Intermittent load implementation in microbial fuel cells improves power performance

X A Walter; J Greenman; I A Ieropoulos

doi:10.1016/j.biortech.2014.09.034

Intermittent load implementation in microbial fuel cells improves power performance

Bioresour Technol. 2014 Nov:172:365-372. doi: 10.1016/j.biortech.2014.09.034. Epub 2014 Sep 16.

Authors

X A Walter¹, J Greenman², I A Ieropoulos³

Affiliations

¹ Bristol Robotics Laboratory, Universities of Bristol and of the West of England, T-building, Frenchay Campus, BS16 1QY, United Kingdom; Microbiology Research Laboratory, School of Biological, Biomedical and Analytical Sciences, Faculty of Health and Applied Sciences, Frenchay Campus, University of the West of England, Bristol BS16 1QY, United Kingdom.
² Microbiology Research Laboratory, School of Biological, Biomedical and Analytical Sciences, Faculty of Health and Applied Sciences, Frenchay Campus, University of the West of England, Bristol BS16 1QY, United Kingdom.
³ Bristol Robotics Laboratory, Universities of Bristol and of the West of England, T-building, Frenchay Campus, BS16 1QY, United Kingdom. Electronic address: Ioannis.Ieropoulos@brl.ac.uk.

PMID: 25280044
DOI: 10.1016/j.biortech.2014.09.034

Abstract

This study reports on the response of small-scale MFCs to intermittent loading, in terms of power output over time. The aim was to understand the evolution with time of power output under different duty cycles, in conditions close to practical implementation. Inexpensive ceramic membranes were compared to cation exchange membranes, under continuous flow and with a pre-digester connected. Results show that at the minute-scale, all the duty cycles investigated, produced 78% higher power bursts from the MFCs (500μW) than when under continuous loading (280μW). These results were recorded from MFCs employing ceramic membranes, whereas the difference in performance for MFCs employing commercially available cation-exchange-membranes was insignificant. When normalising to daily energy production, only specific duty cycles produced more power than continuous loading. Furthermore, the introduction of a pre-digester increased the MFC power outputs 10-fold, thus confirming that separating fermentation from electro-active respiration, significantly enhances the system performance.

Keywords: Cation exchange membrane; Ceramic microbial fuel cells; Continuous flow; Intermittent loading; Pre-digester.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Bioelectric Energy Sources / microbiology*
Ceramics / chemistry*
Computer-Aided Design
Electrodes*
Energy Transfer / physiology*
Equipment Design
Equipment Failure Analysis
Membranes, Artificial*
Saccharomyces cerevisiae / physiology*

Substances

Membranes, Artificial