High power generation by a membraneless single chamber microbial fuel cell (SCMFC) using enzymatic bilirubin oxidase (BOx) air-breathing cathode

Santoro, Carlo; Babanova, Sofia; Atanassov, Plamen; Li, Baikun; Ieropoulos, Ioannis; Cristiani, Pierangela

Abstract

In this work, for the first time, we showed the successful utilization of enzymatic-based (bilirubin oxidase, BOx) air-breathing gas-diffusion (ABGD-BOx) cathode in membraneless single chamber microbial fuel cells (SCMFCs). At pH range of 7.2-7.5, the cathode open circuit potentials (OCPs) achieved were in the range of 490-535 mV (vs. sat. Ag/AgCl) with the anodic OCP being between -495 mV and -530 mV (vs. sat. Ag/AgCl). The highest overall open circuit voltage (OCV) of the SCMFCs (1.05 V) fed with phosphate buffer solution (PBS) and sodium acetate (NaOAc) was achieved after 12-24 hour of operation. Polarization curves of the ABGD-BOx cathode showed lower overpotential with an advantage of up to 250 mV compared to the traditional platinum Pt-based cathode, and possessed a great potential to replace the noble metal-based cathodes in MFCs. High power generation of 2 W m-2 (200 μW cm-2, referred to cathode geometric surface area) was achieved in SCMFCs with the ABGD-BOx cathode, which was the highest power generation reported for SCMFCs with a volume greater than 100 mL. © 2013, The Electrochemical Society, Inc. All rights reserved.

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Jan 1, 2013
• Online Publication Date: Aug 16, 2013
• Publication Date: Aug 16, 2013
• Deposit Date: Nov 20, 2020
• Journal: Journal of the Electrochemical Society
• Print ISSN: 0013-4651
• Electronic ISSN: 1945-7111
• Publisher: Electrochemical Society
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 160
• Issue: 10
• Pages: 720-726
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1149/2.058310jes
• Keywords: membraneless single chamber microbial fuel cells, enzymatic-based air-breathing gas-diffusion cathode
• Public URL: https://uwe-repository.worktribe.com/output/6804531