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Barakat NAM, Ali RH, Kim HY, Nassar MM, Fadali OA, Tolba GMK, Moustafa HM, Ali MA. Carbon Nanofibers-Sheathed Graphite Rod Anode and Hydrophobic Cathode for Improved Performance Industrial Wastewater-Driven Microbial Fuel Cells. NANOMATERIALS (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2022; 12:3961. [PMID: 36432248 PMCID: PMC9696571 DOI: 10.3390/nano12223961] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/11/2022] [Revised: 10/30/2022] [Accepted: 11/05/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
Carbon nanofiber-decorated graphite rods are introduced as effective and low-cost anodes for industrial wastewater-driven microbial fuel cells. Carbon nanofiber deposition on the surface of the graphite rods could be performed by the electrospinning of polyacrylonitrile/N,N-Dimethylformamide solution using the rod as nanofiber collector, which was calcined under inert atmosphere. The experimental results indicated that at 10 min electrospinning time, the proposed graphite anode demonstrates very good performance compared to the commercial anodes. Typically, the generated power density from sugarcane industry wastewater-driven air cathode microbial fuel cells were 13 ± 0.3, 23 ± 0.7, 43 ± 1.3, and 185 ± 7.4 mW/m2 using carbon paper, carbon felt, carbon cloth, and graphite rod coated by 10-min electrospinning time carbon nanofibers anodes, respectively. The distinct performance of the proposed anode came from creating 3D carbon nanofiber layer filled with the biocatalyst. Moreover, to annihilate the internal cell resistance, a membrane-less cell was assembled by utilizing a poly(vinylidene fluoride) electrospun nanofiber layer-coated cathode. This novel strategy inspired a highly hydrophobic layer on the cathode surface, preventing water leakage to avoid utilizing the membrane. However, in both anode and cathode modifications, the electrospinning time should be optimized. The best results were obtained at 5 and 10 min for the cathode and anode, respectively.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nasser A. M. Barakat
- Chemical Engineering Department, Faculty of Engineering, Minia University, Minya 61519, Egypt
| | - Rasha H. Ali
- Chemical Engineering Department, Faculty of Engineering, Minia University, Minya 61519, Egypt
| | - Hak Yong Kim
- Department of Nano Convergence Engineering, Jeonbuk National University, Jeonju 54896, Korea
- Department of Organic Materials and Fiber Engineering, Jeonbuk National University, Jeonju 54896, Korea
| | - Mamdouh M. Nassar
- Chemical Engineering Department, Faculty of Engineering, Minia University, Minya 61519, Egypt
| | - Olfat A. Fadali
- Chemical Engineering Department, Faculty of Engineering, Minia University, Minya 61519, Egypt
| | - Gehan M. K. Tolba
- Chemical Engineering Department, Faculty of Engineering, Minia University, Minya 61519, Egypt
| | - Hager M. Moustafa
- Chemical Engineering Department, Faculty of Engineering, Minia University, Minya 61519, Egypt
| | - Marwa A. Ali
- Chemical Engineering Department, Faculty of Engineering, Minia University, Minya 61519, Egypt
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Amen MT, Kim HY, Barakat NAM. Three-dimensional carbon nanofiber-based anode for high generated current and power from air-cathode micro-sized MFC. RSC Adv 2022; 12:15486-15492. [PMID: 35685185 PMCID: PMC9125404 DOI: 10.1039/d2ra00591c] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/27/2022] [Accepted: 05/07/2022] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
It is agreed that low mass transfer and poor reaction kinetics are the main reasons behind the low power density of microbial fuel cells (MFCs). Microscale MFCs can introduce a marvelous solution for the mass transfer dilemma. However, the volumetric power density and coulombic efficiency of present microscale MFCs are still limited due to the poor reaction kinetics. The size, shape, chemical properties and material of the electrodes are essential parameters controlling the reaction kinetics. In this study, a 3D carbon nanofiber disk is introduced as an effective anode for a single-chamber air-cathode micro-sized MFC as it improved the reaction kinetics. The proposed electrode was fabricated by a judicious combination of the electrospinning technique and thermal treatment. Owing to the intercalation of the microorganisms in the carbon nanofiber skeleton, compared to many previous reports, high power and current densities of 8.1 Wm-2 and 44.9 Am-2, respectively, were obtained from the 19.6 μL single-chamber air-cathode MFC. However, the thickness of the carbon nanofiber layer has to be optimized by adjusting the electrospinning time. The power density observed from a 10 min electrospinning time-based anode outperformed the 5- and 20 min ones by 1.5 and 2 times, respectively.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mohamed Taha Amen
- Department of Nano Convergence Engineering, Jeonbuk National University Jeonju 54896 Republic of South Korea .,Microbiology Department, Faculty of Agriculture, Zagazig University Zagazig 44511 Egypt
| | - Hak Yong Kim
- Department of Nano Convergence Engineering, Jeonbuk National University Jeonju 54896 Republic of South Korea .,Department of Organic Materials and Fiber Engineering, Jeonbuk National University Jeonju 54896 Republic of Korea
| | - Nasser A M Barakat
- Department of Organic Materials and Fiber Engineering, Jeonbuk National University Jeonju 54896 Republic of Korea.,Chemical Engineering Department, Faculty of Engineering, Minia University El-Minia 61519 Egypt +20862327684 +20862324008
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Amen MT, Yasin AS, Hegazy MI, Jamal MAHM, Hong ST, Barakat NAM. Rainwater-driven microbial fuel cells for power generation in remote areas. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2021; 8:210996. [PMID: 34849243 PMCID: PMC8611341 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.210996] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/09/2021] [Accepted: 10/29/2021] [Indexed: 05/06/2023]
Abstract
The possibility of using rainwater as a sustainable anolyte in an air-cathode microbial fuel cell (MFC) is investigated in this study. The results indicate that the proposed MFC can work within a wide temperature range (from 0 to 30°C) and under aerobic or anaerobic conditions. However, the rainwater season has a distinct impact. Under anaerobic conditions, the summer rainwater achieves a promised open circuit potential (OCP) of 553 ± 2 mV without addition of nutrients at the ambient temperature, while addition of nutrients leads to an increase in the cell voltage to 763 ± 3 and 588 ± 2 mV at 30°C and ambient temperature, respectively. The maximum OCP for the winter rainwater (492 ± 1.5 mV) is obtained when the reactor is exposed to the air (aerobic conditions) at ambient temperature. Furthermore, the winter rainwater MFC generates a maximum power output of 7 ± 0.1 mWm-2 at a corresponding current density value of 44 ± 0.7 mAm-2 at 30°C. While, at the ambient temperature, the maximum output power is obtained with the summer rainwater (7.2 ± 0.1 mWm-2 at 26 ± 0.5 mAm-2). Moreover, investigation of the bacterial diversity indicates that Lactobacillus spp. is the dominant electroactive genus in the summer rainwater, while in the winter rainwater, Staphylococcus spp. is the main electroactive bacteria. The cyclic voltammetry analysis confirms that the electrons are delivered directly from the bacterial biofilm to the anode surface and without mediators. Overall, this study opens a new avenue for using a novel sustainable type of MFC derived from rainwater.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mohamed Taha Amen
- Bio-Nanosystem Engineering Department, Chonbuk National University, Jeonju 561-756, Republic of South Korea
- Microbiology Department, Faculty of Agriculture, Zagazig University, Zagazig, Egypt
| | - Ahmed S. Yasin
- Bio-Nanosystem Engineering Department, Chonbuk National University, Jeonju 561-756, Republic of South Korea
| | - Mohamed I. Hegazy
- Microbiology Department, Faculty of Agriculture, Zagazig University, Zagazig, Egypt
| | - Mohammad Abu Hena Mostafa Jamal
- Department of Biomedical Sciences and Institute for Medical Science, Chonbuk National University Medical School, Jeonju, Chonbuk, Korea
| | - Seong-Tshool Hong
- Department of Biomedical Sciences and Institute for Medical Science, Chonbuk National University Medical School, Jeonju, Chonbuk, Korea
| | - Nasser A. M. Barakat
- Chemical Engineering Department, Faculty of Engineering, Minia University, Minia, Egypt
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