| Renewable Energy Generation by Harvesting Electricity through Microbial Fuel Cells Thesis Abstract--Idaho State University (2018)
Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) is one of the most promising alternative renewable energy sources for our world. MFC’s are bio-electrochemical devices that convert chemical energy into electrical energy using microorganisms as catalysts, and these devices use bacteria to oxidize organic matter to produce electricity. The bacteria attached to the anode produce electrons that travel to the cathode (thus current). Our single chamber MFC consists of anodes, a cathode, electrolytes and an external circuit. We have used electrochemically active bacteria (EAB) as catalysts for potato processing wastewater. Usually, wastewater is rich in organic content. In this biochemical system, electrons and protons are generated from organic substrate, and generated electrons are transferred by anode to the cathode through an external circuit. In this research, three MFCs were made, and each of them consisted of an anode chamber, a carbon cloth (Pt-coated) as cathode, and four bamboo charcoal (BC) plates as anodes. Our primary aim was to store the electrical energy that was 159 mWh from all three MFCs into a rechargeable Lithium-ion battery to 3.2V, and to find out the maximum power output, which was 520 mW/m2 with respect to cathode area. Though MFC is producing electricity in small scale, but with good design, it could be an excellent source of electricity. The best way to utilize this is to store the generated electrical energy into the rechargeable battery, according to this research.
Keywords: Microbial Fuel Cell, Energy Harvester, Lithium-Ion Battery, Wastewater, Electrochemically Active Bacteria, Computerized Battery Analyzer, Bamboo Charcoal. |