Abstract
Soil microbial fuel cells (SMFCs) are a promising cost-effective power source for on-demand electricity generation applications. So far, reported SMFC configurations are usually bulky and hard to setup. In this study, a low-cost portable plugged-type SMFC (PSMFC) was designed and fabricated for on-demand micropower generation. The PSMFC can be activated just by plugging into natural wet soil, which is easy to access in the natural condition. The PSMFC uses carbon-based electrodes for cost-effectiveness. After setting the PSMFC into the soil to activate, it started to produce electricity after 1 h and reached the power density of 7.3 mW/m2 after 48 h. The proposed PSMFC can potentially generate electricity for remote sensors or soil sensing systems.
Highlights
In the soil microbial fuel cell (SMFC), organic matter in the anode chamber is oxidized by electrochemical microorganisms living in the soil to produce electrons and protons
The proposed plugged-type SMFC (PSMFC) was designed for on-demand electricity generation
Itit can can be be assumed assumed that that the the paddy paddy soil used in this study study contained the same species
Summary
In the SMFC, organic matter in the anode chamber is oxidized by electrochemical microorganisms living in the soil to produce electrons and protons These electrons and protons migrate to the cathode, where they are reduced by oxygen to transform into water. Conventional SMFC with a column or tubular configuration assembled with the air-cathode suspended on the top of the soil and the anode buried deep inside the soil showed significant effectiveness in power production and contamination removal. This conventional configuration is bulky and hard to setup [18]. The proposed PSMFC was designed for on-demand electricity generation
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