| | Category | ENEV | P20 | Comparing the Electricity Output in Microbial Fuel Cells by |
| | Bacteria Type |
| | Abstract | This experiment tested the voltage generated by different types of |
| | bacteria in microbial fuel cells. Microbial fuel cells are an alternative |
| | energy source to fossil fuels and they use organic waste to generate |
| | electricity. This is done using bacteria that consume the organic waste |
| | and energy and electrons. However, microbial fuel cells are not efficient |
| | enough for practical use as the amount of electricity they generate |
| | changes over time and the soil bacteria that are commonly used in |
| | these fuel cells aren't always easy to obtain in isolated samples. This is |
| | why four other types of soil bacteria were used in this project. The |
| | types of bacteria that were used were Rhodospirillum rubrum, |
| | Clostridium beijerinckii, Pseudomonas putida, and Mycobacterium |
| | nonchromogenicum. R. rubrum is facultatively anaerobic and due to the |
| | versatility in the ways that it gets energy from food, it was hypothesized |
| | that this bacteria would generate the highest voltage. |
| | A different type of bacteria was added to nutrient broth in the anode |
| | chamber of each microbial fuel cell. There were three trials, or three |
| | microbial fuel cells for each type of bacteria. A multimeter was used to |
| | record the voltage generated by each trial for three days. With an |
| | overall average of .0707 volts, R. rubrum generated the highest voltage |
| | and the hypothesis was supported. The data shows that the voltages |
| | generated were low, so in the future an electron- extracting mediator |
| | can be tested to improve voltages. This data can help improve the |
| | efficiency of microbial fuel cells by providing data on more easily |
| | obtained bacteria that can be used in microbial fuel cells. |
| | Bibliography | http://journal.frontiersin.org/researchtopic/3845/electrochemically- |
| | active-microorganisms |
| | http://chemistry.stackexchange.com/questions/5477/why-is-it-important- |
| | to-use-a-salt-bridge-in-a-voltaic-cell-can-a-wire-be-used |
| | http://www.sciencebuddies.org/science-fair-projects/electricity- |
| | magnetism-electromagnetism-tutorial#currentelectricity |
| | http://www.sciencebuddies.org/science-fair- |
| | projects/project_ideas/Energy_p026.shtml#background |
| | https://microbewiki.kenyon.edu/index.php/Rhodospirillum_rubrum |
| | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pseudomonas_putida |
| | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microbial_fuel_cell#Mediator-free |
| | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mycobacterium#Mycobacterium_nonchrom |
| | ogenicum.2Fterrae_clade |
| | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clostridium_beijerinckii |