Microbial fuel cells, a renewable energy technology for bio-electricity generation: A mini-review

Obileke, KeChrist; Onyeaka, Helen; Meyer, Edson L.; Nwokolo, Nwabunwanne

doi:10.1016/j.elecom.2021.107003

Cited by 226 publications

(107 citation statements)

References 77 publications

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“…to meet the basic needs of society [1]. The increased use of renewable energy will help to solve or mitigate these problems; microbial fuel cells (MFC) emerge as the most viable solution for this purpose [2]. There are different types of MFC, which are usually composed of two chambers (anode and cathode, with their respective electrodes) that are joined by a proton exchange membrane and an external circuit (through which electrons flow from the anode to the cathode).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Bioelectricity Production from Blueberry Waste

et al. 2021

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Global warming and the increase in organic waste from agro-industries create a major problem for the environment. In this sense, microbial fuel cells (MFC) have great potential for the generation of bioelectricity by using organic waste as fuel. This research produced low-cost MFC by using zinc and copper electrodes and taking blueberry waste as fuel. A peak current and voltage of 1.130 ± 0.018 mA and 1.127 ± 0.096 V, respectively, were generated. The pH levels were acid, with peak conductivity values of 233. 94 ± 0.345 mS/cm and the degrees Brix were descending from the first day. The maximum power density was 3.155 ± 0.24 W/cm2 at 374.4 mA/cm2 current density, and Cándida boidinii was identified by means of molecular biology and bioinformatics techniques. This research gives a new way to generate electricity with this type of waste, generating added value for the companies in this area and helping to reduce global warming.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Bioelectricity Production from Blueberry Waste

et al. 2021

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“…Fundamentally, the configurations of MFC consist of a single chamber microbial fuel cell (SCMFC) and double chamber microbial fuel cell (DCMFC) [38]. The high performance of DCMFC is shown by the engineered electrode, such as multiple electrodes [39,40], nanomaterial-assisted electrode [41,42], low-cost material substituted electrode [43,44], separator [45,46], and multiple anode chamber called the integrated system with the wastewater treatment plant types (anaerobic digester, constructed wetland, up-flow anaerobic baffled reactor (UASB), etc.) [7,11,[47][48][49].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Enhancement of Power Generation and Organic Removal in Double Anode Chamber Designed Dual-Chamber Microbial Fuel Cell (DAC-DCMFC)

Samudro

Imai

Hung

2021

Water

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One of the important factors in enhancing the performance of microbial fuel cells (MFCs) is reactor design and configuration. Therefore, this study was conducted to evaluate the regressors and their operating parameters affecting the double anode chamber–designed dual-chamber microbial fuel cell (DAC-DCMFC) performance. Its primary design consists of two anode chamber compartments equipped with a separator and cathode chamber. The DAC-DCMFCs were parallelly operated over 8 days (60 days after the acclimation period). They were intermittently pump-fed with the different organic loading rates (OLRs), using chemically enriched sucrose as artificial wastewater. The applied OLRs were adjusted at low, medium, and high ranges from 0.4 kg.m−3.d−1 to 2.5 kg.m−3.d−1. The reactor types were type 1 and type 2 with different cathode materials. The pH, temperature, oxidation-reduction potential (ORP), optical density 600 (OD600), chemical oxygen demand (COD), and total organic carbon (TOC) were measured, using standard analytical instruments. In general, the power production achieved a maximum of 866 ± 44 mW/m2, with a volumetric power density of 5.15 ± 0.26 W/m3 and coulombic efficiency of 84%. Two-stage COD and TOC removal at medium OLR achieved a range of 60–80%. Medium OLR is the recommended level to enhance power production and organic removal in DAC-DCMFC. The separated anode chambers into two parts in a dual anode chamber microbial fuel cell adjusted by various organic loadings expressed a preferable comprehension in the integrated MFCs for wastewater treatment.

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“…Therefore, there is a considerable request globally for reliable, clean energy sources and wastewater treatment plants. The microbial fuel cells (MFC) are an apparatus that converts the chemical energy of biodegradable organic compounds to electricity and hydrogen, which are the clean and renewable types of energy [6,7]. This means that an MFC can utilize the organic compound of waste and produce energy, thus, treating wastewater [8][9][10][11] and producing energy simultaneously [7].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Carbon Nanotube/Pt Cathode Nanocomposite Electrode in Microbial Fuel Cells for Wastewater Treatment and Bioenergy Production

2021

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In this paper, we reported the fabrication, characterization, and application of carbon nanotube (CNT)-platinum nanocomposite as a novel generation of cathode catalyst in microbial fuel cells (MFCs) for sustainable energy production and wastewater treatment. The efficiency of the carbon nanocomposites was compared by platinum (Pt), which is the most effective and common cathode catalyst. This nanocomposite is utilized to benefit from the catalytic properties of CNTs and reduce the amount of required Pt, as it is an expensive catalyst. The CNT/Pt nanocomposites were synthesized via a chemical reduction technique and the electrodes were characterized by field emission scanning electron microscopy, electronic dispersive X-Ray analysis, and transmission electron microscopy. The nanocomposites were applied as cathode catalysts in the MFC to obtain polarization curve and coulombic efficiency (CE) results. The catalytic properties of electrodes were tested by linear sweep voltammetry. The CNT/Pt at the concentration of 0.3 mg/cm2 had the highest performance in terms of CE (47.16%), internal resistance (551 Ω), COD removal (88.9%), and power generation (143 mW/m2). In contrast, for the electrode with 0.5 mg/L of Pt catalyst, CE, internal resistance, COD removal, and power generation were 19%, 810 Ω, 96%, and 84.1 mW/m2, respectively. So, it has been found that carbon nanocomposite cathode electrodes had better performance for sustainable clean energy production and COD removal by MFC.

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Microbial fuel cells, a renewable energy technology for bio-electricity generation: A mini-review

Cited by 226 publications

References 77 publications

Bioelectricity Production from Blueberry Waste

Bioelectricity Production from Blueberry Waste

Enhancement of Power Generation and Organic Removal in Double Anode Chamber Designed Dual-Chamber Microbial Fuel Cell (DAC-DCMFC)

Carbon Nanotube/Pt Cathode Nanocomposite Electrode in Microbial Fuel Cells for Wastewater Treatment and Bioenergy Production

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