MARKETING MANAGEMENT II

MBA-(E&1) 2013-15

REPORT ON MICROBIAL FUEL CELL

Submitted To:

Prof. Pramod Paliwal

Submitted By:

Bhavik Patel (20131009)

Darshit Paun (20131010)

Dhaval Shah (20131011)

Himanshi Singh Chandel (20131012)

REPORT

Petroleum, a major source of energy, comes from organic matter. Other kinds of organic

material are also a large potential source of energy.

It has been found that Bacteria species like Shewanella oneidensis, Rhodoferax ferrireducens,

and Geobacter sulfurreducens found naturally in soil not mainly produce electrons but also

transfer them from one location to another. These microorganisms can serve as a source of

energy. They break down organic matter to obtain energy, and in the process they produce a

stream of electrons that, if captured, can produce electricity. Also, soil naturally contains

energy conductive metals like zinc, copper and iron. The electrical and microbial properties

of soil make it a potential source of producing electricity.

Dirt is an energy source we don’t often hear about. This type of energy is known as Dirt

Energy or Soil Energy or Mud energy or Earth Energy.

There are following two ways of creating electricity from soil:

In one soil acts as medium of electron flow

In other, soil actually creates electrons

This setup is similar to the common Daniell-cell battery, which was invented by John

Frederick Daniell in 1836. The Daniell cell has two parts: copper (the cathode) suspended in

copper-sulphate solution, and zinc (the anode) suspended in zinc-sulphate solution. These

solutions are electrolytes (liquids with ions in them). Electrolytes facilitate the exchange of

electrons between the zinc and copper, generating and then channelling an electrical current.

An Earth battery works on the same principal as a Daniell cell.

When you place a copper electrode and a zinc electrode in a container of mud (it has to be

wet), the two metals start reacting, because zinc tends to lose electrons more easily then

copper and because dirt contains ions. Instead of using zinc and copper sulphates as

electrolytes, the Earth battery uses dirt. Wetting the dirt turns it into a true electrolyte

"solution." So the electrodes start exchanging electrons, just like in a standard battery.

The process won't continue forever -- eventually the soil will break down because the dirt

becomes depleted of its electrolyte qualities. Replacing the soil would restart the process,

though.

Soil and manure are used to fuel the batteries.

Bacteria release energy when they metabolize dead leaves, compost and other organic waste.

When an electrode, or electrical conductor like a copper wire, is added, the electrons attach to

it, creating a chemical reaction resulting in a small charge of electricity.

In villages were people have no access to electricity and those few having cell phones walk

miles to commercial charging stands takes a significant part of their family’s income.

These people just need very cheap, very simple, very tiny trickle charger to keep their phones

going.

It only takes a small amount of power to run a light or charge a cell phone. And microbial

fuel cell can serve the purpose.

A Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) measuring 1 square meter can produce 1 Volt which could

charge a cell phone, 5 square meters can power a lamp, clock or a fan.

On their own, these cells don't provide much power, as their output is low and it can be used

only for low energy devices like LED lamps, charging a cell phone etc. But they could be

stacked to produce higher wattages.

In the developed cities, a microbial fuel cell would not be an efficient power source. But in

rural places, where there's no grid power source, this type of setup could be a welcome

change. We plan to introduce the microbial fuel cell in several Villages.

Implementation- Phase 1

Target 20 villages.

Provide 2 Bio Fuel cells free to sarpanch of each village.

1 week later launch the product at a panchayat (Village Meeting).

Explain the villagers about the knowhow of the product.

Sourcing of raw materials:

The materials are easily and cheaply available; It can be collected from local vendors.

Implementation- Phase 2

Target 100 villages.

Implement similar model

Associate with NGOs to implement the model

Branding of phase 1 across various platforms.

Sourcing of raw materials:

-Try to associate with the OEM’s that manufacture these products and try to source it at a

cheaper rate.

-It can also act as part of their CSR activity.

FINANCIAL KNOW HOW

Costing

Rs 50 (Voltage Booster chip)+ Rs 100 other costs (Cathode and anode) = Rs 150/ cell

Administrative and Implementation costs extra.

Current Costs

It takes Rs 4.5 – Rs 5 per day for charging of various appliances.

It costs Rs 250- Rs 400/month for Kerosene powered lamps.

Pricing and Revenue Model (Phase-1)

The cell would be priced at Rs 10/ week for 5 months collected by the sarpanch of the

village.

No upfront costs.

Revenue Projections(Phase-1)

Sell 500-700 cells

Target monthly revenue of Rs 5000 – Rs 7000/ month at the end of phase 1

Besides making energy out of something free and easily available, "dirt power," also referred

to as "earth power," makes use of a renewable resource in a completely environmentally-

friendly way.

The use of MFC off-the-grid lighting technologies can be expanded by using voltage booster

chips as mentioned in our plan for villagers.

Possibly in future use of dirt energy can be further expanded in both developing and

developed countries.

It's what's in the dirt that counts.