Power generation from a hybrid biological fuel cell in seawater

A hybrid biological fuel cell (HBFC) comprised of a microbial anode for lactate oxidation and an enzymatic cathode for oxygen reduction was constructed and then tested in a marine environment. Shewanella oneidensis DSP-10 was cultivated in laboratory medium and then fixed on a carbon felt electrode via a silica sol–gel process in order to catalyze anodic fuel cell processes. The cathode electrocatalyst was composed of bilirubin oxidase, fixed to a carbon nanotube electrode using a heterobifunctional cross linker, and then stabilized with a silica sol–gel coating. The anode and cathode half-cells provided operating potentials of −0.44 and 0.48 V, respectively (vs. Ag/AgCl). The HBFC maintained a reproducible open circuit voltage >0.7 V for 9 d in laboratory settings and sustained electrocatalytic activity for >24 h in open environment tests.