Issue 8, 2015

Rational design of quinones for high power density biofuel cells

Abstract

Enzymatic fuel cells (EFCs) are devices that can produce electrical energy by enzymatic oxidation of energy-dense fuels (such as glucose). When considering bioanode construction for EFCs, it is desirable to use a system with a low onset potential and high catalytic current density. While these two properties are typically mutually exclusive, merging these two properties will significantly enhance EFC performance. We present the rational design and preparation of an alternative naphthoquinone-based redox polymer hydrogel that is able to facilitate enzymatic glucose oxidation at low oxidation potentials while simultaneously producing high catalytic current densities. When coupled with an enzymatic biocathode, the resulting glucose/O2 EFC possessed an open-circuit potential of 0.864 ± 0.006 V, with an associated maximum current density of 5.4 ± 0.5 mA cm−2. Moreover, the EFC delivered its maximum power density (2.3 ± 0.2 mW cm−2) at a high operational potential of 0.55 V.

Graphical abstract: Rational design of quinones for high power density biofuel cells

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Edge Article
Submitted
27 Apr 2015
Accepted
06 Jun 2015
First published
08 Jun 2015
This article is Open Access

All publication charges for this article have been paid for by the Royal Society of Chemistry
Creative Commons BY-NC license

Chem. Sci., 2015,6, 4867-4875

Rational design of quinones for high power density biofuel cells

R. D. Milton, D. P. Hickey, S. Abdellaoui, K. Lim, F. Wu, B. Tan and S. D. Minteer, Chem. Sci., 2015, 6, 4867 DOI: 10.1039/C5SC01538C

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