Microbial fuel cells: From fundamentals to applications. A review

Carlo Santoro (1) , Catia Arbizzani (2) , Benjamin Erable (3) , Ioannis Ieropoulos (4)

1 The University of New Mexico [Albuquerque]
2 UNIBO - Alma Mater Studiorum Università di Bologna = University of Bologna
3 LGC - Laboratoire de Génie Chimique
4 UWE Bristol - University of the West of England [Bristol]

In the past 10–15 years, the microbial fuel cell (MFC) technology has captured the attention of the scientific community for the possibility of transforming organic waste directly into electricity through microbially catalyzed anodic, and microbial/enzymatic/abiotic cathodic electrochemical reactions. In this review, several aspects of the technology are considered. Firstly, a brief history of abiotic to biological fuel cells and subsequently, microbial fuel cells is presented. Secondly, the development of the concept of microbial fuel cell into a wider range of derivative technologies, called bioelectrochemical systems, is described introducing briefly microbial electrolysis cells, microbial desalination cells and microbial electrosynthesis cells. The focus is then shifted to electroactive biofilms and electron transfer mechanisms involved with solid electrodes. Carbonaceous and metallic anode materials are then introduced, followed by an explanation of the electro catalysis of the oxygen reduction reaction and its behavior in neutral media, from recent studies. Cathode catalysts based on carbonaceous, platinum-group metal and platinum-group-metal-free materials are presented, along with membrane materials with a view to future directions. Finally, microbial fuel cell practical implementation, through the utilization of energy output for practical applications, is described.

Mots clés: Microbial fuel cell; Electroactive biofilm; Microbial fuel cell anode; Microbial fuel cell cathode; Cathode reaction mechanisms; Microbial fuel cell practical applications

Domaines: Génie chimique; Génie des procédés

Carlo Santoro, Catia Arbizzani, Benjamin Erable, Ioannis Ieropoulos. Microbial fuel cells: From fundamentals to applications. A review. Journal of Power Sources, 2017, 356, pp.225-244. ⟨10.1016/j.jpowsour.2017.03.109⟩. ⟨hal-01900378⟩