Evaluation of the performance of a mediatorless microbial fuel cell by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy

A mediatorless microbial fuel cell was developed using Escherichia coli bacteria and platinised titanium mesh as electrodes, producing a maximum power density of 627 mW m−2. The performance characteristics of the fuel cell were evaluated using both electrochemical and optical techniques. Cyclic Voltammetry showed that an anaerobically grown cell suspension of E. coli was electrochemically active, and is consistent with a role for E. coli‐secreted mediators in the functioning of the cell, after the formation of a biofilm on the surface of the electrode. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) data show a variation in the internal resistance during bacterial growth. EIS analysis based on an equivalent circuit revealed that the initial internal resistance of the cell (5.6 MΩ) initially reduces by around 50 % over an 8 hour period; more or less the same time where the fuel cell reaches its maximum potential of 860 mV, whereupon the resistance begins to increase resulting in the corresponding fall in potential; this trend was reversible upon the introduction of further nutrients into the cell.