# 3D-Printed Anode for Power Generation and Wastewater Treatment in Microbial Fuel Cells

## TL;DR

This paper introduces a 3D-printed anode design that improves both power generation and wastewater treatment in microbial fuel cells.

## Contribution

The novelty lies in using 3D printing to create anodes with controlled pore sizes for optimized performance in microbial fuel cells.

## Key findings

- An anode with a 2.3 mm pore size achieved a maximum power density of 14.94 mW/m² and 85.77% COD removal.
- The lowest internal resistance of 1246.44 Ω was observed with the 2.3 mm pore size anode.
- An intermediate pore size provides the best balance between electrochemical performance and wastewater treatment efficiency.

## Abstract

Microbial fuel cells (MFCs) are an emerging technology that converts the chemical energy stored in organic substrates into electrical energy using microorganisms as catalysts. However, their performance is often limited by the anode design and architecture. To address this, conductive anodes with well-defined pore sizes were manufactured via 3D printing and evaluated for electrical energy generation and wastewater treatment in microbial fuel cells. The maximum power density, coulombic efficiency, and accumulated biomass observed were 14.94 mW/m2, 4.87 ± 0.56%, and 0.186 ± 0.025 g, respectively, for the anode with a 2.3 mm pore size. The maximum chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal efficiency was 86.98 ± 1.89% for the anode with a pore size of 1.6 mm. However, this difference was minimal and not significant compared to the anode with a 2.3 mm pore size, which achieved 85.77 ± 2.31%. Additionally, the lowest internal resistance observed was 1246.44 Ω, corresponding to the MFC equipped with the anode with a pore size of 2.3 mm. Taken together, these results indicate that, when using 3D-printed anodes with controlled architectures, an intermediate pore size, neither too large nor too small, provides an adequate balance between electrochemical performance and efficient wastewater treatment in microbial fuel cells.