Energy-neutral communication protocol for very low power microbial fuel cell based wireless sensor network

A major challenge faced by wireless sensor networks (WSNs) for monitoring purposes is their energy supply. Renewable energy sources are useful for sustainable monitoring, but still very limited today due to various implementation constraints. Fortunately, microbial fuel cells (MFCs) provide a renewable power source, which can be integrated into terrains, wetlands, and some civil structures for environmental monitoring. However, as MFCs may only provide ultralow and dynamic power, an energy-neutral communication protocol is crucial for MFC-powered WSNs. Herein a duty-cycle-based energy-neutral communication protocol is proposed for MFC-powered WSNs. Mathematical models for optimal duty-cycling that minimize the probe packet reception time are first proposed. Then, an energy-neutral joint scheduling and routing protocol in multihop MFC networks is introduced. Finally, a MATLAB-based simulation tool is developed to evaluate the protocol performance. Simulation results show that WSNs adopting the proposed protocol can achieve sustainable network operations. It is also demonstrated that the protocol enables reliable data transmission when using ultralow and time-varying MFC power inputs.