Northwestern University researchers have introduced a soil-microbe-powered fuel cell, substantially surpassing similar technologies and supplying a sustainable solution for powering low-energy gadgets, with full public access to its designs for widespread application. Credit: Bill Yen/Northwestern UniversityA Northwestern University-led team of scientists has established a new fuel cell that collects energy from microorganisms living in dirt.About the size of a standard paperback book, the entirely soil-powered technology could sustain underground sensors used in accuracy agriculture and green facilities. In a search for solutions, we looked to soil microbial fuel cells, which use unique microbes to break down soil and use that low quantity of energy to power sensors. As long as there is natural carbon in the soil for the microorganisms to break down, the fuel cell can potentially last forever. Instead of using a traditional design, in which the anode and cathode are parallel to one another, the winning fuel cell leveraged a perpendicular design.Made of carbon felt (an inexpensive, plentiful conductor to capture the microbes electrons), the anode is horizontal to the grounds surface.
Credit: Bill Yen/Northwestern UniversityA Northwestern University-led team of researchers has actually established a brand-new fuel cell that gathers energy from microorganisms living in dirt.About the size of a basic paperback book, the entirely soil-powered innovation could sustain underground sensors used in accuracy farming and green facilities. In a search for options, we looked to soil microbial fuel cells, which utilize special microbes to break down soil and use that low amount of energy to power sensors. Rather of using a traditional style, in which the anode and cathode are parallel to one another, the winning fuel cell leveraged a perpendicular design.Made of carbon felt (a low-cost, plentiful conductor to capture the microbes electrons), the anode is horizontal to the grounds surface area.
