Structural design for a CityTree based on the use of energy produced by microbial-plant fuel cells

Abstract

Generating alternatives that provide a possibility to reduce CO2 in the atmosphere, and taking advantage of the presence of plants are fundamental factors to combat climate change. To contribute to this, the present work aimed to reinvent the design of the City Tree considering the production of electrical energy in parallel to its main function of purifying the air through the natural properties of moss by integrating plant-microbial fuel cells. For this purpose, a removable structure was designed with reference to standardized L-profiles and ASIC standards regarding the elastic vector method for the selection and location of non-permanent joints, resulting in M16x2 bolts. Additionally, a system of cells was integrated with cylindrical graphite electrodes in the form of grids arranged at an inclination of 21.5º, totaling 480 cells with moss, whose survival capacity due to watering was addressed through a gravity irrigation system. Additionally, a stress analysis was carried out on the most critical elements of the design in terms of buckling and reflection on them, which finally allowed establishing stainless steel as the ideal material, since it offers resistance to corrosion due to humidity to manufacture the proposed design.

Keywords: CityTree, energy, microbial-plant fuel cells, moss.