Key factors to enhance soil remediation by bioelectrochemical systems (BESs): A review

[Display omitted] •BES is a superior technology on soil remediation compared to natural attenuation.•The real-world remediation by commercial soil BES has been achieved in the field.•The main challenge of soil BES is the issue of mass transfer in soil matrix.•Key factors to enhance soil remediation by BES are discussed. Soil pollution has brought serious harm to the environment and human health. The bioelectrochemical system (BES) technology has been recently utilized for soil remediation because it offers an adaptable platform for the removal of both organic pollutants and heavy metals from contaminated soils. While current studies have demonstrated the feasibility of BES for degrading various pollutants from soil and field applications of petroleum contaminated soil remediation have been successfully achieved, the challenge of mass transfer remains, particularly on the subsurface matrices. While previous reviews focus on pollutant removal by soil BES, this article is aimed at studying the aspects that may limit system performance. We summarize mechanisms of BES for soil remediation and the causes of mass transfer restrictions, particularly in terms of key parameters involved in soil remediation enhancement such as BES configuration, electrode material and arrangement, and soil medium (soil type, conductivity, water content, pH value, and porosity).