Abstract: A sedimentary microbial fuel cell(SMFC) was constructed using oily sludge as anode substrate. The influence of anode packing, electrode area and pH on SMFC performance was investigated by measuring the output voltage, power density, apparent internal resistance and crude oil removal effect. The results showed that, compared with activated carbon filler, carbon felt packing endowed SMFC with better electricity generation performance and the removal rate of crude oil increased by 8.03%. The internal resistance decreased and the electricity generation performance and crude oil removal rate improved with the increasing of electrode area of SMFC. Acid or alkaline anode substrates were unfavorable to the power generation and degradation of SMFC. When the pH of the anode substrate is 7.5, the power generation and degradation performance of SMFC were the best. The generating voltage and removal rate of crude oil reached 373.7 mV and 45.36% respectively.