Carbon nanotube-coated stainless steel mesh for enhanced oxygen reduction in biocathode microbial fuel cells

Microbial fuel cells (MFCs) generate low-pollution power by feeding organic matter to bacteria; MFC applications have become crucial for energy recovery and environmental protection. The electrode materials of any MFC affect its power generation capacity. In this research, nine single-chamber MFCs with various electrode configurations were investigated and compared with each other. A fabrication process for carbon-based electrode coatings was proposed, and Escherichia coli HB101 was used in the studied MFC system. The results show that applying a coat of either graphene or carbon nanotubes (CNTs) to a stainless steel mesh electrode can improve the power density and reduce the internal resistance of an MFC system. Using the proposed surface modification method, CNTs and graphene used for anodic and cathodic modification can increase power generation by approximately 3–7 and 1.5–4.5 times, respectively. Remarkably, compared to a standard MFC with an untreated anode, the internal resistances of MFCs with CNTs- and graphene-modified anodes were reduced to 18 and 30% of standard internal resistance. Measurements of the nine systems we studied clearly presented the performance levels of CNTs and graphene applied as surface modification of stainless steel mesh electrodes.

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Stainless steel mesh supported nitrogen-doped carbon nanofibers for binder-free cathode in microbial fuel cells

Biosensors and Bioelectronics ◽

10.1016/j.bios.2011.10.049 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 34 (1) ◽

pp. 282-285 ◽

Cited By ~ 44

Author(s):

Shuiliang Chen ◽

Yu Chen ◽

Guanghua He ◽

Shuijian He ◽

Uwe Schröder ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Stainless Steel ◽

Fuel Cells ◽

Carbon Nanofibers ◽

Microbial Fuel Cells ◽

Stainless Steel Mesh ◽

Nitrogen Doped ◽

Steel Mesh ◽

Binder Free ◽

Nitrogen Doped Carbon

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Titanium dioxide thin film-modified stainless steel mesh for enhanced current-generation in microbial fuel cells

Chemical Engineering Journal ◽

10.1016/j.cej.2017.09.132 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 333 ◽

pp. 260-267 ◽

Cited By ~ 20

Author(s):

Xianbin Ying ◽

Dongsheng Shen ◽

Meizhen Wang ◽

Huajun Feng ◽

Yuan Gu ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Thin Film ◽

Stainless Steel ◽

Titanium Dioxide ◽

Fuel Cells ◽

Microbial Fuel Cells ◽

Stainless Steel Mesh ◽

Current Generation ◽

Steel Mesh

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Polyelectrolyte–single wall carbon nanotube composite as an effective cathode catalyst for air-cathode microbial fuel cells

Water Science & Technology ◽

10.2166/wst.2014.416 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 70 (10) ◽

pp. 1610-1616 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Huanan Wu ◽

Min Lu ◽

Lin Guo ◽

Leonard Guan Hong Bay ◽

Zheng Zhang ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Fuel Cells ◽

Carbon Nanotube ◽

Oxygen Reduction ◽

Microbial Fuel Cells ◽

Reduction Process ◽

Air Cathode ◽

Single Wall Carbon Nanotube ◽

Single Wall Carbon ◽

Cathode Catalysts ◽

Metal Free

Polyelectrolyte–single wall carbon nanotube (SCNT) composites are prepared by a solution-based method and used as metal-free cathode catalysts for oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) in air-cathode microbial fuel cells (MFCs). In this study, two types of polyelectrolytes, polydiallyldimethylammonium chloride (PDDA) and poly[bis(2-chloroethyl)ether-alt-1,3-bis[3-(dimethylamino)propyl]urea] (PEPU) are applied to decorate the SCNTs and the resulting catalysts exhibit remarkable catalytic ability toward ORR in MFC applications. The enhanced catalytic ability could be attributed to the positively charged quaternary ammonium sites of polyelectrolytes, which increase the oxygen affinity of SCNTs and reduce activation energy in the oxygen reduction process. It is also found that PEPU–SCNT composite-based MFCs show efficient performance with maximum power density of 270.1 mW m−2, comparable to MFCs with the benchmark Pt/C catalyst (375.3 mW m−2), while PDDA–SCNT composite-based MFCs produce 188.9 mW m−2. These results indicate that PEPU–SCNT and PDDA–SCNT catalysts are promising candidates as metal-free cathode catalysts for ORR in MFCs and could facilitate MFC scaling up and commercialization.

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