Electrophoretically fabricated nickel/nickel oxides as cost effective nanocatalysts for the oxygen reduction reaction in air-cathode microbial fuel cell

Yun Jeong Choi, Hend Omar Mohamed, Sung Gwan Park, Riyam B. Al Mayyahi, Mujahed Al-Dhaifallah, Hegazy Rezk, Xianghao Ren, Hanchao Yu, Kyu Jung Chae*

*Corresponding author for this work

    Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

    38 Scopus citations

    Abstract

    The high cost and limited availability of cathode catalyst materials (most commonly Pt) prevent the large-scale practical application of microbial fuel cells (MFCs). In this study, unique Pt group metal-free (PGM-free) nanocatalysts were fabricated using a simple and cost-effective technique called electrophoretic deposition (EPD) to create a high catalytic oxygen reduction reaction rate (ORR) on the cathode surface of MFCs. Among the tested PGM-free catalysts (Ni, Co, and Cd-based), a maximum power density of 1630.7 mW m−2 was achieved based on nickel nanoparticles. This value was 400% greater than that obtained using a commercial Pt catalyst under the same conditions. This result was due to the uniform deposition of a thin layer of Ni/NiOx nanoparticles on the cathode, which improved electrical conductivity, catalytic activity, and long-term stability while reducing electron transfer resistance. The fabricated PGM-free catalysts significantly improved MFC performance and accelerated ORR induced by the novel layered morphology of metal/metal oxide nanoparticles.

    Original languageEnglish (US)
    Pages (from-to)5960-5970
    Number of pages11
    JournalInternational Journal of Hydrogen Energy
    Volume45
    Issue number10
    DOIs
    StatePublished - Feb 21 2020

    Bibliographical note

    Funding Information:
    This research was funded by Korea Ministry of Environment as “Global Top Project” (Grant No. 2016002190008 ), and in part by the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) funded by the Korea government (MSIT) (Grant No. 2019R1A2C1006356 ).

    Publisher Copyright:
    © 2019 Hydrogen Energy Publications LLC

    Keywords

    • Electrophoretic deposition
    • Metal oxide
    • Microbial fuel cells
    • Nanocatalysts
    • Oxygen reduction reaction
    • Pt-group-metal-free

    ASJC Scopus subject areas

    • Renewable Energy, Sustainability and the Environment
    • Fuel Technology
    • Condensed Matter Physics
    • Energy Engineering and Power Technology

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