Abstract
Microbial electrochemical technologies (METs) offer promising avenues for sustainable energy production and environmental remediation. However, the conventional electrodes used in METs pose limitations in terms of cost, availability, and environmental impact. Various electrode materials are being explored to overcome these challenges, with a particular focus on utilizing agricultural waste as substrates. Agricultural waste materials, including crop residues and food waste, possess a significant carbon content and essential elements, making them promising candidates for investigation as potential sources for electrode production. Various conversion methods of biochar like carbonization, pyrolysis, and chemical activation, are used for converting agricultural waste into functional electrode materials followed up with optimisation of fabrication parameters like electrochemical performance, conductivity, and stability of hybrid electrodes. This review provides an elaborative discussion of electrode fabrication techniques and the development of hybrid electrodes using agricultural waste as an alternative to conventional electrodes. It also highlights the recent case studies and research advancements on successful applications of bioelectrodes in METs. Utilizing waste materials enables sustainable energy production and addresses waste management challenges. Towards the end, the perspective on scaling up these technologies for real-world implementation along with economic and environmental considerations has been outlined. This paper serves as a valuable resource for researchers, engineers, and policymakers interested in advancing METs through innovative conversions of waste to bioelectrodes.
doi: 10.17756/nwj.2023-s5-049
Citation: Sen H, Sogani M, Rajvanshi J, Das S. 2023. Current Approaches to Agricultural Waste Transformation into Bioelectrodes and Hybrid Electrodes: A Review. NanoWorld J 9(S5): S254-S263.