Simultaneous reduction of bromate and nitrate was investigated using a rotating biofilm-electrode reactor (RBER) with graphite carbon (GC) rods as anode and activated carbon fiber (ACF) bonded with steel ring as cathode. In RBER, the community of denitrifying bacteria immobilized on the cathode surface could completely utilize hydrogen (H-2) as the electron donor, which was internally produced by the electrolysis of water. The short-term test confirmed that the RBER system could reduce 150-800 mu g/L. bromate to below 10 mu g/L. under autotrophic conditions. The reduced bromate was considered to be roughly equivalent to the amount of bromide in effluent, indicating that bromate was completely reduced to bromide without accumulation of by-products. The long-term test (over 120 days) showed that the removal fluxes of bromate and nitrate could be improved by increasing the electric current and decreasing the hydraulic retention time (HRT). But nitrite in effluent was significantly accumulated when the electric current was beyond 10mA and the HRT was less than 6 h. The maximum bromate reduction rate estimated by the Monod equation was 109.12 mu g/Lh when the electric current was 10 mA and HRT was 12 h. It was proposed that the electron transfer process in RBER produced H-2 on the surface of the ACF cathode, and the microbial cultures attached closely on the cathode which could completely utilize H-2 as electron donors for reduction of bromate and nitrate. (C) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.