scholarly journals A Review of Control-Oriented Bioelectrochemical Mathematical Models of Microbial Fuel Cells

Processes ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (5) ◽  
pp. 583 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dipankar Deb ◽  
Ravi Patel ◽  
Valentina E. Balas

A microbial fuel cell (MFC) is a potentially viable renewable energy option which promises effective and commercial harvesting of electrical power by bacterial movement and at the same time also treats wastewater. Microbial fuel cells are complicated devices and therefore research in this field needs interdisciplinary knowledge and involves diverse areas such as biological, chemical, electrical, etc. In recent decades, rapid strides have taken place in fuel cell research and this technology has become more efficient. For effective usage, such devices need advanced control techniques for maintaining a balance between substrate supply, mass, charge, and external load. Most of the research work in this area focuses on experimental work and have been described from the design perspective. Recently, the development in mathematical modeling of such cells has taken place which has provided a few mathematical models. Mathematical modeling provides a better understanding of the operations and the dynamics of MFCs, which will help to develop control and optimization strategies. Control-oriented bio-electrochemical models with mass and charge balance of MFCs facilitate the development of advanced nonlinear controllers. This work reviews the different mathematical models of such cells available in the literature and then presents suitable parametrization to develop control-oriented bio-electrochemical models of three different types of cells with their uncertain parameters.

2007 ◽  
Vol 73 (16) ◽  
pp. 5347-5353 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hanno Richter ◽  
Martin Lanthier ◽  
Kelly P. Nevin ◽  
Derek R. Lovley

ABSTRACT The ability of Pelobacter carbinolicus to oxidize electron donors with electron transfer to the anodes of microbial fuel cells was evaluated because microorganisms closely related to Pelobacter species are generally abundant on the anodes of microbial fuel cells harvesting electricity from aquatic sediments. P. carbinolicus could not produce current in a microbial fuel cell with electron donors which support Fe(III) oxide reduction by this organism. Current was produced using a coculture of P. carbinolicus and Geobacter sulfurreducens with ethanol as the fuel. Ethanol consumption was associated with the transitory accumulation of acetate and hydrogen. G. sulfurreducens alone could not metabolize ethanol, suggesting that P. carbinolicus grew in the fuel cell by converting ethanol to hydrogen and acetate, which G. sulfurreducens oxidized with electron transfer to the anode. Up to 83% of the electrons available in ethanol were recovered as electricity and in the metabolic intermediate acetate. Hydrogen consumption by G. sulfurreducens was important for ethanol metabolism by P. carbinolicus. Confocal microscopy and analysis of 16S rRNA genes revealed that half of the cells growing on the anode surface were P. carbinolicus, but there was a nearly equal number of planktonic cells of P. carbinolicus. In contrast, G. sulfurreducens was primarily attached to the anode. P. carbinolicus represents the first Fe(III) oxide-reducing microorganism found to be unable to produce current in a microbial fuel cell, providing the first suggestion that the mechanisms for extracellular electron transfer to Fe(III) oxides and fuel cell anodes may be different.


Author(s):  
Ivan Vasyukov ◽  

Static and dynamic computer models of fuel cells are considered. A static model is determined that most ac-curately reproduces the current-voltage characteristic of a real fuel cell. A method for tuning it according to the experimental I - V characteristic by the least squares method is proposed. A method for its adjustment ac-cording to the experimental I - V characteristic by the method of gradient descent is proposed. A modified elec-trical equivalent circuit of a fuel cell has been developed, which simulates its dynamic response, taking into ac-count the damping effect of eddy currents during operation of a stack of fuel cells on a pulse voltage converter. A method is proposed for determining the parameters of the model from the experimental oscillograms of the current and voltage of the stack. A universal model of a stack of fuel cells in LTspice has been developed, which makes it possible to simulate a dynamic response and, if necessary, simulate a real static I – V characteristic of the stack.


2009 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. J. Sembler ◽  
S. Kumar

The reduction of shipboard airborne emissions has been receiving increased attention due to the desire to improve air quality and reduce the generation of greenhouse gases. The use of a fuel cell could represent an environmentally friendly way for a ship to generate in-port electrical power that would eliminate the need to operate diesel-driven generators or use shore power. This paper includes a brief description of the various types of fuel cells in use today, together with a review of the history of fuel cells in marine applications. In addition, the results of a feasibility study conducted to evaluate the use of a fuel-cell hybrid system to produce shipboard electrical power are presented.


Energies ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (6) ◽  
pp. 1383 ◽  
Author(s):  
Liping Fan ◽  
Junyi Shi ◽  
Tian Gao

Proton exchange membrane is an important factor affecting the power generation capacity and water purification effect of microbial fuel cells. The performance of microbial fuel cells can be improved by modifying the proton exchange membrane by some suitable method. Microbial fuel cells with membranes modified by SiO2/PVDF (polyvinylidene difluoride), sulfonated PVDF and polymerized MMA (methyl methacrylate) electrolyte were tested and their power generation capacity and water purification effect were compared. The experimental results show that the three membrane modification methods can improve the power generation capacity and water purification effect of microbial fuel cells to some extent. Among them, the microbial fuel cell with the polymerized MMA modified membrane showed the best performance, in which the output voltage was 39.52 mV, and the electricity production current density was 18.82 mA/m2, which was 2224% higher than that of microbial fuel cell with the conventional Nafion membrane; and the COD (chemical oxygen demand) removal rate was 54.8%, which was 72.9% higher than that of microbial fuel cell with the conventional Nafion membrane. Modifying the membrane with the polymerized MMA is a very effective way to improve the performance of microbial fuel cells.


2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (12) ◽  
pp. 2384 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gene Drendel ◽  
Elizabeth R. Mathews ◽  
Lucie Semenec ◽  
Ashley E. Franks

Microbial fuel cells present an emerging technology for utilizing the metabolism of microbes to fuel processes including biofuel, energy production, and the bioremediation of environments. The application and design of microbial fuel cells are of interest to a range of disciplines including engineering, material sciences, and microbiology. In addition, these devices present numerous opportunities to improve sustainable practices in different settings, ranging from industrial to domestic. Current research is continuing to further our understanding of how the engineering, design, and microbial aspects of microbial fuel cell systems impact upon their function. As a result, researchers are continuing to expand the range of processes microbial fuel cells can be used for, as well as the efficiency of those applications.


2013 ◽  
Vol 534 ◽  
pp. 76-81 ◽  
Author(s):  
Enas Taha Kasem ◽  
Takuya Tsujiguchi ◽  
Nobuyoshi Nakagawa

Effect of modification of carbon paper with a thin layer of cobalt or gold on the performance of yeast-based microbial fuel cells was investigated. The modification was conducted by depositing Co or Au thin layer with different thickness, 5 nm and 30 nm, using a sputtering technique. The electrode performance was evaluated by measuring the electrode potentials and the fuel cell power output. The Co modification significantly increased the performance of the fuel cell, while the Au modification inhibited the performance. SEM observation indicated that the adhesion density of the yeast cells on the electrode surface was affected by the metals. It was confirmed that the electron transfer took place through the surface confined species at the mediatorless anode.


Author(s):  
Yashen Lin ◽  
Venkatesh Chinde ◽  
Sen Huang

Abstract Stationary fuel cells provide potential opportunities for energy savings when integrated with buildings. Through smart dispatch of both electrical power and heat generated by the fuel cells and managing the building loads, the buildings can achieve more efficient operation. In this paper, we develop an optimal energy dispatch controller to operate a fuel cell-integrated building. The controller leverages the inherent thermal storage and the dispatchable fuel cell to reduce its operating cost and to allow the building to participate in grid services. The proposed controller is implemented on two types of commercial buildings, a large office building and a large hotel, and the effectiveness of the controller is demonstrated through simulations. The results also indicate that the potential saving varies significantly with different system parameters, including season, fuel prices, and equipment sizing, which provide helpful insights for building operators and other stake holders.


2008 ◽  
Vol 8 (8) ◽  
pp. 4132-4134 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tushar Sharma ◽  
A. Leela Mohana Reddy ◽  
T. S. Chandra ◽  
S. Ramaprabhu

Microbial Fuel Cells (MFC) are robust devices capable of taping biological energy, converting sugars into potential sources of energy. Persistent efforts are directed towards increasing power output. However, they have not been researched to the extent of making them competitive with chemical fuel cells. The power generated in a dual-chamber MFC using neutral red (NR) as the electron mediator has been previously shown to be 152.4 mW/m2 at 412.5 mA/m2 of current density. In the present work we show that Pt thin film coated carbon paper as electrodes increase the performance of a microbial fuel cell compared to conventionally employed electrodes. The results obtained using E. coli based microbial fuel cell with methylene blue and neutral red as the electron mediator, potassium ferricyanide in the cathode compartment were systematically studied and the results obtained with Pt thin film coated over carbon paper as electrodes were compared with that of graphite electrodes. Platinum coated carbon electrodes were found to be better over the previously used for microbial fuel cells and at the same time are cheaper than the preferred pure platinum electrodes.


2016 ◽  
Vol 3 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
T. Chailloux ◽  
A. Capitaine ◽  
B. Erable ◽  
G. Pillonnet

AbstractMicrobial fuel cells (MFC’s) are promising energy harvesters to constantly supply energy to sensors deployed in aquatic environments where solar, thermal and vibration sources are inadequate. In order to show the ready-to-use MFC potential as energy scavengers, this paper presents the association of a durable benthic MFC with a few dollars of commercially-available power management units (PMU’s) dedicated to other kinds of harvesters. With 20 cm


2016 ◽  
Vol 2 (5) ◽  
pp. 858-863 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wulin Yang ◽  
Bruce E. Logan

Microbial fuel cell (MFC) cathodes must have high performance and be resistant to water leakage.


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