• Transactions of the Korean hydrogen and new energy society
• /
• v.24 no.5
• /
• pp.413-420
• /
• 2013

Effect of inherent volatile matters in fuels on electrochemical reactions of anode was investigated for a single direct carbon fuel cell (DCFC). Raw coals used as power source in the DCFC release light gases into the atmosphere under the operating temperature of DCFC ($700^{\circ}C$) by thermal decomposition and only char remained. These exhausted gases change the gas composition around anode and affect the electrochemical oxidation reaction of system. To investigate the effect of produced gases, comparative study was conducted between Indonesian sub-bituminous coal and its char obtained through thermal treatment, carbonizing. Maximum power density of raw coal ($52mW/cm^2$) was appeared higher than that of char ($37mW/cm^2$) because the gases produced from the raw coal during thermal decomposition gave additional positive results to electrochemical reaction of the system. The produced gases from coals were analyzed using TGA and FT-IR. The influence of volatile matters on anodic electrolyteelectrode interface was observed by the equivalent circuit induced from fitting of impedance spectroscopy data.

• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
• /
• v.16 no.4
• /
• pp.507-512
• /
• 2005

When carbon electrode is used as an anode in Li ion battery, passivation film forms on the electrode surface during the initial charge process due to so called Solid-Electrolyte Interphase (SEI). The passivation film formed by solvent decomposition during the initial charge process affects charge/discharge capacity. In this paper, 1 M $LiPF_6,EC:DEC$ (1 : 1, volume ratio) electrolyte with $Li_2CO_3$, at various temperatures, the electrochemical characteristics of passivation film formed on Kawasaki Mesophase Fine Carbon electrode surface were investigated by using chronopotentiometry, cyclic voltammetry, and impedance spectroscopy. Experimental observations indicated that as solvent decomposition occurred, the decomposition voltage was strongly dependent on ionic conductivity, which was low in the process at low temperature. The impedance of passivation film formed during the initial charge process, were dependent on the temperature.

• Journal of Korean Society of Environmental Engineers
• /
• v.37 no.9
• /
• pp.499-504
• /
• 2015

The composite anodes of expanded graphite (EG) and multiwall carbon nanotube (MWCNT) for microbial fuel cells were fabricated by using coal tar pitch (CTP) binder containing nickel (Ni), and the effect of the anodes with the binders on the performance of the MFCs were examined in a batch reactor. During the start-up of the MFCs, quick increase in voltage was observed after a short lag phase time, indicating that the CTP binder is biocompatible. The biomass attatched on the anode surface was more at higher Ni content in the binder, as well as at smaller amount of CTP binder for the fabrication of the anode. The internal resistance of the MFC was smaller for the anode with more biomass. Based on the results, the ideal combination of CTP and Ni for the CTP binder for anode was 2 g and 0.2 g, respectively. The maximum power density was $731.8mW/m^2$, which was higher 23.7% than the anode with Nafion binder as control. The CTP binder containing Ni for the fabrication of anode is a good alternative in terms of performance and economics of MFCs.

• Transactions of the Korean hydrogen and new energy society
• /
• v.19 no.6
• /
• pp.529-536
• /
• 2008

Cyanobacteria Synechocystis PCC 6803 or the extracted thylakoid membrane from this strain was appled to photosynthetic bio-electrochemical fuel cell(PBEFC) for the production of hydrogen under the illumination of 48Klux using halogen lamp. PBEFC was composed of anode, cathode and membrane between them. Electrode material was carbon paper while electron mediator and receptor were added phenazine methosulfate(PMS) and potassium ferricyanide respectively. When water and 50 mM tricine buffer and $300{\mu}M$ PMS were added to the anode under the light condition, PBEFC produced the current density $4.4{\times}10^{-5}\;mA/cm^2$, $1.4{\times}10^{-4}\;mA/cm^2$ and $2.4{\times}10^{-4}\;mA/cm^2$, respectively. And the addition of the thylakoid membrane to the system increased current density to $1.3{\times}10^{-3}\;mA/cm^2$. Two times increase of the thylakoid membrane into the anode doubled the current density to $2.6{\times}10^{-3}\;mA/cm^2$. But the current density was not increased proportionally to the amount of thylakoid membrane increased. The system was unstable to measure the electricity output due to the foam production in the anode. Addition of triton X-100 and tween 80 stabilized the system to measure the electricity output but the current density was not increased higher than $8.4{\times}10^{-4}\;mA/cm^2$ and $2.3{\times}10^{-3}\;mA/cm^2$. When the thylakoid membrane was substituted to Synechocystis PCC 6803 cells of four-day culture which has chlorophyll contents $20.5{\mu}g/m{\ell}$, maximum current density was $1.3{\times}10^{-3}\;mA/cm^2$ with $1\;k{\Omega}$ resistance.

• Korean Chemical Engineering Research
• /
• v.46 no.4
• /
• pp.697-700
• /
• 2008

The underpotential deposited Bi on Pt($Bi_{upd}/Pt$) anode for formic acid fuel cells (FAFCs) was developed using multi-layered preparation method for better electrocatalytic utilization of Pt. The electron probe microanalysis (EPMA) result indicated that $Bi_{upd}$ remains through the catalyst layer during stability test. In performance test, the multilayered $Bi_{upd}$ on Pt black showed superior performance by approximately 200 mV at current density of $150mA/cm^2$ compared with PtRu black anode catalyst. Based on preparation condition of $Bi_{upd}/Pt$ black, carbon supported $Bi_{upd}/Pt/C$ electrode was prepared and it showed enhanced performance and stability.

• Transactions on Electrical and Electronic Materials
• /
• v.15 no.5
• /
• pp.265-269
• /
• 2014

Carbon nanofiber electrode has been fabricated for energy storage systems by the electrospinning of SU-8 precursor and subsequent pyrolysis. Various parameters including the applied voltage, the distance between syringe tip and target collector and the flow rate of the polymer affect the diameter of SU-8 electrospun nanofibers. Shrinkage during pyrolysis decreases the fiber diameter. As the pyrolysis temperature increases, the resistivity decreases dramatically. Low resistivity is one of the important characteristics of the electrodes of an energy storage device. Given the advantages of carbon nanofibers having high external surface area, electrical conductivity, and lithium intercalation ability, SU-8 derived carbon nanofibers were applied to the anode of a full lithium ion cell. In this paper, we studied the physical properties of carbon fiber electrode by scanning transmission microscopy, thermal gravimetric analysis, and four-point probe. The electrochemical characteristics of the electrode were investigated by cyclic voltammogram and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy plots.

• Journal of Korean Society of Water and Wastewater
• /
• v.26 no.3
• /
• pp.355-360
• /
• 2012

The characteristics of power generation were investigated by changing the electrical conductivity from 10 to 40mS/cm using air-cathode microbial fuel cell, which had graphite fiber fabric(GFF) anode. There were three kinds of cathode used: one was carbon cloth cathode coated with Pt, another was carbon nanotube(CNT) cathode with non-precious catalyst of Fe-Cu-Mn, and the other was carbon nanotube(CNT) cathode without any catalyst. When it was operated in batch mode, power density of 1369.5mW/$m^2$ was achieved at conductivity of 20mS/cm. Power density from MFC with CNT cathode coated with multi-catalyst of Fe-Cu-Mn was shown about 985.55mW/$m^2$, which was 75.1% compared the power density of carbon cloth coated with Pt. This meant that CNT cathode coated with multi-catalyst of Fe-Cu-Mn could be an alternative of carbon cloth cathode.

• Journal of Electrochemical Science and Technology
• /
• v.9 no.3
• /
• pp.163-168
• /
• 2018

Biomass waste-derived carbon is an attractive alternative with environmental benignity to obtain carbon material. In this study, we prepare carbon from coffee grounds as a biomass precursor using a simple, inexpensive, and environmentally friendly method through physical activation using only steam. The coffee-derived carbon, having a micropore-rich structure and a low extent of graphitization of disordered carbon, is developed and directly applied to lithium-ion battery anode material. Compared with the introduction of the Ketjenblack (KB) conducting agent (i.e., coffee-derived carbon with KB), the coffee-derived carbon itself achieves a reversible capacity of ~200 mAh/g (0.54 lithium per 6 carbons) at a current density of 100 mA/g after 100 cycles, along with excellent cycle stability. The origin of highly reversible lithium storage is attributed to the consistent diffusion-controlled intercalation/de-intercalation reaction in cycle life, which suggests that the bulk diffusion of lithium is favorable in the coffee-derived carbon itself, in the absence of a conducting agent. This study presents the preparation of carbon material through physical activation without the use of chemical activation agents and demonstrates an application of coffee-derived carbon in energy storage devices.

• Journal of Powder Materials
• /
• v.12 no.2 s.49
• /
• pp.117-121
• /
• 2005

Platinum catalysts for the DMFC (Direct Methanol Fuel Cell) were impregnated on several carbon supports and their catalytic activities were evaluated with cyclic voltammograms of methanol electro-oxidation. To increase the activities of the Pt/C catalyst, carbon supports with high electric conductivity such as mesoporous carbon, carbon nanofiber, and carbon nanotube were employed. The Pt/e-CNF (etched carbon nanofiber) catalyst showed higher maximum current density of $70 mA cm^{-2}$ and lower on-set voltage of 0.54 V vs. NHE than the Pt/Vulcan XC-72 in methanol oxidation. Although the carbon named by CNT (carbon nanotube) series turned out to have larger BET surface area than the carbon named by CNF (carbon nanofiber) series, the Pt catalysts supported on the CNT series were less active than those on the CNF series due to their lower electric conductivity and lower availability of pores for Pt loading. Considering that the BET surface area and electric conductivity of the e-CNF were similar to those of the Vulcan XC-72, smaller Pt particle size of the Pt/e-CNF catalyst and stronger metal-support interaction were believed to be the main reason for its higher catalytic activity.

• Clean Technology
• /
• v.23 no.3
• /
• pp.308-313
• /
• 2017

In this study, we investigated the electrocatalytic effects of the N and O co-doping of Graphite Felt (GF) electrode for the vanadium redox flow battery (VRFB) at the cathode and the anode reaction, respectively. The electrodes were prepared by chemical vapor deposition (CVD) with $NH_3-O_2$ at 773 K, and its effects were compared with an electrode prepared by an O doping treatment. The surface morphology and chemical composition of the electrodes were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The electrocatalytic properties of these electrodes were characterized in a VRFB single cell comparing the efficiencies and performance of the electrodes at the cathode, anode, and single cell level. The results exhibited about 2% higher voltage and energy efficiencies on the N-O-GF than the O-GF electrode. It was found that the N and O co-doping was particularly effective in the enhancement of the reduction-oxidation reaction at the anode.