Microbial Fuel Cell Technology for Bioelectricity

319 Pages·2018·9.47 MB·English

by  Venkataraman Sivasankar

Venkataraman Sivasankar 
Prabhakaran Mylsamy · Kiyoshi Omine
Editors
Microbial
Fuel Cell
Technology
for Bioelectricity
With a Foreword by
Kazuya Watanabe
Microbial Fuel Cell Technology for Bioelectricity
Venkataraman Sivasankar • Prabhakaran Mylsamy
Kiyoshi Omine
Editors
Microbial Fuel Cell
Technology for Bioelectricity
With a Foreword by
Kazuya Watanabe
Editors
Venkataraman Sivasankar Prabhakaran Mylsamy
Post Graduate and Research Post Graduate and Research
Department of Chemistry Department of Botany
Pachaiyappa’s College Pachaiyappa’s College
Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India
Department of Civil Engineering
Graduate School of Engineering
Nagasaki University
Nagasaki, Japan
Kiyoshi Omine
Department of Civil Engineering
Graduate School of Engineering
Nagasaki University
Nagasaki, Japan
ISBN 978-3-319-92903-3 ISBN 978-3-319-92904-0 (eBook)
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-92904-0
Library of Congress Control Number: 2018949049
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Dedicated to my beloved mother Padmavathi
Venkataraman and eldest brother M.V.
Jothiprakash
Venkataraman Sivasankar
Dedicated to my wife Ranjith Kumari
Prabhakaran and son Siddharth
Prabhakaran
Prabhakaran Mylsamy
Foreword
Currently, human society faces critcal problems associated with the use of fossil
fuels. The amount of fossil fuel stored in underground reservoirs has decreased
rapidly due to mass consumption. Furthermore, carbon dioxide exhausted by the
combustion of fossil fuels accumulates in the air, resulting in the greenhouse effect
and global warming. Under such circumstances, energy sources alternative to fossil
fuels are strongly needed for supporting human activity in the twenty-first century,
particularly alternatives that are renewable and do not trigger global warming.
Biomass has been realized as an important renewable energy source, and scientists
and engineers are keen on developing technologies for utilizing biomass as an
energy source. Bio-electricity generated from biomass therefore attracts many
researchers as a promising option for renewable energy.
Microbial fuel cells (MFCs) are devices that use living microbes as catalysts for
the conversion of organic fuels into electricity, and these devices have recently
attracted extensive attention as sustainable bioenergy systems. MFC systems can be
applied to the generation of electricity at water/sediment interfaces in the environ-
ment, such as bay areas, wetlands, and rice fields. In MFCs, electrochemically-
active bacteria (EAB), which can transfer electrons to extracellular solid acceptors,
play key roles in electricity generation. Many EAB have been isolated from MFCs
and natural environments and have been characterized in the laboratory. Due to their
diverse metabolic potentials and established manipulation techniques, EAB are
considered to be excellent materials for biotechnology.
In this book, we will find an excellent collection of articles on the fundamental
description, application, and further perspectives of MFC technology. I therefore
believe that this book will exert a tremendous impact on science and technology for
the research, development, and commercialization of renewable green energy. I
strongly recommend this book to researchers, engineers, and students who are inter-
ested in MFC technology.
vii
viii Foreword
Finally, I appreciate the contributions and dedicated efforts of all the authors in
this book.
Sincerely,
Kazuya Watanabe, Professor
School of Life Science
Tokyo University of Pharmacy and Life Sciences
Japan
Preface
Even the structure of the atom has been found by the mind
– Bhagvan Sri Ramana Maharshi
In eighteenth century, the birth of microbial fuel cells (MFCs) was registered by
Luigi Galvani, who explored the flow of electrons in biological organisms in the
legs of a frog. Later, in 1912, Michael C. Potter at University of Durham, United
Kingdom, carried this research forward and made his first demonstration of MFCs.
After four decades of Barnet Cohen’s (1931) MFC research using multiple units,
I. Karube reported further developments in 1975. The centenary of MFC research
was proved with an outcome, such that the first practical application was achieved
by running a small DC motor for a few seconds by H.P. Bennetto in 1985. Following
this, the role of electroactive bacteria (EAB), by W. Habermann and E.-H. Pommer,
and electron conduction properties of Geobacter species, by D.R. Bond and
D.R. Lovely, were reported in the years 1990 and 2003, respectively.
With the above anecdote, the basic principle and the organization of chapters
have been discussed in a nutshell as follows:
The electron transfer mechanism is significant in an electrochemical system
and is sought with an absolute interaction between microbes and electrodes.
Conspicuously, in bio-catalyzed systems, the transfer becomes significant in
harnessing electrical energy along with the degradation of pollutants present in
the system.
Microbial fuel cells (MFCs) are electrochemical reactors that function due to the
oxidation of biodegradable substrates at the expense of electroactive bacteria (EAB)
to generate electric current. Microorganisms are the biocatalysts that help in the
electrical energy conversion of biodegradable substrates including complex waste-
water and sediments in addition to simple sugars and derivatives. The metabolic
transportation of electrons from EAB to electrodes (insoluble substrates) is feasible
thanks to extracellular electron transport.
On the basis of the electrogenic nature of certain bacteria, MFC technology
has gained incredible attention for its production of energy from various
soluble organic wastes of natural (low-carbon biomass) and synthetic sources.
ix
x Preface
The mixed cultures are preferred for inoculation in MFCs due to cost-effective-
ness and practicality reasons in wastewater treatment. Studies on the choice of
sewage for bacterial feeding in MFCs to drive out energy are compelled due to
futuristic challenges and environmental sustainability. Although we have ample
knowledge of microbiology and electro-/materials chemistry, we need to examine
the technical viability in accordance with the application niche which together
pave the way for commercialization.
As the possibility of drawing energy from biotic components is the need of the
hour, Chap. 1 focuses on the possible sources of biomass which sustainably cater to
energy needs. The progress of converting waste to worth has yet to move at a radical
rate in the coming years.
The real notion behind the second chapter is to make readers understand the
fundamentals, classifications, significance, and challenges of MFC technology.
Indeed, the inherent nature of the autotrophs (plant and algae) has been of spell-
binding interest toward the making and breaking of electricity and organic contami-
nants, respectively. Intensive research on a potentially engineered rhizodeposition
would facilitate an appreciable rate of electron transfer to captivate state-of-the-art
applications. On the other hand, the advent of heterotrophic fungi has recently
gained attention recently by utilizing the species to form biofilm around the elec-
trode, which improves the MFC’s performance. By bridging the significance of bio-
mass and energy, Chaps. 3, 5, and 6 provide exhaustive discussions based on the
previously reported findings on plant-, algae-, and fungi-based MFCs.
Above all, the quintessential microbial community is governed by the types of
plants and soils upon which the output power of an MFC is relied upon. To corrobo-
rate this, Chaps. 4 and 7 discuss the significance of paddy plant and soil (with
organic waste) in generating appreciable electricity by using bamboo charcoal spun
with iron wire as an anode. The duality of iron wire (with bamboo charcoal) was
discernible with regard to electron generation and nutrition to the soil organisms.
Exclusive chapters (8 and 10) have been devoted to energy production from ani-
mal waste; in particular, the ruminal degradation of biomass was studied by varying
electrodes, pH, substrates, catholytes, and buffers.
Interestingly, electricigens are one among the meritorious factors in enhancing
the efficiency of MFCs. These are microorganisms with high coulombic efficiency
that completely oxidize organic fuels to carbon dioxide by actively transporting elec-
trons to electrode. Also, these are credited with the conservation of energy which in
turn equips MFCs for long-term sustainability. Electricigens are detailed in Chap. 9.
The bimodal practice of bioelectricity generation and remediation has become a
dominant area of research. With profound insight, Chaps. 11 and 12 discuss the
efficiency, economic feasibility, and ultimate commercialization of the process.
Specifically, microbial desalination cell (MDC)–based research attempts to discuss
the two unique challenges of water purification and sustainable power from a single
vantage point, and it has gained great attention among interdisciplinary
researchers.
Preface xi
Chapter 13 addresses the performance of MFCs at pilot-scale levels and
the associated challenges to be overcome in large-scale applications. The final
chapter of the book provides a thorough investigation of the successful implemen-
tation of MFCs in rural areas and stresses its potential to improve life conditions.
The present book will be very useful and informative as a valuable reference to
those working in MFC, biofilm interactions, bio-electrochemistry, and waste man-
agement. In addition, it should gain much of appreciation among environmental
chemists/biologists, bioenergy researchers, and wastewater/biofuel industrialists.
Nagasaki, Japan Venkataraman Sivasankar
Chennai, India Prabhakaran Mylsamy
Nagasaki, Japan Kiyoshi Omine