*Article* **Use of Onion Waste as Fuel for the Generation of Bioelectricity**

**Rojas-Flores Segundo 1,\* , Magaly De La Cruz-Noriega <sup>1</sup> , Nélida Milly Otiniano <sup>1</sup> , Santiago M. Benites <sup>2</sup> , Mario Esparza <sup>3</sup> and Renny Nazario-Naveda <sup>4</sup>**


**Abstract:** The enormous environmental problems that arise from organic waste have increased due to the significant population increase worldwide. Microbial fuel cells provide a novel solution for the use of waste as fuel for electricity generation. In this investigation, onion waste was used, and managed to generate maximum peaks of 4.459 ± 0.0608 mA and 0.991 ± 0.02 V of current and voltage, respectively. The conductivity values increased rapidly to 179,987 ± 2859 mS/cm, while the optimal pH in which the most significant current was generated was 6968 ± 0.286, and the ◦ Brix values decreased rapidly due to the degradation of organic matter. The microbial fuel cells showed a low internal resistance (154,389 <sup>±</sup> <sup>5228</sup> <sup>Ω</sup>), with a power density of 595.69 <sup>±</sup> 15.05 mW/cm<sup>2</sup> at a current density of 6.02 A/cm<sup>2</sup> ; these values are higher than those reported by other authors in the literature. The diffractogram spectra of the onion debris from FTIR show a decrease in the most intense peaks, compared to the initial ones with the final ones. It was possible to identify the species *Pseudomona eruginosa*, *Acinetobacter bereziniae*, *Stenotrophomonas maltophilia*, and *Yarrowia lipolytica* adhered to the anode electrode at the end of the monitoring using the molecular technique.

**Keywords:** organic waste; generation; electricity; onion; microbial fuel cells
