Three-Dimensional Pseudocapacitive Interface for Enhanced Power Production in a Microbial Fuel Cell

Interface properties are crucial to anodic extracellular electron transfer (EET) and power production of microbial fuel cells (MFCs), because they determine the local density of electroactive biofilms and the efficiency of electron transfer. To enhance MFC performance by improving EET, a 3D-structured pseudocapacitive interface is created by in situ deposition of MnO2 on a carbon electrode through the redox reaction between permanganate and carbon. The electrochemical performance of the MnO2-modified carbon paper electrode is increased consid-erably compared with an unmodified electrode, due to the increased local density of the exoelectrogenic biofilm and effective interfacial shuttling of electrons facilitated by the pseudocapacitive MnO2. The process for constructing 3D MnO2-based interfaces is technologically simple, environmentally friendly, and cost-effective. This study provides a new and promising strategy for improving power production in MFCs for scaledup applications.