Goofy

1. Sediment Based
Microbial Fuel Cell
MARGUERITE AZZARA

2. Background
 Bioreactor – produces power using
microorganisms
Eco-friendly!
 Concept first came about in 1911
 Recent research to optimize
 Not yet ready for commercial use

3. Problem
WE NEED CLEAN ENERGY MFCs PRODUCE ELECTRICAL
POWER

4. Need – Electrical Power Production
GOALS
 Process:
Microbes are able to grow
and provide current
Produce 1 W/m^3
 Structural:
Wire with a low resistance
Resistor with enough
resistance
Rich organic matter
CONSIDERATIONS
 Life cycle
Reuse/recycle materials
 Safety
Try not to get kidnapped
 Ultimately will be used
only for this project
CONSTRAINTS
 Quarantine
Limitation of materials
Search for materials
No lab environment
 Time
Rebuilding

5. Design #1
Mop Bucket
Sediment/organic matter from Twelve Mile River
Small rocks/gravel
Tap water
Copper wire from field winding
Christmas lights lightbulb as resistor
Whole charcoal piece for anode
Crushed charcoal in screen for cathode
Masking tape for stability

6. Design #2
Salsa jar
Sediment from Twelve Mile River
Nature’s Own 100% whole wheat bread for organic material
Small rocks/gravel
Tap water
Copper wire from field winding
~1467 ohm resistor from Matthew (thank you)
Whole charcoal piece for anode
Crushed charcoal in screen for cathode

7. Literature Review
Microbial fuel cell to decontaminate swine wastewater and produce electrical power

8. Results and Calculations
Day Voltage (mV) Power Density
(W/𝐦𝟑)
1 ~0.1 ~1.59 x 10−7
2 0.2 6.34 x 10−7
3 0.3 1.00 x 10−6
4 0.1 1.59 x 10−7
5 0.2 6.34 x 10−7
6 0 0
𝑃 =
𝑉2
𝑅
𝑃𝐷 =
𝑃
𝐴𝑉
𝑅 = 1467 Ω
𝐴𝑉 = 4.30 x 10−5 m
Average Power
Density (W/𝐦𝟑) 4.31 x 𝟏𝟎−𝟕

9. Discussion
 Definitely did not reach power output goal
 Variations in voltage
Temperature
Mysterious film covering water
 Revisions
Cathode and anode design
Scale-up: 13 W CFL
30,152,400 m3
Day Voltage (mV) Power Density
(W/𝐦𝟑)
1 ~0.1 ~1.59 x 10−7
2 0.2 6.34 x 10−7
3 0.3 1.00 x 10−6
4 0.1 1.59 x 10−7
5 0.2 6.34 x 10−7
6 0 0
Average Power
Density (W/𝐦𝟑) 4.31 x 𝟏𝟎−𝟕

10. References
 Fundamentals of Fuel Cells. (2017). Fuel Cells, 5–12. doi: 10.1201/9781420071627-2.
 Liu, F., Sun, L., Wan, J., Shen, L., Yu, Y., Hu, L., & Zhou, Y. (2020). Performance of different
macrophytes in the decontamination of and electricity generation from swine
wastewater via an integrated constructed wetland-microbial fuel cell process. Journal of
Environmental Sciences, 89, 252–263. doi: 10.1016/j.jes.2019.08.015.