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Rainwater-driven microbial fuel cells for power generation in remote areas.

ABSTRACT: The possibility of using rainwater as a sustainable anolyte in an air-cathode microbial fuel cell (MFC) is investigated in this study. The results indicate that the proposed MFC can work within a wide temperature range (from 0 to 30°C) and under aerobic or anaerobic conditions. However, the rainwater season has a distinct impact. Under anaerobic conditions, the summer rainwater achieves a promised open circuit potential (OCP) of 553 ± 2 mV without addition of nutrients at the ambient temperature, while addition of nutrients leads to an increase in the cell voltage to 763 ± 3 and 588 ± 2 mV at 30°C and ambient temperature, respectively. The maximum OCP for the winter rainwater (492 ± 1.5 mV) is obtained when the reactor is exposed to the air (aerobic conditions) at ambient temperature. Furthermore, the winter rainwater MFC generates a maximum power output of 7 ± 0.1 mWm^-2 at a corresponding current density value of 44 ± 0.7 mAm^-2 at 30°C. While, at the ambient temperature, the maximum output power is obtained with the summer rainwater (7.2 ± 0.1 mWm^-2 at 26 ± 0.5 mAm^-2). Moreover, investigation of the bacterial diversity indicates that Lactobacillus spp. is the dominant electroactive genus in the summer rainwater, while in the winter rainwater, Staphylococcus spp. is the main electroactive bacteria. The cyclic voltammetry analysis confirms that the electrons are delivered directly from the bacterial biofilm to the anode surface and without mediators. Overall, this study opens a new avenue for using a novel sustainable type of MFC derived from rainwater.

SUBMITTER: Amen MT

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8611341 | biostudies-literature |

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Project description:Metals are considered a suitable anode material for microbial fuel cells (MFCs) because of their high electrical conductivity. However, only a few types of metals have been used as anodes, and an extensive screening of metals has not yet been conducted. In this study, to develop a new metal anode for increased electricity generation in MFCs, 14 different metals (Al, Ti, Fe, Ni, Cu, Zn, Zr, Nb, Mo, Ag, In, Sn, Ta, and W) and 31 of their oxidized forms were comprehensively tested. Oxidized-metal anodes were prepared using flame oxidation, heat treatment, and electrochemical oxidation. The selected anodes were further evaluated in detail using air-cathode single-chambered MFCs.The untreated Mo and electrochemically oxidized Mo anodes showed high averages of maximum power densities in the screening test, followed by flame-oxidized (FO) W, FO-Fe, FO-Mo, and Sn-based anodes. The untreated Mo and FO-W anodes were selected for further evaluation. X-ray analyses revealed that the surface of the Mo anode was naturally oxidized in the presence of air, forming a layer of MoO3, a known oxidation catalyst. A high maximum power density (1296 mW/m2) was achieved using the Mo anode in the MFCs, which was superior to that obtained using the FO-W anode (1036 mW/m2). The Mo anode, but not the FO-W anode, continued to produce current without detectable corrosion until the end of operation (350 days). Geobacter was abundant in both biofilms on the Mo and FO-W anodes, as analyzed by high-throughput sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene.The screening test revealed that Mo, W, Fe, and Sn are useful MFC anode materials. The detailed analyses demonstrated that the Mo anode is a high-performance electrode with structural simplicity and long-term stability in MFCs. The anode can be easily prepared by merely shaping Mo materials to the desired forms. These properties would enable the large-scale preparation of the anode, required for practical MFC applications. This study also implies the potential involvement of Geobacter in the Mo and W cycles on Earth.

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Rainwater-driven microbial fuel cells for power generation in remote areas.

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