Conductive multilayered polyelectrolyte films improved performance in microbial fuel cells (MFCs)

Microbial fuel cells (MFCs) are bioelectronics devices that can directly convert the chemical energy from organic matter to electricity by the catalytic activity of living microorganisms. The performance of the MFCs could be influenced by many factors, such as anode materials and surface structure. Based on our previous work, in this paper, graphene (GE) nanosheets and poly(allylamine hydrochloride) (PAH) multilayered films were used to modify the anode in MFCs via layer-by-layer (LBL) self-assembly technique. Compared with the bare anode method, the multilayered films could improve the conductive ability between the bacteria and the anode so that produce a higher level of electricity output. The electrochemical performances of anodes modified with different (PAH/GE)n in the MFC were investigated. The results demonstrated that the ITO/(PAH/GE)2 anode produced a much higher and more stable current level. The electrode modified with the (PAH/GE)n is promising for the development of MFCs in the future.