Assessment of <i>Rhizobium anhuiense</i> Bacteria as a Potential Biocatalyst for Microbial Biofuel Cell Design
Viktorija Reinikovaite,
Sarunas Zukauskas,
Rokas Zalneravicius,
Vilma Ratautaite,
Simonas Ramanavicius,
Vytautas Bucinskas,
Monika Vilkiene,
Arunas Ramanavicius,
Urte Samukaite-Bubniene
Affiliations
Viktorija Reinikovaite
Department of Physical Chemistry, Institute of Chemistry, Faculty of Chemistry and Geosciences, Vilnius University, Naugarduko Str. 24, LT-03225 Vilnius, Lithuania
Sarunas Zukauskas
Department of Physical Chemistry, Institute of Chemistry, Faculty of Chemistry and Geosciences, Vilnius University, Naugarduko Str. 24, LT-03225 Vilnius, Lithuania
Rokas Zalneravicius
Department of Nanotechnology, Centre for Physical Sciences and Technology, Saulėtekio Av. 3, LT-10257 Vilnius, Lithuania
Vilma Ratautaite
Department of Physical Chemistry, Institute of Chemistry, Faculty of Chemistry and Geosciences, Vilnius University, Naugarduko Str. 24, LT-03225 Vilnius, Lithuania
Simonas Ramanavicius
Department of Physical Chemistry, Institute of Chemistry, Faculty of Chemistry and Geosciences, Vilnius University, Naugarduko Str. 24, LT-03225 Vilnius, Lithuania
Vytautas Bucinskas
Department of Mechatronics, Robotics, and Digital Manufacturing, Faculty of Mechanics, Vilnius Gediminas Technical University, J. Basanaviciaus Str. 28, LT-03224 Vilnius, Lithuania
Monika Vilkiene
Lithuanian Research Center for Agriculture and Forestry, Instituto Ave. 1, Akademija, LT-58344 Kėdainiai, Lithuania
Arunas Ramanavicius
Department of Physical Chemistry, Institute of Chemistry, Faculty of Chemistry and Geosciences, Vilnius University, Naugarduko Str. 24, LT-03225 Vilnius, Lithuania
Urte Samukaite-Bubniene
Department of Physical Chemistry, Institute of Chemistry, Faculty of Chemistry and Geosciences, Vilnius University, Naugarduko Str. 24, LT-03225 Vilnius, Lithuania
The development of microbial fuel cells based on electro-catalytic processes is among the novel topics, which are recently emerging in the sustainable development of energetic systems. Microbial fuel cells have emerged as unique biocatalytic systems, which transform the chemical energy accumulated in renewable organic fuels and at the same time reduce pollution from hazardous organic compounds. However, not all microorganisms involved in metabolic/catalytic processes generate sufficient redox potential. In this research, we have assessed the applicability of the microorganism Rhizobium anhuiense as a catalyst suitable for the design of microbial fuel cells. To improve the charge transfer, several redox mediators were tested, namely menadione, riboflavin, and 9,10-phenanthrenequinone (PQ). The best performance was determined for a Rhizobium anhuiense-based bio-anode mediated by menadione with a 0.385 mV open circuit potential and 5.5 μW/cm2 maximal power density at 0.35 mV, which generated 50 μA/cm2 anode current at the same potential.
