A novel stainless steel mesh/cobalt oxide hybrid electrode for efficient catalysis of oxygen reduction in a microbial fuel cell

•We fabricate SSM/Co3O4 hybrid electrodes for oxygen reduction of MFC.•The SSM/Co3O4 hybrid electrode shows close performances to Pt/C toward oxygen reduction.•The MFC using the SSM/Co3O4 hybrid electrode generates 96% power density of that using a commercial Pt/C electrode.

To explore efficient and cost-effective cathode material for microbial fuel cells (MFCs), the present study fabricates a new type of binder-free gas diffusion electrode made of cobalt oxide (Co3O4) micro-particles directly grown on stainless steel mesh (SSM) by using an ammonia-evaporation-induced method. In various electrochemical analyses and evaluations in batch-fed dual-chamber MFCs, the SSM/Co3O4 hybrid electrode demonstrates improved performances in terms of electrocatalytic activity, selectivity, durability and economics toward oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) in pH-neutral solution, in comparison with conventional carbon supported platinum catalyst. This study suggests a new strategy to fabricate a more effective electrode for ORR in MFCs, making it more technically and economically viable to produce electrical energy from organic materials for practical applications.