Current Advances in Paddy Plant Microbial Fuel Cells

Plant microbial fuel cells (PMFCs) are a recently developed technology that uses organic rhizodeposits as the electron donor for heterotrophic microorganisms in the plant rhizosphere. Graphite is often used as cathode material in PMFCs. However, the reduction of oxygen on graphite is slow and limits the power output of the PMFCs. In these study carbon fiber and activated bamboo charcoal were used as electrode material in buckets of 13 L, anode active bamboo charcoal and cathode carbon fiber and PET bottle of 500 mL, both anode and cathode consisted of active bamboo charcoal. The highest voltage reached in the bucket experiments was 0.83 V; it is the highest so far in PMFC research. In the PET bottles, the maximum power per anode area was 40.3 mW/m2. Voltage generation of PMFCs increased as a result of the presence of iron wire in the anode, and PMFCs were able to generate power continuously with no effect of solar radiation observed. As this technology advances, it will have tremendous benefits as PMFCs are considered sustainable and have no competition for arable land or nature.