Electrochemical pretreatment (EPT) is an efficient technology to improve volatile fatty acids (VFAs) production during anaerobic fermentation of waste activated sludge (WAS). This study investigated the co-effects of different current intensities, electrolyte NaCl dosage and pretreatment time for promoting VFAs production. The results showed that it was considerably enhanced by 51.6% when EPT was performed at 1.0 A, 1.0 g/L and 60 min, and response surface methodology strategy adjusted the optimal EPT conditions to 1.0 A, 1.2 g/L and 66 min. The potential mechanisms were proposed that EPT at optimal conditions greatly enhanced solubilization and hydrolysis of WAS and selectively inactivated methanogens, causing the enrichment of acidogenic bacteria (i.e., Lactobacillus, Saccharimonadales, Tetrasphaera and Prevotella) due to generated reactive chlorine species. Finally, the economic analysis indicated the promising application potential with the profit of EPT at optimal conditions increasing by 36.0%.

电化学预处理 (EPT) 是一种提高废弃活性污泥 (WAS) 厌氧发酵过程中挥发性脂肪酸 (VFAs) 产量的有效技术。本研究调查了不同电流强度、电解质 NaCl 用量和预处理时间对促进 VFAs 产生的协同作用。结果表明，当 EPT 在 1.0 A、1.0 g/L 和 60 min 下进行时，其显着增强了 51.6%，响应面法策略将最佳 EPT 条件调整为 1.0 A、1.2 g/L 和 66 min。提出了潜在的机制，EPT 在最佳条件下大大增强了 WAS 的溶解和水解，并选择性地灭活产甲烷菌，导致产酸细菌（即乳杆菌、糖单胞菌）的富集, Tetrasphaera和Prevotella ) 由于产生活性氯物质。最后，经济分析表明EPT在最佳条件下的利润增加了36.0%，具有广阔的应用潜力。