Low-cost materials and low-tech architectures have been recently requested to give competitive advantage in scaling-up applications of Microbial Electrochemical Technologies (METs). To answer this need, we developed new materials to fabricate low-tech and low cost METs modules for carbon storage, nutrients recovery, bioremediation of wastewater and in-situ remediation of contaminated sites or landfills.

In particular, we proposed inexpensive METs based on materials available as agriculture by-products or marginal crops and clay:

1.         Ligno-cellulosic biomass- based cylinders (Arundo donax, Zea Maize, Bambusoideae)

2.         Mixtures of clay with ligno-cellulosic biomass residues

These materials are processed at high-temperature under inert atmosphere (pyrolysis). This makes the material porous and at the same time conductive (graphite-like carbon crystals). Before pyrolysis, the selected biomasses can possibly be modified and functionalized by chemical treatments.

The proposed products are thought to substitute the costly carbon cloth electrodes, which still represents the state-of-the-art in METs panorama, with other cheap carbon-based matrix deriving from agriculture by-products. In addition, the rigidity of the pyrolized cathode conveys itself the structure of the METs system.

In view of the new paradigm of circular economy, the valorization of these kinds of secondary products can attract the attention of a wide scientific and industrial audience.