Leading innovation in a low carbon future with the Microbial Fuel Cell

Arla Foods, Lindhurst Engineering and the University of Nottingham have unveiled a pioneering microbial fuel cell (MFC) which they predict will revolutionise energy generation on farms and within the dairy industry by converting both farm effluent and dairy by-products into electricity and bio-gas.

The first-of-its-kind MFC demonstrator was revealed at Collaboration Nation, the Government’s Technology Strategy Board’s exemplar project day in Leeds on March 2, having received funding from the body. It has been developed by The University of Nottingham, produced by Sutton-in-Ashfield based Lindhurst Engineering and successfully trialled at The University of Nottingham’s Sutton Bonnington Dairy Farm site, which is a member of Arla Foods Milk Partnership. Arla Foods also supplied dairy by-products, some equipment and assisted in the design of the MFC.

The one cubic metre capacity pilot plant not only converts farm slurry and dairy waste into electricity, it also produces hydrogen gas which creates further renewable energy. A larger production scale sized cell has been calculated to be able to either supply a farm with all its annual energy needs if fed with slurry from 200 cows or provide 10 per cent of a large dairy’s annual energy requirement if fed by-products from a large dairy processing site. Neither use would require the need for any additives.

“The trial delivered exactly what we anticipated. It proved the integrity of the cutting-edge technology which has been developed and which is now poised to become a commercial reality,” said Richard Laxton, Arla’s sustainability manager.

“With increasing emphasis being placed on renewable energy sources and the need to reduce carbon, this technology is a huge step forward, both for farmers and the food industry. The fact it uses by-products from each operation is another significant benefit and makes its large-scale implementation even more attractive.

“Within Arla Foods we have set ourselves a target of 30 per cent of our energy coming from renewable sources by 2020 and collaborating on this project is directly in line with this vision.”

Dr. John Andresen from The University of Nottingham added: “This has been a very rewarding collaboration where an innovative technology for renewable energy production, initially developed at The University of Nottingham, has been transferred from the laboratory to a demonstrator and will have a real impact in terms of reduced carbon emission, decreased environmental impact and further support the competitiveness of the UK industry.”

Martin Rigley from Lindhurst Engineering said: “We have been really pleased to bring some of our expertise from the sewerage treatment industry to be able to make this pilot plant a success. We are now excited to develop this project into a production unit and can see the massive potential impact it could make in the dairy, food and drink, and process industries.”