Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market Outlook
Global Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market Steps Up to Offer Solution to Exacerbating Energy Crisis
The global microbial fuel cell (MFC) market is poised to surge at a robust CAGR of 9.8% between 2021 and 2025, reaching a valuation of US$15 Mn by the end of 2025. The global energy crisis is expected to provide a significant push to the expansion of the market. As the energy crisis deepens with limited resources, the potential of renewable sources will be explored and utilised vastly.
Growing concerns regarding climate change continue to trigger investments in zero-pollution based fuel sources such as fuel cells. There are numerous fuels cell which are fully commercial and have been in use extensively within the transportation sector. However, companies are still investing heavily on R&D activities to maximize the efficiency of fuel cells and discover other application areas. This has greatly benefitted the global microbial fuel cell market.
Microbial Fuel Cells Remain an Area of Interest for Research Studies
Microbial fuel cells or MFCs have gained traction among masses for low-to-medium power requirements. Microbial fuel cell technology that uses the mechanism of microorganisms to transform chemical energy of organic compounds into electricity is considered to be a promising alternative. Extensive studies have shown that microbial fuel cells are corroborated into a wide array of carbon sources, which include wastes that can be employed into using a variety of microbes. Consequently, the microbial transformation of wastes using novel bioremediation strategies such as MFC for energy generation is considered as an efficient and an environmental benign approach.
The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic has negatively impacted the global microbial fuel cell market. According to a recent number by International Energy Agency (IEA), the current hydrogen demand from oil refining industry and even steel manufacturing and chemical industries has been impacted by the outbreak. This has temporarily blurred the focal point, i.e., MFC R&D.
Demand for Microbial Fuel Cell at Wastewater Treatment Facilities Surges Owing to Lower Environmental Footprint
Microbial fuel cells play a very important economic role in wastewater treatment. The use of MFC in wastewater treatment facilities has dual advantages. Firstly, the electricity is produced with a cheaper rate that can be utilized for in-house electricity needs. Secondly, it leads to reduction in overall wastewater treatment costs. MFCs removes the environmental pollutants like bacteria from the wastewater while producing electricity. Globally, the cost for wastewater treatment is approximately $30 billion annually and continues to rise each year. Thus, in wastewater treatment plants, microbial fuel cell can be an ideal solution to minimize the overall treatment costs.
Furthermore, adoption of microbial fuel cells for different applications will lead to reduced consumption of fossil fuels-driven energy, thereby lowering the overall environmental footprint. MFCs thus have a direct positive impact on the environment, which creates strong ground for their widespread adoption as a renewable energy technology and a potential alternative to fossil fuels.
Compared to other fuel cell types, MFC development as well as adoption are still in the nascent stage in a majority of nations across the globe. Thus, there is much scope for improvement in the power density that current systems gain from MFC. Scientists and researchers are still fine-tuning the process efficiencies, especially in areas that involve upscaling of power generation through higher substrate volumes.
Application of MFC in wastewater treatment also depends on significant variables such as the concentration and biodegradability of organic matter, wastewater temperature, and the presence of toxic chemicals. In addition to reliability and scalability, MFC systems also need to be simplified in order to make them more cost-effective, a factor that is likely to affect adoption in an era when solar and wind power would be on par with coal.
Demand for Mediator-Free Microbial Fuel Cells to Grow Stronger
Mediator-based microbial fuel cells are not responsible of transporting electrons to the anodic surface because they do not synthesis a protein with active sites to help them do that. Instead, they use chemical mediators or agents that are also called electroactive metabolites. The most sought-after mediators are neutral red, potassium ferricyanide, and methyl viologen under anaerobic conditions.
On the other hand, mediator-free microbial fuel cell does not need mediators because most of the bacteria present in wastewater have the tendency to transport electrons to the electrodes and produce electricity using long nanowires. Mediator-based microbial fuel cells are costly compared to mediator-free microbial fuel cells. Globally, mediator-free MFCs have been garnering much focus of the research fraternity, in turn attracting extensive R&D investments. These MFCs are lesser toxic and demand lower production costs, with the potential to minimize overall MFC costs. Market attractiveness of microbial fuel cells is expected to rise through the forecast period.
Maximum Deployment Seals Top Spot for Asia Pacific
The global microbial fuel cell (MFC) market is predominantly driven by developed regions such as the US, and Europe, and some of the fast-developing Asian nations. The market has seen surge in demand in the year 2019, specifically attributing to significant demand for MFC at wastewater treatment plants. Growing demand for green fuel, government support, and heavy R&D investments will be responsible for overall decline in costs. Moreover, enhanced efficiency of MFCs is expected to drive sales in the near future.
Currently, Asia Pacific leads the global microbial fuel cell (MFC) market. Market dominance is due to growing MFC utilisation in a variety of application areas, including wastewater treatment and biosensors, and a large number of ongoing R&D activities. In 2008, researchers in Hyderabad, India developed a special microbial fuel cell (MFC) that generates bioelectricity by degrading wastewater. In China, there has been increase in power generation from cylindrical microbial fuel cell inoculated with P. aeruginosa as the feedstock. This technology provides a dual benefit of wastewater treatment along with energy generation and relatively easy access to cheap and eco-friendly energy sources.
In North America, more than 90% of hydrogen is consumed by refineries and industrial sector. However, there has been a significant rise is the demand for hydrogen in power generation sector as well as for wastewater treatment application. In December 2020, WSU researchers developed a sustainable wastewater treatment system that relies on electron-producing microbial communities to clean the water.
In Europe, several investors are funding R&D activities to improve microbial fuel cells through ground-breaking technologies. Researchers at the University of West of England (UWE), Bristol, investigated various environmental conditions to accomplish a faster growth and maximum power transfer in microbial fuel cells. This resulted in development of EcoBot (Ecological robot), which is an autonomous robot that employs MFCs for its operation energy supply. EcoBot, Slugbot uses microbial fuel cell (MFC) technology to generate electrical energy directly from unrefined biomass. It ferments slug mass and converts it into electrical energy, and uses it to catch the slug in the field.
The global microbial fuel cell market is at an introductory stage in Latin America and the Middle East & Africa. In 2020, team Firat University, Turkey developed tin-coated copper can generate electricity/power from algae by utilizing multi-anode sediment microbial fuel cell (MFC). The fuel cell developed recorded the highest power density of 2,965 mW/m2. By 2030, Morocco aims to increase its electricity generation from renewable natural sources to 52%. MFCs are still a new technology; however, it goes hand in hand with the country’s green vision. These developments and visions related to renewable power is expected to trigger investments in the global microbial fuel cell market in the next few years.
Global Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market: Competitive Landscape
Key players in the global microbial fuel cell (MFC) market are Cambrian Innovation Inc, Vinpro Technologies, Open Therapeutics LLC, Triqua International BV, Sainergy Tech, Inc., MICROrganic Technologies, Prongineer, Fluence Corporation, Microbial Robotics, Emefcy, Protonex, and ElectroChem Inc. Open Therapeutics LLC focuses on commercialisation of a patent that was granted to Bacterial Robotics, LLC in 2015.
The Global Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market is Segmented as Below:
By Type Coverage
By Application Coverage
By End-user Coverage
By Geographical Coverage
Leading Companies
Inside This Report You Will Find:
1. Executive Summary
2. Market Overview
3. Price Trends Analysis and Future Projects, 2017 - 2025
4. Global Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market Outlook, 2017 - 2025
5. North America Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market Outlook, 2017 - 2025
6. Europe Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market Outlook, 2017 - 2025
7. Asia Pacific Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market Outlook, 2017 - 2025
8. Latin America Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market Outlook, 2017 - 2025
9. Middle East & Africa Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market Outlook, 2017 - 2025
10. Competitive Landscape
11. Appendix
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1. Executive Summary
1.1. Global Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market Snapshot
1.2. Future Projections
1.3. Key Market Trends
1.4. Analyst Recommendations
2. Market Overview
2.1. Market Definitions and Segmentations
2.2. Market Dynamics
2.2.1. Drivers
2.2.2. Restraints
2.2.3. Market Opportunities
2.2.4. Economic Trends
2.3. Value Chain Analysis
2.4. Porter’s Five Forces Analysis
2.5. Covid-19 Impact
2.5.1. Supply Chain
2.5.2. End-user Customer Impact Analysis
3. Price Trends Analysis and Future Projects, 2017 - 2025
3.1. Key Highlights
3.2. Global Average Pricing ($ per Unit) Analysis, 2017 - 2025
3.3. Cost Breakup Analysis (CAPEX & OPEX Structure)
4. Global Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market Outlook, 2017 - 2025
4.1. Global Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market Outlook, by Type, Volume (Units) and Value (US$ Mn), 2017 - 2025
4.1.1. Key Highlights
4.1.1.1. Mediator Microbial Fuel Cell
4.1.1.2. Mediator-Free Microbial Fuel Cell
4.1.2. BPS Analysis/Market Attractiveness Analysis, by Type
4.2. Global Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market Outlook, by Application, Volume (Units) and Value (US$ Mn), 2017 - 2025
4.2.1. Key Highlights
4.2.1.1. Power Generation
4.2.1.2. Wastewater Treatment
4.2.1.3. Biosensor
4.2.1.4. Others
4.2.2. BPS Analysis/Market Attractiveness Analysis, by Application
4.3. Global Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market Outlook, by End-user, Volume (Units) and Value (US$ Mn), 2017 - 2025
4.3.1. Key Highlights
4.3.1.1. Agriculture
4.3.1.2. Healthcare
4.3.1.3. Food & Beverage
4.3.1.4. Others
4.2.2. BPS Analysis/Market Attractiveness Analysis, by End-user
4.4. Global Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market Outlook, by Region, Volume (Units) and Value (US$ Mn), 2017 - 2025
4.4.1. Key Highlights
4.4.1.1. North America
4.4.1.2. Europe
4.4.1.3. Asia Pacific
4.4.1.4. Latin America
4.4.1.5. Middle East & Africa
4.4.2. BPS Analysis/Market Attractiveness Analysis, by Region
5. North America Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market Outlook, 2017 - 2025
5.1. North America Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market Outlook, by Type, Volume (Units) and Value (US$ Mn), 2017 - 2025
5.1.1. Key Highlights
5.1.1.1. Mediator Microbial Fuel Cell
5.1.1.2. Mediator-Free Microbial Fuel Cell
5.2. North America Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market Outlook, by Application, Volume (Units) and Value (US$ Mn), 2017 - 2025
5.2.1. Key Highlights
5.2.1.1. Power Generation
5.2.1.2. Wastewater Treatment
5.2.1.3. Biosensor
5.2.1.4. Others
5.3. North America Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market Outlook, by End-user, Volume (Units) and Value (US$ Mn), 2017 - 2025
5.3.1. Key Highlights
5.3.1.1. Agriculture
5.3.1.2. Healthcare
5.3.1.3. Food & Beverage
5.3.1.4. Others
5.4. North America Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market Outlook, by Country, Volume (Units) and Value (US$ Mn), 2017 - 2025
5.4.1. Key Highlights
5.4.1.1. U.S. Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market, Volume (Units) and Value (US$ Mn), 2017 - 2025
5.4.1.2. Canada Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market, Volume (Units) and Value (US$ Mn), 2017 - 2025
5.4.1.3. Mexico Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market, Volume (Units) and Value (US$ Mn), 2017 - 2025
6. Europe Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market Outlook, 2017 - 2025
6.1. Europe Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market Outlook, by Type, Volume (Units) and Value (US$ Mn), 2017 - 2025
6.1.1. Key Highlights
6.1.1.1. Mediator Microbial Fuel Cell
6.1.1.2. Mediator-Free Microbial Fuel Cell
6.2. Europe Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market Outlook, by Application, Volume (Units) and Value (US$ Mn), 2017 - 2025
6.2.1. Key Highlights
6.2.1.1. Power Generation
6.2.1.2. Wastewater Treatment
6.2.1.3. Biosensor
6.2.1.4. Others
6.3. Europe Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market Outlook, by End-user, Volume (Units) and Value (US$ Mn), 2017 - 2025
6.3.1. Key Highlights
6.3.1.1. Agriculture
6.3.1.2. Healthcare
6.3.1.3. Food & Beverage
6.3.1.4. Others
6.4. Europe Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market Outlook, by Country, Volume (Units) and Value (US$ Mn), 2017 - 2025
6.4.1. Key Highlights
6.4.1.1. Germany Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market, Volume (Units) and Value (US$ Mn), 2017 - 2025
6.4.1.2. U.K. Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market, Volume (Units) and Value (US$ Mn), 2017 - 2025
6.4.1.3. France Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market, Volume (Units) and Value (US$ Mn), 2017 - 2025
6.4.1.4. Italy Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market, Volume (Units) and Value (US$ Mn), 2017 - 2025
6.4.1.5. Spain Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market, Volume (Units) and Value (US$ Mn), 2017 - 2025
6.4.1.6. Russia & CIS Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market, Volume (Units) and Value (US$ Mn), 2017 - 2025
6.4.1.7. Rest of Europe Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market, Volume (Units) and Value (US$ Mn), 2017 - 2025
7. Asia Pacific Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market Outlook, 2017 - 2025
7.1. Asia Pacific Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market Outlook, by Type, Volume (Units) and Value (US$ Mn), 2017 - 2025
7.1.1. Key Highlights
7.1.1.1. Mediator Microbial Fuel Cell
7.1.1.2. Mediator-Free Microbial Fuel Cell
7.1.2. BPS Analysis/Market Attractiveness Analysis
7.2. Asia Pacific Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market Outlook, by Application, Volume (Units) and Value (US$ Mn), 2017 - 2025
7.2.1. Key Highlights
7.2.1.1. Power Generation
7.2.1.2. Wastewater Treatment
7.2.1.3. Biosensor
7.2.1.4. Others
7.3. Asia Pacific Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market Outlook, by End-user, Volume (Units) and Value (US$ Mn), 2017 - 2025
7.3.1. Key Highlights
7.3.1.1. Agriculture
7.3.1.2. Healthcare
7.3.1.3. Food & Beverage
7.3.1.4. Others
7.4. Asia Pacific Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market Outlook, by Country, Volume (Units) and Value (US$ Mn), 2017 - 2025
7.4.1. Key Highlights
7.4.1.1. China Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market, Volume (Units) and Value (US$ Mn), 2017 - 2025
7.4.1.2. Japan Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market, Volume (Units) and Value (US$ Mn), 2017 - 2025
7.4.1.3. South Korea Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market, Volume (Units) and Value (US$ Mn), 2017 - 2025
7.4.1.4. Australia Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market, Volume (Units) and Value (US$ Mn), 2017 - 2025
7.4.1.5. India Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market, Volume (Units) and Value (US$ Mn), 2017 - 2025
7.4.1.6. ASEAN Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market, Volume (Units) and Value (US$ Mn), 2017 - 2025
7.4.1.7. Rest of Asia Pacific Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market, Volume (Units) and Value (US$ Mn), 2017 - 2025
8. Latin America Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market Outlook, 2017 - 2025
8.1. Latin America Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market Outlook, by Type, Volume (Units) and Value (US$ Mn), 2017 - 2025
8.1.1. Key Highlights
8.1.1.1. Mediator Microbial Fuel Cell
8.1.1.2. Mediator-Free Microbial Fuel Cell
8.2. Latin America Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market Outlook, by Application, Volume (Units) and Value (US$ Mn), 2017 - 2025
8.2.1. Key Highlights
8.2.1.1. Power Generation
8.2.1.2. Wastewater Treatment
8.2.1.3. Biosensor
8.2.1.4. Others
8.3. Latin America Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market Outlook, by End-user, Volume (Units) and Value (US$ Mn), 2017 - 2025
8.3.1. Key Highlights
8.3.1.1. Agriculture
8.3.1.2. Healthcare
8.3.1.3. Food & Beverage
8.3.1.4. Others
8.4. Latin America Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market Outlook, by Country, Volume (Units) and Value (US$ Mn), 2017 - 2025
8.4.1. Key Highlights
8.4.1.1. Brazil Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market, Volume (Units) and Value (US$ Mn), 2017 - 2025
8.4.1.2. Argentina Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market, Volume (Units) and Value (US$ Mn), 2017 - 2025
8.4.1.3. Columbia Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market, Volume (Units) and Value (US$ Mn), 2017 - 2025
8.4.1.4. Chile Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market, Volume (Units) and Value (US$ Mn), 2017 - 2025
8.4.1.5. Rest of Latin America Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market, Volume (Units) and Value (US$ Mn), 2017 - 2025
9. Middle East & Africa Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market Outlook, 2017 - 2025
9.1. Middle East & Africa Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market Outlook, by Type, Volume (Units) and Value (US$ Mn), 2017 - 2025
9.1.1. Key Highlights
9.1.1.1. Mediator Microbial Fuel Cell
9.1.1.2. Mediator-Free Microbial Fuel Cell
9.2. Middle East & Africa Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market Outlook, by Application, Volume (Units) and Value (US$ Mn), 2017 - 2025
9.2.1. Key Highlights
9.2.1.1. Power Generation
9.2.1.2. Wastewater Treatment
9.2.1.3. Biosensor
9.2.1.4. Others
9.3. Middle East & Africa Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market Outlook, by End-user, Volume (Units) and Value (US$ Mn), 2017 - 2025
9.3.1. Key Highlights
9.3.1.1. Agriculture
9.3.1.2. Healthcare
9.3.1.3. Food & Beverage
9.3.1.4. Others
9.4. Middle East & Africa Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market Outlook, by Country, Volume (Units) and Value (US$ Mn), 2017 - 2025
9.4.1. Key Highlights
9.4.1.1. Saudi Arabia Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market, Volume (Units) and Value (US$ Mn), 2017 - 2025
9.4.1.2. UAE Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market, Volume (Units) and Value (US$ Mn), 2017 - 2025
9.4.1.3. Egypt Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market, Volume (Units) and Value (US$ Mn), 2017 - 2025
9.4.1.4. Nigeria Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market, Volume (Units) and Value (US$ Mn), 2017 - 2025
9.4.1.5. South Africa Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market, Volume (Units) and Value (US$ Mn), 2017 - 2025
9.4.1.6. Rest of Middle East & Africa Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Market, Volume (Units) and Value (US$ Mn), 2017 - 2025
10. Competitive Landscape
10.1. Company Market Share Analysis, 2019
10.2. Strategic Collaborations
10.3. Company Profiles
10.3.1. Triqua International
10.3.1.1. Company Overview
10.3.1.2. Product Portfolio
10.3.1.3. Financial Overview
10.3.1.4. Business Strategies and Development
10.3.2. Microrganic Technologies
10.3.2.1. Company Overview
10.3.2.2. Product Portfolio
10.3.2.3. Financial Overview
10.3.2.4. Business Strategies and Development
10.3.3. Emefcy
10.3.3.1. Company Overview
10.3.3.2. Product Portfolio
10.3.3.3. Financial Overview
10.3.3.4. Business Strategies and Development
10.3.4. Protonex Technology Corporation
10.3.4.1. Company Overview
10.3.4.2. Product Portfolio
10.3.4.3. Financial Overview
10.3.4.4. Business Strategies and Development
10.3.5. ElectroChem Inc.
10.3.5.1. Company Overview
10.3.5.2. Product Portfolio
10.3.5.3. Financial Overview
10.3.5.4. Business Strategies and Development
10.3.6. Prongineer
10.3.6.1. Company Overview
10.3.6.2. Product Portfolio
10.3.6.3. Financial Overview
10.3.6.4. Business Strategies and Development
10.3.7. Cambrian Innovation Inc.
10.3.7.1. Company Overview
10.3.7.2. Product Portfolio
10.3.7.3. Financial Overview
10.3.7.4. Business Strategies and Development
10.3.8. Open Therapeutics LLC
10.3.8.1. Company Overview
10.3.8.2. Product Portfolio
10.3.8.3. Financial Overview
10.3.8.4. Business Strategies and Development
10.3.9. Others
11. Appendix
11.1. Research Methodology
11.2. Report Assumptions
11.3. Acronyms and Abbreviations
BASE YEAR |
HISTORICAL DATA |
FORECAST PERIOD |
UNITS |
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2019 |
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2017 - 2019 |
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2020 - 2025 |
Value: US$ Million Volume: Sales Units |
REPORT FEATURES |
DETAILS |
Type Coverage |
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Application Coverage |
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End-user Coverage |
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Geographical Coverage |
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Leading Companies |
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Report Highlights |
Key Market Indicators, Macro-micro economic impact analysis, Technological Roadmap, Key Trends, Driver, Restraints, and Future Opportunities & Revenue Pockets, Porter’s 5 Forces Analysis, Historical Trend (2017-2019), Price Trend Analysis- 2019-2025, Market Estimates and Forecast, Market Dynamics, Industry Trends, Competition Landscape, Category, Region, Country-wise Trends & Analysis, COVID-19 Impact Analysis (Demand and Supply Chain) |
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