The present and future of microbial fuel cells developed for sustainable and renewable energy production

Abstract

It is foreseen that the energy demand, which is the biggest problem of today, will increase in the future. Today, energy demand is mostly provided from nonrenewable sources. The limited and environmentally unsustainable fossil resources are a major handicap. In order to ensure sustainability, it is necessary to increase the production and use of renewable energy and to develop new production models. MFC is a promising technology that uses microorganisms to generate electricity at the end of biochemical processes and wastewater with high organic load as an energy source. MFCs are presented as a highly sustainable alternative to fossil fuels with the potential to be used for power generation, waste management, and biomass utilization. Also, technical challenges must be addressed before MFCs can be widely adopted, such as low power generation efficiency and operational stability. This section discusses the selection of microbial communities to increase microbial electricity production, bioengineering applications in microbial communities, the design of microbial fuel cells, and different applications related to their various components. Finally, the future development of MFCs is projected, focusing on the challenges that must be overcome. © 2024 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.