Enhanced microalgae-based microbial fuel cell performance using single-chamber photocatalyst air-cathode modification

To address the global challenges of fossil fuel depletion and climate change, attention has turned to alternative energy sources. Photosynthetic microalgae-based microbial fuel cells (AMFC) have emerged as a promising solution, utilizing bacteria to convert organic matter into energy. This study explores the improvement of electricity generation using single-chamber microalgae-based microbial fuel cells with a modified graphite-photocatalyst air cathode. Modified graphite air cathode using graphite-photocatalyst (TiO₂ and MnO₂) was observed to enhance greater power production. The electricity produced by the AMFC system using a 25% TiO₂-graphite mixture was the best potential air cathode, generating up to 5.56 ± 0.32 mW/m². The higher power density is also obtained using the fabrication of a photocatalyst air cathode. The fabricated air cathode electrocatalyst can play a reasonable cost material for the enriched energy recovery in the AMFC and/or other such electrochemical devices. This study also investigates the power generation performance of algal microbial fuel cells under three electrical configurations: series, parallel, and mixed connection. Parallel connection showed the greatest power density of 23.82 ± 3.72 mW/m² among them. However, mixed configuration provided balanced performance, with moderate voltage, current, and power density. From these results, connection type plays an important role in optimizing AMFC performance for specific applications.