Design Instructions

GOAL

To develop a mud battery that produces the highest voltage.

RULES & RESTRICTIONS

• Must be homemade. It cannot be a mud battery kit that has been store bought.
• The electrodes for the mud battery must both be the same metal. For example, if the anode is a piece of copper metal, then the cathode must also be a piece of copper metal.
• All building materials must be biodegradable, reusable, or recyclable.
• With the exception of adhesive tape, duct tape, and masking tape, only reusable or recyclable plastics can be used (ie. No Styrofoam).
• Mud battery must be able to safely fit on top of a lab bench.
• Mud battery must work without any supervision (ie. It must be “hands free”). Students will not be allowed to hold, manipulate, or move the battery or parts of the battery when it is being tested.
• Mud Battery cannot be powered by anything else (ex. You cannot use connect solar cells or other batteries or energy sources to the mud battery).
• Mud Battery cannot harm itself or its environment.

ONLINE RESOURCES

https://makezine.com/projects/microbial-fuel-cell/

“Generate Electricity from Bacteria in Mud” – Make magazine has another design for a mud battery that utilizes 2 containers and a salt bridge (which differs from the MudWatt, which uses 1 container)

http://www.kidsciencechallenge.com/pdfs/2010activities/Mud_Battery_Magical_Microbes_2010.pdf

A handout that features yet another design for a mud battery that also utilizes 2 containers.

VIDEO: https://youtu.be/RPnJ0OGjCDM

“MudWatt Assembly Tutorial” – this video shows how the MudWatt kit is assembled. Even though you are not allowed to use the MudWatt in this lab, it is useful to see the basic set up of a mud battery.

VIDEO: https://youtu.be/RdIV_UZFK9A

“MudWatt Microbial Fuel Cell - How It Works” – this video also shows the individual parts of the MudWatt and how they work to produce a voltage.