Dutch Team Uses Microbes to Harness Paddy Power

A Dutch research team has broken new ground by creating a microbial fuel cell that enables generation of power to the tune of 330 watts per hectare of farmed rice paddy fields.

The process the researchers used is simple – develop a micro power plant using just the bacteria present in the soil of the fields. The bacteria generate extra electrons as they eat the organic matter in the soil. These extra electrons are then harvested to generate power.

A microbiology professor at Harvard University, Professor Peter Girgius, had talked about the soil’s electric potential just a few months back. At that time, Professor Girgius had said, “There are terawatts moving through our biosphere. Solar energy ends up in our soil and sediment. Think of it as underground solar energy.”

There are a number of others working on the creation of microbial fuel cells, as the potential of this form of fuel generation seems enormous given the power situation in some parts of the globe.

Girgius was the brain behind one of several startup companies, Living Power Systems, trying to exploit the potential of this new technology, which has developed over the past one year. A number of scientists, including members of the J. Craig Venter Institute, are now working to enhance this technology and using genetics to create a superior bacterial generator.

The success that this technology would enjoy in developed countries that have ready access to cheap power remains to be seen. However, it would be a great sales pitch in countries where millions of people live in poverty, with no access to electricity at all. For that kind of a market, the microbial fuel cell technology would be a viable option.

While currently, there is no way of determining the scalability or life span of a microbial fuel cell, it is definitely a solution worth looking at when working on providing energy and electricity to populations living without electricity.