Efficient energy harvester for microbial fuel cells using DC/DC converters

Microbial fuel cell (MFC) is an emerging technology for sustainable energy production. An MFC employs indigenous microorganisms as biocatalysts and can theoretically convert any biodegradable substrate into electricity, making the technology a viable solution for sustainable waste treatment or autonomous power supply. However, the electric energy currently generated from MFCs is not directly usable due to the low voltage and current output. Moreover, the output power can fluctuate significantly according to the operating points, which makes stable harvest of energy difficult. This paper presents an MFC energy harvesting scheme using two layers of DC/DC converters. The proposed energy harvester can capture the energy from multiple MFCs at the most efficient operating point and at the same time form the energy into a usable shape.