK1439804063.
[R. F. Weiss, “Carbon dioxide in water and seawater: the solubility of a non-ideal gas,” Marine chemistry, vol. 2, no. 3, pp. 203-215, 1974, doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/0304-4203(74)90015-2.
K. Gilbert, P. C. Bennett, W. Wolfe, T. Zhang, and K. D. Romanak, “CO2 solubility in aqueous solutions containing Na+, Ca2+, Cl−, SO42− and HCO3-: The effects of electrostricted water and ion hydration thermodynamics,” Applied Geochemistry, vol. 67, pp. 59–67, 2016, doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apgeochem.2016.02.002.
B. Liu, B. S. Mahmood, E. Mohammadian, A. Khaksar Manshad, N. R. Rosli, and M. Ostadhassan, “Measurement of Solubility of CO2 in NaCl, CaCl2, MgCl2 and MgCl2 + CaCl2 Brines at Temperatures from 298 to 373 K and Pressures up to 20 MPa Using the Potentiometric Titration Method,” Energies (Basel), vol. 14, no. 21, p. 7222, 2021, doi: https://doi.org/10.3390/en14217222.
P. Bakonyi, L. Koók, T. Rózsenberszki, V. Kalauz-Simon, K. Bélafi-Bakó, and N. Nemestóthy, “CO2-refinery through microbial electrosynthesis (MES): A concise review on design, operation, biocatalysts and perspectives,” Journal of CO2 Utilization, vol. 67, p. 102348, 2023, doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcou.2022.102348.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Yashawini Phriya Rauichandran, Hsien Han Yoong Adam, Wai Yin Wong, Mimi Hani Abu Bakar, Ebrahim Mahmoudi, Peer Mohamed, Swee Su Lim
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
