MFC

1806 Words4 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Solar energy resource

Microbial Fuel Cells use bacteria to convert waste into electrical energy. These bacteria break down almost any biodegradable organic waste including sewage and water waste and use it as fuel to generate power. Places like Penn State University and The Biodesign Institute in Arizona State University are already testing and improving this new alternative energy. According to Penn State University they have achieved in producing 1.5 watts per meter squared of amount of waste water taken in and believe that a large industrial plant will be able to produce near 0.8 watts per meter squared and will be able to support about 500 homes (9). This is a new technology that is being avidly researched, however it is not currently used in large industrial plants or treatment centers. However this new technology has already been funded by organizations like NASA, OpenCEL and NZ Legacy (7). Even a small prototype has been built by Australian Beer Company Fosters in May 2007; it has 12 modules and already produces carbon dioxide, electricity and clean water. (12). The usage of this energy is slowly increasing as more research has been invested into it and its advancements.

Microbial Fuel cells are extremely versatile, being able to work in a number of different environments with many different conditions. They can use almost all types of waste as long as it’s possible for it to organically decompose; it also does not require a further input of electricity or power. It does however require certain parts and certain bacteria, though many different types are currently being tested out in different research institutes to see which one is the most successful. This is a solar-based alternative energy as the bacteria consume the glucose that arri...

... middle of paper ...

...ntly it is attempted to tweak it for producing more energy as well as becoming more commercial so it can be used for large and central treatment centers and other factories around the world. It might also be used for homes as a personal sewage treater and possibly as a basis for smaller MFC designs that would make pacemakers run on blood sugar instead of requiring a battery that has to be changed approximately every 10 years (19). It’s important to research MFC as they show a clear solution for our waste problems and can help benefit the revolution of renewable energy. Though they don’t produce a lot of power, they have a lot of fuel to use and it would be a waste to ignore this possibly and let the stored energy in sewage and wastewater go unused. Microbial Fuel Cells can contribute heavily to society and it is almost certain that they will be seen in the future.

Show More
Related

  • The Future of Automotive Engines

    439 Words  | 1 Pages

    Fuel cells could create new markets for steel, electronics, electrical and control industries and other equipment suppliers. They could provide tens of thousands of high-quality jobs and reduce trade deficits.

    Read More

  • SNCC

    618 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, or SNCC, was created on the campus of Shaw University in Raleigh in April 1960. SNCC was created after a group of black college students from North Carolina A&T University refused to leave a Woolworth's lunch counter in Greensboro, North Carolina where they had been denied service. This sparked a wave of other sit-ins in college towns across the South. SNCC coordinated these sit-ins across the nation, supported their leaders, and publicized their activities. SNCC sought to affirm the philosophical or religious ideal of nonviolence as the foundation of their purpose. In the violently changing political climate of the 60’s, SNCC struggled to define its purpose as it fought white oppression. Out of SNCC came some of today's black leaders, such as former Washington, D.C. mayor Marion Barry, Congressman John Lewis and NAACP chairman Julian Bond. Together with hundreds of other students, they left a lasting impact on American history.

    Read More

  • Energy STEM Project

    1149 Words  | 3 Pages

    This Alternative Energy STEM project was designed not only for our group to do in depth research in alternative energy, but to spark our interest in a new kind of science and to practice the important life skill of working in a group.

    Read More

  • Overview of Fuel Cells

    865 Words  | 2 Pages

    Fuel Cells” the author states, “ Sir William Grove discovered that it may be possible to generate electricity by reversing the electrolysis of water.” But it wasn’t until 1889 when two researchers looked further into Sir William Grove’s studies. In the article “History of Fuel Cells” the author says, “Charles Langer and Ludwig Mond, coined the term ‘fuel cell’ as they were trying to engineer the first practical fuel cell using air and coal gas.” After Langer and Mond’s discovery Frances Bacon developed what was close to being the first fuel cell in 1959. In the article “History of Fuel Cells” the author declares, “It was not until 1959 that Bacon and company first demonstrated a practical five-kilowatt fuel cell system.” In the late 1950’s NASA began experimenting with fuel cells by using them for compact electricity generators. Fuel cells have now supplied electricity for many space missions. In the article “History of Fuel Cells” the author states, “In more recent decades, a number of manufacturers - including major auto makers - and various federal agencies have supported ongoing research into the development of fuel cell technology for use in fuel cell vehicles (FCV) and other applications. Fuel cell energy is now expected to replace traditional power sources in coming years - from micro fuel cells to be used in cell phones to high-powered fuel cells for stock car racing.”

    Read More

  • Bacteria

    611 Words  | 2 Pages

    Bacterial cells, like plant cells, are surrounded by a cell wall. However, bacterial cell walls are made up of polysaccharide chains linked to amino acids, while plant cell walls are made up of cellulose, which contains no amino acids. Many bacteria secrete a slimy capsule around the outside of the cell wall. The capsule provides additional protection for the cell. Many of the bacteria that cause diseases in animals are surrounded by a capsule. The capsule prevents the white blood cells and antibodies from destroying the invading bacterium. Inside the capsule and the cell wall is the cell membrane. In aerobic bacteria, the reactions of cellular respiration take place on fingerlike infoldings of the cell membrane. Ribosomes are scattered throughout the cytoplasm, and the DNA is generally found in the center of the cell. Many bacilli and spirilla have flagella, which are used for locomotion in water. A few types of bacteria that lack flagella move by gliding on a surface. However, the mechanism of this gliding motion is unknown. Most bacteria are aerobic, they require free oxygen to carry on cellular respiration. Some bacteria, called facultatibe anaerobes can live in either the presence or absence of free oxygen. They obtain energy either by aerobic respiration when oxygen is present or by fermentation when oxygen is absent. Still other bacteria cannot live in the presence of oxygen. These are called obligate anaerobes. Such bacteria obtain energy only fermentation. Through fermentation, different groups of bacteria produce a wide variety of organic compounds. Besides ethyl alcohol and lactic acid, bacterial fermentation can produce acetic acid, acetone, butyl alcohol, glycol, butyric acid, propionic acid, and methane, the main component of natural gas. Most bacteria are heterotrophic bacteria are either saprophytes or parasites. Saprophytes feed on the remains of dead plants and animals, and ordinarily do not cause disease. They release digestive enzymes onto the organic matter. The enzymes breakdown the large food molecules into smaller molecules, which are absorbed by the bacterial cells. Parasites live on or in living organisms, and may cause disease. A few types of bacteria are Autotrophic, they can synthesize the organic nutrients they require from inorganic substances. Autotrophic bacteria are either photosynthetic or Chemosynthetic. The photosynthetic bacteria contain chlorophyll that are different from the plant chlorophyll. In bacterial photosynthesis, hydrogen is obtained by the splitting of compounds other than water.

    Read More

  • Business Plan for Electricity Generation from Biomass

    1734 Words  | 4 Pages

    Energy, especially from fossil fuels, is a key ingredient for all sectors of a modern economy and plays a fundamental role in improving the quality of life in less developed economies. In 2007, India is ranked fifth in the world in terms of energy demand; accounting for 3.6% of total energy consumed, and is expected to grow at 4.8% in the future. India imports 70% of the oil it uses, and the country has been hit hard by the increasing price of oil, uncertainty and environmental hazards that are concerned with the consumption of fossil fuels. In such context, bio energy constitutes a suitable alternative source of energy for India, as large amounts of raw material are available to be harnessed.

    Read More

  • Prokaryotic Organisms: Essential to Agriculture and the Future of Humanity

    1345 Words  | 3 Pages

    Prokaryotic organisms are essential to our lives now, directly or indirectly. They are used as genetic donors to create fruits and vegetables that increase yield and are the mechanism used to clean up various environmental hazards and make energy sources more efficient and readily available. Though these organisms are used in different ways, similar concerns apply to each, showing that there are still many obstacles to overcome for various types of engineers in the future.

    Read More

  • Nanotechnologies and Solar Energy

    598 Words  | 2 Pages

    Since development and invention takes time and money, some people question if it’s worth the effort. Some scientist are looking into another way for clean solution that doesn’t require as much funding and as much time.

    Read More

  • The Hydrogen Fuel Cell and the Electric Car

    1061 Words  | 3 Pages

    The fuel cell manufactured by Ballard Power Systems is fuel cell that requires hydrogen and oxygen to create electricity. The fuel cell itself consists of two flow field plates, and two thin sheets of catalysts with a Polymer Electrolyte Membrane or Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM) in between (see Figure 1). The hydrogen is fed in through one plate and oxygen collected from the air in another – on either side of the membrane. Of the two electrodes on is the anode and the other is the cathode. The hydrogen reaches the ano...

    Read More

  • Fuel Cell Essay

    889 Words  | 2 Pages

    A fuel cell is a device that converts the chemical energy from a fuel into electricity through a chemical reaction of positively charged hydrogen ions with oxygen or another oxidizing agent. Fuel cells are different from batteries in that they require a continuous source of fuel and oxygen or air to sustain the chemical reaction, whereas in a battery the chemicals present in the battery react with each other to generate an electromotive (emf). Fuel cells can produce electricity continuously for as long as these inputs are supplied.

    Read More

  • Biofuel

    813 Words  | 2 Pages

    Another problem with the bio-fuel is one method of growing the algae. Open pond growing is risky as the algae can easily be contaminated and the pond it is growing in has to have carbon dioxide pumped into which, if not monitored properly, could wildly throw of the ecosystem there killing many of the inhabitants. As well as how much maintenance and care must be taken so that the algae can grow at the best rate. But bio-fuel labs have found a way around this by using closed bioreactor systems as to not risk causing any harm to the environment and to have much more control over the algae its self. But until more of the large fuel companies decide to research and develop this product, we will just have to be content on reading any new developments that occur.

    Read More

  • The Fuel Subsidy We Need Analysis

    854 Words  | 2 Pages

    Bushby, Lisa. "Hydrogen Fuel Cells." : Energy of the Future (EnvironmentalChemistry.com). N.p., 22 Aug. 2006. Web. 04 Sept. 2013.

    Read More

  • What Is Photosynthesis Essay

    1013 Words  | 3 Pages

    The energy extracted today by the burning of coal and petroleum products represents sunlight energy captured and stored by photosynthesis almost 200 million years ago. A third very interesting group of bacteria synthesize sugars, not by using sunlight’s energy, but by extracting energy from inorganic chemical compounds; In a (d) deep sea vent, chemoautotrophs, such as these (e) thermophilic bacteria, capture energy from inorganic compounds to produce organic compounds.

    Read More

  • The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers

    959 Words  | 2 Pages

    The IEEE also conducts conferences and seminars, which allow for the collective review of the new developing technology and the spread of new ideas.... ... middle of paper ... ... Works Cited AZOCleantech.com - AZOCleantech.com - AZOCleantech.com - AZOCleantech.com - Life Saving Biogas Digester System to be Demonstrated at IEEE Conference.

    Read More

  • Hydrogen Energy Essay

    589 Words  | 2 Pages

    Hydrogen is one of the most abundant elements on the earth. It can be found in the oceans as well as the atmosphere. Over the last few years, talk about the future of hydrogen power has grown from a whisper to a roar. The use of hydrogen is not just the burning of the gas, but of its use in a fuel cell. Fuel cells might be the device that causes the extinction of the internal combustion engine. A fuel cell is a device that produces electricity from a fuel and an oxidizer, a substance that combines with the fuel. The fuel and oxidizer react chemically at two separate electrodes to produce the direct electric current; These cells use hydrogen as the fuel and oxygen as the oxidizer. Hydrogen power could be the silver bullet to the current and future energy situation.

    Read More

More about MFC

Open Document