Abstract

Over the recent decades, there has been a tremendous need to develop alternative, sustainable, clean, and renewable energy resources. This demand is attributed to the exhaustion of fossil fuel reserves and the associated economic risks, the impact of fossil fuel use on the environment, and the associated global warming. Bioelectrochemical systems (BES), which use biological entities to generate electricity, are promising alternative clean renewable energy. Microbial fuel cell (MFC), a type of BES, exploits the potential of electro-active microorganisms for extracellular electron transfer to generate electricity. In an MFC, microbes oxidize the organic substrates fed into the anode chamber into electrons, protons, and CO2 . The electrons flow through the connected external load/circuit towards the cathode, creating the potential difference across the electrode and subsequent current output. A terminal electron acceptor at the cathode accepts the electrons and protons. In addition to electricity generation, MFC has extended applications in wastewater treatment, heavy metal remediation, bioremediation of environmental pollutants, biosensors for monitoring the environment, etc. This chapter will help understand the basic principle of an MFC and the role of microbes in a microbial fuel cell, genetic engineering, biofilm engineering approaches, and electrode engineering approaches for increasing the overall efficiency of an MFC for its practical implementation.