JMU professor, students to design pioneering energy source

Integrated science and technology professor Cheng Li and his students are helping design a cutting-edge marine microbial fuel cell (MFC) that will replace batteries and other power sources fueling ocean sensors.  

An MFC is a bioelectrochemical device that uses microorganisms to break down organic fuel and generate clean, renewable electricity. 

“The level of power from a MFC in a marine environment has never been achieved or even attempted in a lab,” Li said, noting the first step is to create a device that can produce 10 watts of power consistently for a year or more. 

“Ten watts may not seem like much compared to what a coal-fired or nuclear power plant would produce, but it’s a lot for microorganisms,” he said. 

The world's oceans are filled with sensors that monitor everything from water currents to ocean life. The sensors require power to operate, and that power is typically supplied by batteries or cables running from land or ships.  

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), a research and development agency of the United States Department of Defense that develops emerging technologies for national security, wants to power its sensors with biomass instead and awarded $7.8 million to the University of Maryland (UMD) to design and build the microbial energy source. A bioenergy fuel cell will improve sensing capabilities while protecting the environment, said UMD researcher Stepanie Lansing. 

JMU is one of seven partners the university enlisted to help. Other partners are Battelle, a global research company, George Washington University, Harvard University, UMD Baltimore County at the Institute of Marine and Environmental Technology, Johns Hopkins University, the University of Delaware and Yokogawa Corporation of America. 

Li’s invitation to the project stemmed from his pioneering work on microbial fuel cells for ocean sensors at Oregon State University. His primary responsibility for the DARPA project is to design a fuel cell that can be stacked in an array to boost voltage. Li said at least six of his students will assist him during the next 18 months and will be paid as undergraduate research assistants.  

Li said the new device will collect biomass from the ocean to support on-site fermentation and simultaneous power generation. 

DARPA wants the device to self-refuel, operate fully submerged and deliver battery-level power without being serviced for longer than is possible by comparably sized battery packs, according to the project website.