Power-on-paper: Origami-inspired fabrication of 3-D microbial fuel cells

M. Mohammadifar, J. Zhang, I. Yazgan, O. Sadik and S. Choi

Renewable Energy, 2018, vol. 118, issue C, 695-700

Abstract: We demonstrate that fabricating low-cost microbial fuel cells (MFCs) can be done efficiently by using a paper substrate and origami techniques. A 3-D MFC was developed from a 2-D sheet of paper by integrating the anode, reservoir, cation exchange membrane (CEM) and air-cathode. The cell was easily formed by folding the paper along pre-defined creases. The entirely paper-based all-printed MFC developed in this work rapidly generated power with a small amount of bacteria-containing liquid through rapid adsorption and instant attachment of the bacteria cells to the anode. A graphite-polymer composite and graphite ink with activated carbon were readily applicable as novel anodic materials on paper and enhanced performance better than a conventional graphite ink or gold anode. The hydrophobic wax-based CEM was readily built with a commercially available wax printer and using heat to control how deep the wax penetrated the paper. This work will create a novel platform for paper-based power source, stepping toward batch-fabricable flexible papertronics.

Keywords: Paper-based biofuel cells; Microbial fuel cells; Wax-based cation exchange membranes; Papertronics (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2018
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:renene:v:118:y:2018:i:c:p:695-700

DOI: 10.1016/j.renene.2017.11.059

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