This document discusses microbial fuel cells (MFCs) which are bio-electrochemical systems that convert the chemical energy in organic matter into electricity through catalytic microorganisms. MFCs have several applications including powering low-power sensors for oceanographic monitoring and environmental applications. The document outlines the basic process of an MFC where microbes oxidize a substrate like glucose at the anode and electrons are transferred to the cathode via a membrane or mediator. Various types of wastewater can be used as substrates to power MFCs. Common microbes used in MFCs include Geobacter and Shewanella species.

1. 1
Energy produced from a biological resource such as biomass or biofuel
is known as bioenergy.
Need for bioenergy
 To satisfy the ever increasing energy demand.
 Address energy insecurity problems and attend energy
independency.
 Decrease over dependency on fossil fuels.
 Minimize the amount of waste generated.
 Source of clean and sustainable energy.
INTRODUCTION

2. MICROBIAL FUEL CELL (MFC)
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MFCs are bio-electrochemical systems which convert the chemical
energy stored in the organic matter into electricity through the
catalytic activity of microorganisms.
C6H12O6 + 6H2O = 6CO2 + 24e- + 24 H+

3. H+
H+H+
H+
H+
H+
e-
e-
e-
e-
e-
e- e-
O2
H2O
Anode
Cathode
PEM
Influent
Effluent
Resistance
CO2
Microbial Fuel Cell

4. (Logan et al., 2006) (Ringeisen et al., 2006) (He et al., 2005)
(Min and Logan ,2004 ) (Park and Zeikus , 2003) (Rabaey et al., 2005)
MFC Configurations
IIT Kharagpur, India

5. Substrates used in MFC
Type of Wastewater Power density Reference
Urine wastewater 4.93 mW.m-2 Ieropoulos et al. 2012
Alcohol distillery wastewater 93 mW.m-2 Huang et al. 2011
Landfill leachate 344.0 mW.m-3 Puig et al. 2011
Molasses wastewater 116 mW.m-2 Zhong et al. 2011
Cheese whey 81.9 mW.m-3 Antonopoulou et al. 2010
Dairy based wastewater 1.1 W.m-3 Venkata Mohan et al. 2010
Distillery wastewater 1.74 W.m-3 Mohanakrishna et al. 2010
Palm oil mill effluent 44 mW.m-2 Cheng et al. 2010
Rice mill wastewater 2.3 W.m-3 Behera et al. 2010
Domestic sewage 156 mW.m-2 Venkata Mohan et al. 2009
Starch processing wastewater 239 mW.m-2 Lu et al. 2009
Swine wastewater 228 mW.m-2 Kim et al. 2008
Chemical wastewater 157 mW.m-2 Venkata Mohan et al. 2008
IIT Kharagpur, India

6. Microbes used in MFCs
Sl.No. Mediators Reference
1 Actinobacillus succinogenes Park and Zeikus, 2000
2 Gluconobacter oxydans Lee et al., 2002
3 Lactobacillus plantarum Vega and Fernandez, 1987
4 Pseudomonas aeruginosa Rabaey et al., 2004
5 Geobacter metallireducens Min et al., 2005
6 Geobacteraceae sulferreducens Bond and Lovley, 2003
7 Shewanella putrefaciens Kim et al., 2002
8 Rhodoferax ferrireducens Chaudhuri and Lovley, 2003
IIT Kharagpur, India

7. 7
Field applications
To supply power for low power marine
sensors, water-based sensors, telemetry
devices including acoustic
receivers/transmitters, meteorological buoy
(Tender et al., 2008) and other
oceanographic and environmental
instruments.
To operate instrumnets like Benthic
Unattended Generator, or B.U.G. for
prediction of Tsunamis in oceans (Lovley,
2006; Tender et al., 2008).
Serve as long-term power sources for
autonomous sensors for nitrate detection in
groundwater (Afsham et al., 2011)
To operate marine communication devices
by wireless sensor network (WSN) node
system (Yohann et al., 2013). Tender, 2003

8. Thank You…
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9. Questions?Questions ?
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