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---- Supporting Information ----

A New Method for Water Desalination Using Microbial Desalination Cells

Xiaoxin CAOa, Xia HUANGa*, Peng LIANGa, Kang XIAOa, Yingjun ZHOUa,

Xiaoyuan ZHANGa, and Bruce E. LOGANb

*Corresponding author

Tel: +86 10 62772324; fax: +86 10 62771472; E-mail: xhuang@tsinghua.edu.cn

a
State Key Joint Laboratory of Environment Simulation and Pollution Control

Department of Environmental Science and Engineering

Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, P.R.China

b
Engineering Environmental Institute

Penn State University, University Park, USA

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This supplement provides additional information on the setup of the equipment and an
example calculation for resultsin the main paper

S1.1 Experimental setup

Figure. S1 experimental setup

S1.2 Electron calculation

Calculation example:

For a NaCl concentration of 5 g/L and a removal of 88% of the salt in the middle desalination
chamber having a volume of 3 mL, the electrons that were needed for desalination were

concentration × volume 5× 3
× removal × 2 = × 0.88 × 2 =0.46 mmol
MW 58

For acetate, the electrons that can be provided was

concentration × volume 1.6 × 200

×8 = × 8 =32 mmol
MW 82

For ferricyanide, the electrons that can be provided was

concentration × volume 16.5 ×100

×1 = × 1 =5 mmol
MW 329

The summary of the electrons for desalination and the electrons that can be provided are listed in
Table S1.
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Table S1 Calculation of electrons in one cycle

NaCl concentration (g/L) 5 20 35

NaCl maximal removal rate 88% 94% 93%
NaCl volume (mL) 3 3 3
Electron that needed for desalination 0.46 1.94 3.36
(mmol)
Acetate concentration (mM) 20 20 20
Anolyte volume (mL) 200 200 300
Electron that acetate can provide (mmol) 32 32 48
Ferricyanide concentration (mM) 50 50 50
Catholyte volume (mL) 100 100 100
Electron that ferricyanide can provide 5 5 5
(mmol)

S1.3 pH calculation

The phosphate buffers used in our study consist of a mixture of monobasic dihydrogen
phosphate and dibasic monohydrogen phosphate as shown in Table S2.

Table S2 Composition of the PBS

KH2PO4 K2HPO4•3H2O
Molecular weight (g/mol) 136.1 228.1
Kilo concentration (g/L) 4.4 3.4
Mol concentration (mM) 32 15

pH and buffer capacity were calculated according to the Henderson-Hasselbalch equation:

base
pH=pK’+ log
acid

where the pK’=6.86 at 25 oC.

15
For the buffer concentration used in our study, the initial pH= 6.86+log =6.53
32

Calculation example:

For NaCl concentration of 5 g/L, as calculated in S1.2, the H+ produced was 0.46 mmol. As
we use PBS in the anolyte and the typical anolyte volume was 200 mL, the change of pH can
be calculated according to the Henderson-Hasselbalch equation:
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base' base 3-0.46 3

ΔpH=final pH-initial pH = log '
− log = log − log =-0.1
acid acid 6.4+0.46 6.4

For the batch operation of desalination, the accumulation of H+ and the change of anode pH
were listed in Table S3.

Table S3. Proton production and pH in the anode chamber

NaCl concentration (g/L) 5 20 35
Middle chamber volume 3 mL 3 mL 3 mL
Maximal removal rate 88% 94% 93%
+
H produced (mmol) 0.46 1.94 3.36
Typical anolyte replacement(mL) 200 200 300
Maximal change of pH 0.1 0.5 0.7