Control Strategy for Adaptive Active Energy Harvesting in Sediment Microbial Fuel Cells

Sediment microbial fuel cells (SMFCs) are an alternative renewable power supply for sensors and communication. However, their low power outputs limit their practical applications. Maximum power point tracking can overcome this limitation by boosting the output voltage and optimizing the energy generation of sediment microbial fuel cells. In the present work, an adaptive variable-step incremental-conductance algorithm is developed for the high-efficiency energy harvesting of sediment microbial fuel cells by the fast tracking of the maximum power, even in a complex internal environment with significant fluctuations in power output. Computer simulations suggested that this algorithm can decrease the convergence time from 1.78 to 0.9 s. The excellent performance of the algorithm is verified on a single-chamber 2-L SMFC with 26.86% overall system efficiency and ability to successfully power a wireless sensor every 23 min. This work has provided a new strategy to harvest and manage the power outputs of low-power energy-acquisition systems.