Abstract
Soil microbial fuel cell (SMFC) is a carbon-neutral energy harvesting technology that exploits the use of electroactive bacteria naturally present in soil to directly generate electricity from organic compounds. Given the simplicity of the system design, SMFCs have great potential to be used for decentralised solutions, especially in areas where access to conventional energy sources is limited. Yet, the high cost to power ratio severely limits the translation of this technology into the market. With the aim of reducing the capital cost, in this study we explore the effect of decreasing the amounts of current collector (CC) on the performance. The results demonstrate that increasing the amount of current collector per surface area of the electrode is not a feasible way of enhancing power densities, as to increase the performance by 20% and 35%, the amount of current collector would have to be increased by 150% and 300%, respectively. This highlights the importance of economic evaluations when optimising the design of a SMFC.
Highlights
Biomass energy has been fuelling the world for thousands of years, far long before the industrial revolution [1]
In Microbial fuel cell (MFC) waste is converted into electrons and protons via metabolic pathways of electroactive microbes, which release the charged particles during oxidation of organic compounds [2,3]
If the Soil microbial fuel cell (SMFC) generates more than 0.07 mW, the cost per Watt would drop, making the SMFC design more economically feasible
Summary
Biomass energy has been fuelling the world for thousands of years, far long before the industrial revolution [1]. By introducing electrodes and a proton exchange membrane, the electrons can be captured and driven through an external circuit, generating green electricity This unique feature eliminates the technology’s heavy reliance on environmental conditions, which remains a huge hindrance to success of other renewable energy technologies, and brings a circular economy element to the table, by making further use of waste. Operational costs such as pumping air and effluent, as well as mixing, have been identified as detrimental to the energy usage and to the overall operational costs of the system [8] For this reason, among the various types of MFC, soil microbial fuel cells (SMFCs) pose an interesting alternative. With the aim of reducing the price and improving the practicality of SMFC installation, in this study we investigate the effect that a reduced amount of CC has on the overall performance of a flat SMFC
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