A white-rot fungus is used as a biocathode to improve electricity production of a microbial fuel cell

White-rot fungus is able to secrete laccase, which can reduce O-2 to H2O and has been widely used in enzymatic fuel cells. In this work, a strain of white-rot fungus, Coriolus versicolor, is inoculated in the cathodic chamber of a microbial fuel cell (MFC) to improve cathode reduction efficiency for better electricity generation. 2,2'-Azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothazoline-6-sulfonate), as a redox mediator, is added to the catholyte to facilitate the electron transfer between the electrode and the laccase. The results show that the fungus-based biocathode has better performance than the conventional abiotic cathode, with approximately seven-orders higher power density achieved. This is the first report that white-rot fungus is used to constitute the biocathode of an MFC for improved electricity generation. (c) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.