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The South African start-up EL MAT Sustainable Solutions found a way to produce electricity, purified water and fertilizers from wastewater – without the introduction of hazardous materials or expensive feedstocks.

The company, founded in 2015, has developed an innovative microbial fuel cell solution with said triple output. Their innovative plug-and-play on-site device treats wastewater and reduces stress on the grid while providing a de-centralized electricity supply in urban and rural settings. For these reasons, EL MAT was chosen as a finalist of the ISC3 Innovation Challenge 2022, as well as the ISC3 Start-up of the Month for February 2023.

So how does the process work? The heart of EL MAT process is a microbial fuel cell (MFC). This MFC converts the organic matter of the untreated wastewater into electricity using bacteria. The bacteria consume the organic matter and produce electrons as a byproduct, which can be captured and used to generate power.