Biocatalyst for carbon veil anode in microbial fuel cells: The effect of precursor and catalyst loading on overall performance

Biocatalysts in anodes have been crucial in improving microbial fuel cell (MFC) performance. Biocatalysts derived from biomass such as coconut wood sawdust (SD-B) and pepper processing residue (PS-B), were used to improve the electrocatalytic properties of Carbon Veil (CV) electrodes. The amorphous graphitic carbon biocatalyst with a mesoporous structure was found to have a surface area of 889.31 m²/g for SD-B and 763.56 m²/g for PS-B. Surface functional groups such as -OH which imparts hydrophilicity and -C=O and COOH which promotes bacterial compatibility have been revealed to be present in both catalysts. Catalyst loading played a major role and at an optimal loading of 2 mg/cm², the electrodes exhibited maximum electrocatalytic activity in the case of both biocatalysts. The voltammetric capacitances of SD-B and PS-B modified electrodes were 191.6 mF/cm² and 106.6 mF/cm² demonstrating their pseudocapacitive behaviour too. The performance of MFC with SD-B revealed a maximum power density of 10.1 W/m³ (Open Circuit Voltage (OCV) of 850 mV), followed by PS-B at 6.89 W/m³ (OCV of 825 mV) whereas the plain CV was at 0.168 W/m³ (OCV of 760 mV). Anode polarization studies indicated reduced slopes for biocatalyst-modified anodes, signifying improved electrode kinetics, particularly notable in the SD-B modified MFC where the cathode became the limiting electrode. Coulombic efficiencies of the biocatalyst-modified MFCs increased to 54.50%, (SD-B 2 mg/cm²) and 37.78% (PS-B 2 mg/cm²) respectively from 12.74% as noticed in the case of unmodified MFC. This study emphasizes the potential of biocatalysts as a simple and low-cost means of enhancing the anode properties – porosity, conductivity, hydrophilicity, and biocompatibility.