Exoelectrogens in MFC Integrated Wastewater Treatment and Electricity Production (SDGs 7 and 13): Electron Transfer Pathway, SWOT, and Techno‐Economic Analysis

ABSTRACT

Microbial fuel cells (MFCs) are bio‐electrochemical systems which utilize the metabolic processes of exoelectrogenic bacteria (EEB) to produce electricity during wastewater treatment. EEB have specialized extracellular electron transfer (EET) ability to transfer electrons from organic substrates to surface objects like anodes. As a substrate and microbial environment, wastewater enables EEB in MFCs to oxidize organic substances, transferring electrons to the anode and concurrently reducing COD levels through electricity generation. MFC performances were majorly affected by substrate content, microbial consortium composition, electrode material, and operational parameters. Emerging developments in electrode configuration, process configurations, and mechanisms of EET provided the scope for enhancing the efficiency of MFC. MFCs are emerging as a potential technology aligning with Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 7 and 13 for electricity generation and wastewater treatment. SWOT analysis serves as a critical tool in MFC studies by providing a comprehensive evaluation of the technology's internal capabilities and external environment. This helps to identify the core strengths, such as waste valorization and eco‐friendly energy generation, while highlighting the critical weaknesses, like low power density and higher material costs. The techno‐economic analysis of MFCs is a critical factor determining their large‐scale commercialization for wastewater treatment and bioenergy production. Development of hybrid systems, addressing scalability limitations, competing conventional technologies, will be a key challenge for the successful commercialization of the MFC technique in the future.