Sled for benthic microbial fuel cell deployment with carbon fabric anodes

Benthic microbial fuel cells generate renewable power from the ocean sea floor and can be used to power sensors and other Navy relevant systems. Deployment of benthic microbial fuel cells by divers continues to be a significant cost attributed to their use as possible power sources for underwater instruments. A significant amount of effort is involved in placing the anode material at an appropriate depth to encourage suitable power generation. This is necessary to provide anaerobic conditions, preventing the interference of oxygen as an alternative electron acceptor to the fuel cell anode. Traditionally, divers have been used to bury large scale systems (m
²
) that generate 10-100 mW of power. To eliminate the need for a diver, the Space and Naval Warfare Systems Center-Pacific has developed a sled for deploying BMFCs with fabric anodes. The sled has an axle that holds the fabric and unrolls it under the sediment surface. The sled system has been demonstrated to deploy on the order of 10 m
²
of fabric anode material within minutes. A fabric anode was designed, which holds the promise to outperform traditional graphite anodes. A sled deployable BMFC architecture that uses a fabric anode was developed, deployed, and tested in San Diego Bay with the goal of powering remote marine sensors for the Navy.