Miniature microbial fuel cells have recently drawn lots of attention as portable power generation devices due to their short startup time and environmentally-friendly process which could be used for powering small int...Miniature microbial fuel cells have recently drawn lots of attention as portable power generation devices due to their short startup time and environmentally-friendly process which could be used for powering small integrated biosensors. We designed and fabricated a microbial fuel cell in a microfluidic platform. The device was made in polydimethylsiloxane with a volume of 4 μL and consisted of two carbon cloth electrodes and proton exchange membrane. Shewanella Oneidensis MR-1 was chosen to be the electrogenic bacterial strain and inoculated into the anode chamber. Ferricyanide was used as the catholyte and pumped into the cathode chamber at a constant flow rate during the experiment. The mi- niature microbial fuel cell generated a maximum current of 2.59 μA and had a significantly short startup time.展开更多
The influence of the nanostructure of the conductive network composite(CNC)on the performance of ionic electroactive polymer(IEAP)actuators has been examined in detail.We have studied IEAP actuators consisting of CNCs...The influence of the nanostructure of the conductive network composite(CNC)on the performance of ionic electroactive polymer(IEAP)actuators has been examined in detail.We have studied IEAP actuators consisting of CNCs with different volume densities of gold nanoparticles(AuNPs)and the polymer network.Varying the concentration of AuNPs in CNC thin films was used as a means to control the CNC-ion interfacial area and the electrical resistance of the CNC,with minimum effect on the mechanical properties of the actuator.Increasing the interfacial area and reducing the resistance,while maintaining porosity of the composite,provide means for generating motion of more ions into the CNC at a significantly shorter time,which results in generation of strain at a faster rate.We have demonstrated that cationic strain in actuators with denser CNCs is improved by more than 460%.Denser CNC structures have larger interfacial areas,which results in attraction/repulsion of more ions in a shorter time,thus generation of a larger mechanical strain at a faster rate.Also,time-dependent response to a square-wave voltage was improved by increasing the AuNP concentration in the CNC.Under 0.1 Hz frequency,the cationic strain was increased by 64%when the AuNP concentration was increased from 4 to 20 ppm.展开更多
文摘Miniature microbial fuel cells have recently drawn lots of attention as portable power generation devices due to their short startup time and environmentally-friendly process which could be used for powering small integrated biosensors. We designed and fabricated a microbial fuel cell in a microfluidic platform. The device was made in polydimethylsiloxane with a volume of 4 μL and consisted of two carbon cloth electrodes and proton exchange membrane. Shewanella Oneidensis MR-1 was chosen to be the electrogenic bacterial strain and inoculated into the anode chamber. Ferricyanide was used as the catholyte and pumped into the cathode chamber at a constant flow rate during the experiment. The mi- niature microbial fuel cell generated a maximum current of 2.59 μA and had a significantly short startup time.
基金supported in part by the US Army Research Office under Grant No.W911NF-07-1-0452 Ionic Liquids in Electro-Active Devices(ILEAD)MURI.
文摘The influence of the nanostructure of the conductive network composite(CNC)on the performance of ionic electroactive polymer(IEAP)actuators has been examined in detail.We have studied IEAP actuators consisting of CNCs with different volume densities of gold nanoparticles(AuNPs)and the polymer network.Varying the concentration of AuNPs in CNC thin films was used as a means to control the CNC-ion interfacial area and the electrical resistance of the CNC,with minimum effect on the mechanical properties of the actuator.Increasing the interfacial area and reducing the resistance,while maintaining porosity of the composite,provide means for generating motion of more ions into the CNC at a significantly shorter time,which results in generation of strain at a faster rate.We have demonstrated that cationic strain in actuators with denser CNCs is improved by more than 460%.Denser CNC structures have larger interfacial areas,which results in attraction/repulsion of more ions in a shorter time,thus generation of a larger mechanical strain at a faster rate.Also,time-dependent response to a square-wave voltage was improved by increasing the AuNP concentration in the CNC.Under 0.1 Hz frequency,the cationic strain was increased by 64%when the AuNP concentration was increased from 4 to 20 ppm.
