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Role of Chitosan Nanotechnology in Biofuel Production
Published in Madan L. Verma, Nanobiotechnology for Sustainable Bioenergy and Biofuel Production, 2020
Meenu Thakur, Rekha Kushwaha, Madan L. Verma
Biofuel cells are cells that can convert biofuel into electricity. There have been extensive research reports on biofuel cells as an alternative and sustainable energy source. These can be further classified into enzyme biofuel cells (EBC) and microbial fuel cells (MBC) depending upon sources of oxidation energy. The EBCs utilized enzymes for harnessing the redox energy into electricity. Due to the expansion of nanotechnology, advanced engineering material such as chitosan has been used for the fabrication of enzymatic biofuel cells. These biofuel cells are inexpensive and renewable sources of energy. Moreover, these involve no emissions like conventional fuels. These properties of biofuel cells make them the most promising candidates for alternative energy sources. Enzymatic biofuel cells are better than MBCs as the former do not require viable cells (Kumar et al. 2018). As glucose is present in every cell, glucose oxidase has been most frequently used for producing more energy and converting it efficiently into electricity. In one recent study, chitosan modified carbon cloth produced 53% of power density (Duong et al. 2019). A low-cost route using chitosan has been employed for the generation of electricity. However, more studies are required to strengthen these biofuel cells.
Nanostructured Materials for Enzymatic Biofuel Cells
Published in Grunwald Peter, Biocatalysis and Nanotechnology, 2017
Enzymatic biofuel cells use enzymes as catalysts to convert the chemical energy of fuels into electricity. Because various nontoxic fuels can be used under moderate conditions, biofuel cells have attracted much attention in recent years as energy sources used near the body. The fuels under consideration are monosaccharides such as glucose and fructose, and alcohols such as ethanol and glycerol. These fuels are oxidized at the anode, and an oxidant such as oxygen is reduced at the cathode. Considering the high intrinsic activity of enzymes, combinations of enzymes and nanostructured materials can enable biofuel cells to power portable devices. Nanostructured materials have a high surface area, and thus, are suitable for immobilizing large amounts of enzymes. However, simply using high-surface-area nanostructured materials with high electron conductivity does not necessarily lead to high power density, as summarized in a review published in 2012 (Tamaki, 2012).
Energy Harvesting Techniques for Industrial Wireless Sensor Networks
Published in V. Çağri Güngör, Gerhard P. Hancke, Industrial Wireless Sensor Networks, 2017
Gurkan Tuna, Vehbi Cagri Gungor, Kayhan Gulez
Using current transformer sources [14] and optical sources [43] are envisaged solutions for high voltage conditions. Several other techniques including motion-based [16], biochemical energy harvesting [17], and biomechanical energy harvesting [17], [11] are currently being developed. In [17], an enzymatic biofuel cell (BFC) is used to convert the chemical energy of glucose and oxygen into electrical energy. The highest theoretical voltage which can be obtained from a glucose oxidase/laccase-based BFC depends on thermodynamics, and is 1V [12]. The maximum power density of a BFC is 0.1-1mW/cm2[27]. Microbial fuel cells [MFCs] can provide power density from less than 1mW/m2 to 6.9W/m2 [48].
Characterization of enzyme immobilized carbon electrode using covalent-entrapment with polypyrrole
Published in Journal of the Chinese Institute of Engineers, 2018
Rauzah Munauwarah, Adama A. Bojang, Ho Shing Wu
Biofuel cells are a class of fuel cells that employ biocatalysts, such as microorganisms or enzymes, to generate electrical energy. Biofuel cells are divided into two groups, namely microbial biofuel cells, which use microorganisms to catalyze the fuel, and enzyme-based or enzymatic biofuel cells (EBFCs), which employ enzymes to catalyze fuel (Minteer, Martin, and Moore 2010). These biofuel cells exhibit two common limitations: limited lifespan and low power density (generally in μW/cm2). Although these cells have limitations, several recent studies have considered biofuel cells as distinct contrivances for several applications, including sensors, drug delivery, medical implants, and microchips. Furthermore, EBFCs can considerably simplify the design of conventional fuel cells because they do not use hydrogen as a fuel. Moreover, enzymes are 1000 times faster than metallic catalysts, and enzymatic fuel cells are more environmentally friendly. Compared with microbial biofuel cells, EBFCs are preferable because the enzyme is easier to control than living bacteria.