Project #1561

Electricity Generation from Anaerobic Wastewater Treatment in Microbial Fuel Cell

$0
Completed
Principal Investigator
O. Karl
Scheible
Research Manager
Dr. Amit Pramanik
Contractor
HDR Engineering, Inc.
Energy Optimization

Abstract

This project tested anaerobic microbial fuel cell (MFC) treatment of domestic wastewater at the pilot scale and produced sustainable electricity. The research team developed a novel MFC system in a multiple anode/cathode granular activated carbon MFC configuration (MAC-GACMFC), effectively integrating multiple MFCs into a single unit. The unique advantage of this configuration is that it can increase power generation at low cost in a smaller space, potentially beneficial when applied to wastewater treatment plants. In addition, a new, cost-effective catalyst, manganese dioxide (MnO2) was developed and, for the first time, applied in the pilot-scale MFC systems. The results showed that the MnO2 catalyst achieves the same power generation as the more costly platinum catalyst that has been used to date in other MFCs. This project was a collaborative effort between WERF and the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA). 66 pages. Online PDF. (2011)

This project was a collaborative effort between WERF and the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA). Originally funded as WERF project OWSO8C09.