Plant microbial fuel cells: A comprehensive review of influential factors, innovative configurations, diverse applications, persistent challenges, and promising prospects

This review delves into the multifaceted landscape of plant microbial fuel cells (PMFCs), investigating the affecting factors, configurations, applications, challenges, and prospects that shape their design. A thorough exploration of the affecting factors covering natural factors such as type of living plants, type of microbes and environmental factors as well as man-made factors such as electrode material and design, addition of additives and the diverse array of PMFC configurations are investigated here. The configurations cover the tubular design, flat plate design, sediment type, green rooftop design, constructed wetland and bryophyte PMFC are analyzed for performance comparison, offering insights for researchers. Applications of PMFC for powering ultra-low power remote devices and sensors, biosensing purposes, wastewater treatment, to bioremediation of polluted sites, are showcased to show the versatility of PMFCs. Despite their promise, challenges such as low power output, plant selection and growth, control over microbial species, diversity and electron transfer mechanisms, the long-term stability and durability of PMFC as well as scalability and cost for wide implementation of PMFC, are conversed here as it necessitates innovative solutions. In addition, this paper also provides recommendation of prospects to be considered by future researchers to enhance the development of PMFC.