In the present study, the effects of different pretreatment methods for sediments on the performance of sediment microbial fuel cells (SMFCs) were evaluated. Autoclaved (30 and 60 min), and heated (150 degrees C, 3 h) sediments demonstrated high power density, compared with control and heated (60 degrees C, 3 h) sediments. An SMFC with heated (60 degrees C, 3 h) sediment was found to easily form a biocathode. The power density of an SMFC with heated (150 degrees C, 3 h) sediment was 214 mW m(-2) on day 24. Furthermore. autoclaved (30 and 60 min) and heated (3 h, 60 and 150 degrees C) sediments accelerated the production of dissolved organic matter (DOM). The DOM in heated (60 degrees C, 3 h) sediments had larger molecular sizes. The present study demonstrates that SMFCs can have high power density and high loss on ignition removal efficiencies when produced from sediments by suitable pretreatment methods. (C) 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.