Microbial fuel cells as discontinuous portable power sources: syntropic interactions with anode-respiring bacteria.

For microbial fuel cells (MFCs) to work as portable power sources used in a discontinuous manner, anode-respiring bacteria (ARB) should survive for at least several days in the absence of exogenous electron donors, and immediately generate current upon addition of an electron donor. Here, we proved that biopolymer-accumulating bacteria provide substrate (fuel) for ARB to generate current in lack of exogenous electron donor in 4 days, which allows MFCs to be used as portable power sources.