UWE Bristol brings Science into the Community of Baileys Court Primary School

Drs. Debbie Lewis and Jon Winfield from UWE returned to Baileys Court school this week to begin constructing the Microbial Fuel Cells (MFCs) with Year 5. MFCs are in essence “bacterial houses”. Children built their MFCs, specially designed by UWE specifically for the Royal Society Schools project. They then went outside to dig deep in mud (home to lots of bacteria), to make muddy water and add this to the MFC. Over time, bacteria from the mud that are able to produce electricity, termed “electrigens”, will begin to thrive in this environment and the pupils will be able to measure how much voltage is produced from each MFC on a daily basis. Children in coming weeks will learn how to nurture their MFCs to maximise energy production and learn that what is essentially a waste product for bacteria -electricity, can be captured by the pupils to power small electrical appliances in coming weeks.

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