Microbial reduction of nitrate in the presence of zero-valent iron and biochar

[Display omitted] •Biochar enhances the anaerobic denitrification of nitrate by microbes with Fe(0).•Electron conductivity of biochar accounts for the enhancement.•Increasing dosage of mixed culture promotes nitrate reduction with Fe(0) and biochar.•A product of microbial reduction with Fe(0) and biochar is N2.•A biochar–Fe(0)–microbes system may be an alternative option for NO3− treatment. The denitrification of nitrate (NO3−) by mixed cultures in the presence of zero-valent iron [Fe(0)] and biochar was investigated through a series of batch experiments. It was hypothesized that biochar may provide microbes with additional electrons to enhance the anaerobic biotransformation of nitrate in the presence of Fe(0) by facilitating electron transfer. When compared to the anaerobic transformation of nitrate by microbes in the presence of Fe(0) alone, the presence of biochar significantly enhanced anaerobic denitrification by microbes with Fe(0). Graphite also promoted the anaerobic microbial transformation of nitrate with Fe(0), and it was speculated that electron-conducting graphene moieties were responsible for the improvement. The results obtained in this work suggest that nitrate can be effectively denitrified by microbes with Fe(0) and biochar in natural and engineered systems.