Electrode development for microbial fuel cells with electrochemical systems modeling

电化学系统涉及离子导体(如盐溶液)和电子导体(如金属)之间的电荷转移。许多系统和现象在电化学的基础上运行，包括燃料电池和电池，以及金属的电积和腐蚀。这项研究集中在其中的两个电化学系统，燃料电池和腐蚀。 此前，我开发了一种系统，可以从酵母和藻类中产生生物乙醇、生物质和电力。由于藻类利用酵母菌产生的二氧化碳，该系统排放的二氧化碳为零。为了产生电能，需要设计与微生物相互作用的特殊电极。然而，这些电极过去通常是由黄金或脆弱的碳制成的。在这项研究中，我打算使用廉价的钢材来开发电极，这些钢材上涂有含有导电物质的聚合物。这些电极要用于工业规模的发酵式燃料电池，这些涂层必须坚韧，这项研究将检查不同类型的聚合物和金属组合的使用，以实现这一点。 这项研究的第二部分致力于开发一个用于模拟电化学系统的数学工具。这项工作的最终目标是产生一个模型，可以用来模拟多种电化学系统，如燃料电池或腐蚀电池。这一工具将在系统设计和预测基础设施(如桥梁)或设备(如蒸馏塔和泵)的寿命方面很有用。

Electrochemical systems involve transfer of charge between ionic conductors, such as salt solutions, and electronic conductors, such as metals. Many systems and phenomena operate on an electrochemical basis including, fuel cells and batteries, and electro-winning of metals and corrosion. This research is focused on two of these electrochemical systems, fuel cells and corrosion. Previously, I have developed a system to generate bioethanol, biomass and electricity from yeast and algae. This system emits zero levels of carbon since carbon dioxide produced by the yeast is used by the algae. To generate electrical power, special electrodes need to be designed that interact with the microorganisms. However, these electrodes have in the past been usually made from gold or fragile carbon. In this research I intend on developing electrodes using inexpensive steels coated with polymers containing electrically conductive substances. For these electrodes to be used in an industrial scale fermentation-style fuel cell these coatings must be tenacious and this research will examine the use of different types of polymers and metal combinations to make this possible. The second part of this research is a concerned with developing a mathematical tool for the simulation of electrochemical systems. The ultimate goal of this work is to produce a model that can be used to simulate a multitude of electrochemical systems, such as a fuel cell or a corrosion cell. This tool will be useful in the design of systems and in predicting the life of infrastructure, such as bridges, or equipment such as distillation columns and pumps.