Innovative microbial fuel cell for energy harvesting and corrosion protection

Microbial Fuel cells (MFCs) are batteries driven by bacteria. MFCs have the potential of powering small sensors in remote areas and disposing organic waste safely by harvesting the energy stored in the waste products. From previous research in this field, a few important factors for MFC performance have been identified. These include the internal resistance of MFC, the surface area of anode with catalyst for the biofilm development, the type and number of bacteria, and the abundance of nutritional supplies to the bacteria. This paper describes the design of a novel single chamber MFC (SMFC) with carbon electrodes. Experiments were conducted to establish the relationship between each parameter and the power production. It is shown here that this SCMFC can generate electrical current without the use of PEM membranes or additives; the maximum voltage of around 411 mV can be achieved at the room temperature. These results also measured a various parameters such as pH, dissolved oxygen and solution conductivity during the operation of SMFC. Finally, experiment was conducted to evaluate an innovative concept of using MFC for corrosion protection,