Energy Demands of 6G Networks: New Paper Models Synthetic Biology-Based Fuel Cell-Powered Bio-Hybrid Networks as a Sustainable Alternative for Ultra-Dense Small-Cell Base Stations

6G Networks: High-Density Networks Require More Energy and Better Energy Management

      Mobile communication networks are notoriously power-hungry. Future 6G networks will be “a complex ecosystem of densely deployed software and hardware components,” according to a 2023 German whitepaper. This will include the incorporation of AI capabilities. Of specific concern are the energy consumption and energy efficiency of 6G networks.

     Radio access networks (RAN) account for most of the 6G energy requirements, 73% according to the German whitepaper. Power costs account for between 20% and 40% of the operating expenses of network operators. The newer data-heavy networks make lowering energy costs the prime driver of innovation, which was not the case for previous networks. It is simply that higher data consumption means higher energy consumption and higher operational costs. 3G and 4G networks focused more on enhancing user experience through faster speeds and broader coverage. 5G networks began to address energy consumption, but there is much more to be done. Energy efficiency needs to be embedded from the outset.

     According to an article in ICT Networks:

“Despite technological advancements such as improved power amplifiers and faster base station wake-up times, the annual growth in data demand—estimated at around 2.8%—continues to outpace efficiency gains. This imbalance means that even incremental improvements in hardware and software are insufficient to curb overall power usage. For 6G, this reality serves as a wake-up call, pushing standardization bodies like 3GPP and industry leaders to treat energy as a core design constraint.”

     The need for computational power and dense network deployments in more sophisticated modern applications means higher power use is a given. This has created a tension between performance and energy consumption, which needs to be addressed. Autonomous systems and AI processing require ultra-low latency, massive connectivity, and high reliability. There is a need to develop smarter algorithms and hardware optimizations that prioritize efficiency. IOT and smart grids require dense networks that can adapt dynamically, and doing that while maintaining energy efficiency is challenging. Thus, scaling up these 6G networks without much higher energy consumption is a hurdle that must be overcome.

     Emerging solutions include technological innovations across network architecture. The article in ITC Networks gives four strategies: technological innovations, industry and academic collaborations, embedding efficiency from the outset, and reflecting on past efforts to address their energy efficiency failures. Regarding technological innovation, it is noted:

“Strategies such as lean network designs aim to eliminate unnecessary transmissions across time, spatial, and frequency domains, while energy-efficient air interfaces and waveforms are being developed to optimize signal transmission. Additionally, user equipment (UE)-assisted algorithms for power saving, synchronized sleep modes for downlink (DL) and uplink (UL), and dynamic resource allocation are gaining traction. The integration of AI and ML into network operations further enhances efficiency by enabling predictive management of resources, ensuring that energy is used only when and where it is needed.”

     Standardization bodies like 3GPP can play an important role in industry/academic collaborations by setting up frameworks that prioritize efficiency.

“Industry stakeholders focus on practical implementations, such as base station sleep modes and cost-effective infrastructure upgrades, driven by the need to reduce total cost of ownership. Meanwhile, academia explores cutting-edge concepts like novel waveforms and advanced interference management, pushing the boundaries of what’s possible. This synergy ensures a comprehensive approach, embedding energy-conscious principles into every aspect of 6G development.”

     Embedding efficiency from the outset is a firm requirement. However, it may require redesigning some system elements.

     Past efficiency failures involved the inability to predict the level of future data demands. This must be avoided in designing the new networks. Setting up pilot projects and standardization of power-saving protocols will be needed to test 6G networks.

     5G networks incorporated some energy-saving features for both user equipment (UE) and base stations (BSs), but many were added later, after the networks were deployed. 5G energy saving innovations include introducing specific low-power modes during idle times, including idle mode signaling reduction and discontinuous reception (DRX). The other 5G power saving innovations are described below from a Samsung blog article:

“5G introduced both short and long DRX cycles to strike a balance between latency and energy efficiency. Complementing DRX, Discontinuous Transmission (DTX) enables BSs to skip transmissions during periods of low or no traffic, further conserving energy. Additionally, Carrier Aggregation allows for the selective activation or deactivation of secondary carriers, optimizing energy use by ensuring resources are only utilized when necessary. Together, these mechanisms collectively contribute to significant improvements in energy efficiency across 5G networks.”

     Below, they list more power-saving features of later releases of 5G networks.

     Energy and network management for 6G has been deemed “energy performance,” according to an Ericson white paper, and such innovations often require a new generation format.

“Some solutions, such as those related to UE idle-mode functions like system-information broadcast, random-access, and paging can only be changed when a new generation is introduced.”  

“For 6G, we need to ensure that we can benefit, in terms of reduced network energy consumption, from deployment architectures where RAN processing is more centralized.”

     They also note that lean design features have been successful in 5G NR and should be further developed in 6G networks.

“The introduction of lean design in 5G NR, which focuses on minimizing transmissions not related to data transfer, has been a tremendous success enabling large network energy savings due to micro-sleep between transmissions. For 6G, we should continue to build on the lean design success story and do more of what has proven to work well in 5G.”

     As shown below, lean design can be incorporated in the time, space, and frequency domains into new 6G networks.

     They note that the lean design features of 5G NR were very successful and can be further developed in 6G.

 

New Paper Models Synthetic Biology-Based Fuel Cell-Powered Bio-Hybrid Networks as a Sustainable Alternative for Ultra-Dense Small-Cell Base Stations

     A December 2025 paper published in the journal Scientific Reports explores the possibility of synthetic biology-based fuel cell-powered networks as a sustainable alternative for ultra-dense small-cell base stations. As noted in the abstract:

“Simulation results indicate that bio-hybrid systems can achieve reliable energy autonomy, significantly reducing reliance on centralized power grids while simultaneously lowering emissions.”

     Incorporating these biohybrid systems into ultra-dense networks has some security and ethical challenges. These include cyber–physical vulnerabilities and public acceptance. The microbial bioreactors need to be free of tampering concerns.

     AI-driven power balancing is incorporated into these systems. Control and optimization frameworks employ model predictive control, described below:

“Model Predictive Control (MPC) provides an anticipatory mechanism by leveraging system dynamics to optimize inputs such as substrate feeding and storage switching over a finite horizon, making it particularly effective under fluctuating microbial performance and forecasted load conditions. Adaptive neural controllers, including deep recurrent architectures like LSTMs, capture temporal dependencies in bioenergy generation and predict short-term variations, enabling proactive energy balancing. In addition, hybrid rule-based and AI frameworks combine hard-coded safety constraints, such as minimum biofilm health thresholds, with data-driven optimization, ensuring interpretability without sacrificing adaptability.”

     Below are some graphs from the paper that show that the increased energy demands of 6G networks consist of their total transmission and computational needs, which are based on the number of devices.

     As noted in the paper’s conclusions below, these systems are powered by “microbial fuel cells and enzyme-driven energy systems.” However, at present, they only exist as simulations. Field trials and experimental validation will be the next step.

 

 

References:

 

Bio-hybrid 6G networks with synthetic biology-enabled base stations for energy-autonomous telecommunications. Abdulrahman Al Ayidh, Mohammed M. Alammar, Mohamed Abbas, Muneer Parayangat & Abdullah Alharthi. Scientific Reports volume 15, Article number: 43784 (December 15, 2025). Bio-hybrid 6G networks with synthetic biology-enabled base stations for energy-autonomous telecommunications | Scientific Reports

How Will 6G Networks Balance Energy and Innovation? ITC Network. June 6, 2025. ITCnetwork publications

Energy Performance of 6G Radio Access Networks: A once in a decade opportunity. Ericsson. White PaperGFTL-24:001335. November 2024. 6g-energy-performance.pdf

Energy Saving for 6G Network: Part I. July 8, 2025. Hyoungju Ji, Younbum Kim, Hongbo Si, and Aris Papasakellariou. Samsung. Blog. BLOG | Samsung Research

Sustainability of 6G: Ways to Reduce Energy Consumption. Hecker, Artur, Bernardos, Carlos Jesus Gavras, Anastasius Schörner, Karsten Bou Rouphael, Rony AL-Naday, Mays, Lombardo, Chiara, Ghoraishi, Mir. Zenodo. 6G Infrastructure Association. October 24, 2024. Sustainability of 6G: Ways to Reduce Energy Consumption

6G Energy Efficiency and Sustainability. Fraunhoffer IIS. 6G Platform Germany. January 2023. Whitepaper6GSustainability.pdf

From Efficiency to Sustainability: Exploring the Potential of 6G for a Greener Future. Rohit Kumar, Saurav Kumar Gupta, Hwang-Cheng Wang, C. Shyamala Kumari, and Sai Srinivas Vara Prasad Korlam. Sustainability. 2023, 15(23), 16387. November 27, 2023. From Efficiency to Sustainability: Exploring the Potential of 6G for a Greener Future | MDPI