Polyether ether ketone was sulphonated polyether ether ketone (SPEEK) and utilized as a proton exchange membrane (PEM) in a single chamber MFC (SCMFC). The SPEEK was compared with Nafion (R) 117 in the SCMFC using Escherichia coil. The MFC with the SPEEK membrane produced 55.2% higher power density than Nafion (R) 117. The oxygen mass transfer coefficient (K(o)) for SPEEK and Nafion (R) 117 was estimated to be 2.4 x 10(-6) cm/s and 1.6 x 10(-5) cm/s, respectively resulting in reduced substrate loss and increased columbic efficiency (CE) in the case of SPEEK. When the dairy and domestic waste water was treated in SPEEK-SCMFC, fitted with a membrane electrode assembly (MEA), a higher maximum power density was obtained for dairy waste water (5.7 W/m(3)). The results of this study indicate that SPEEK membrane has the potential to greatly enhance the efficiency of MFCs. (C) 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.