Micro porous layer (MPL)-based anode for microbial fuel cells

摘要

Two different anode materials, carbon veil (CV) and carbon cloth (CC), were modified with a micro-porous layer (MPL) in microbial fuel cells (MFCs). When the biofilm on the anodes was mature, the maximum power output of MPL modified carbon veil (CV20-MPL) and carbon cloth (CC-MPL) was 304.3 µW (60.7 mW/m2) and 253.9 µW (50.6 mW/m2). This was 2.2 and 1.8 times higher than unmodified CV and CC, respectively. The 7-month operational tests indicated that the long term stability of the MFCs was enhanced with the modified MPL anodes, which increased the anode surface roughness and provided higher surface area. Higher bacterial population was observed in the MFCs with the MPL anodes, which confirms the power generation results. This is the first time that the MPL has been used as efficient anode material in MFCs.