79 research outputs found

    ZnO@C (core@shell) microspheres derived from spent coffee grounds as applicable non-precious electrode material for DMFCs

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    Although numerous reports have introduced non precious electrocatalysts for methanol oxidation, most of those studies did not consider the corresponding high onset potential which restricts utilization in real fuel cells. In this study, an −90 mV [vs. Ag/AgCl] onset potential non-precious electrocatalyst is introduced as an applicable anode material for the direct methanol fuel cells. Moreover, the proposed material was prepared from a cheap and abundantly existing resource; the spent coffee grounds. Typically, the spent coffee grounds were facilely converted to core@shell (ZnO@C) microspheres through a two-step approach, involving chemical activation and a subsequent calcination at temperature of 700 °C. Activation of the carbon derived from the spent coffee grounds was performed with ZnCl2 which acts as pore-forming agent as well as a precursor for the ZnO. The structure and morphology were characterized by (XRD), (SEM), and (TEM) analyses while the electrochemical characterizations was evaluated by cyclic voltammetry (CV) technique. Besides the comparatively very low onset potential, the introduced microspheres exhibited relatively high current density; 17 mA/cm2. Overall, based on the advantages of the green source of carbon and the good electrocatalytic activity, the spent coffee grounds-derived carbon can be considered a promise anode material for the DMFCs.This Publication was made possible by NPRP grant # [8-1344-1-246] from the Qatar National Research Fund (a member of Qatar Foundation). The findings achieved herein are solely the responsibility of authors

    Criterion for polynomial solutions to a class of linear differential equation of second order

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    We consider the differential equations y''=\lambda_0(x)y'+s_0(x)y, where \lambda_0(x), s_0(x) are C^{\infty}-functions. We prove (i) if the differential equation, has a polynomial solution of degree n >0, then \delta_n=\lambda_n s_{n-1}-\lambda_{n-1}s_n=0, where \lambda_{n}= \lambda_{n-1}^\prime+s_{n-1}+\lambda_0\lambda_{n-1}\hbox{and}\quad s_{n}=s_{n-1}^\prime+s_0\lambda_{k-1},\quad n=1,2,.... Conversely (ii) if \lambda_n\lambda_{n-1}\ne 0 and \delta_n=0, then the differential equation has a polynomial solution of degree at most n. We show that the classical differential equations of Laguerre, Hermite, Legendre, Jacobi, Chebyshev (first and second kind), Gegenbauer, and the Hypergeometric type, etc, obey this criterion. Further, we find the polynomial solutions for the generalized Hermite, Laguerre, Legendre and Chebyshev differential equations.Comment: 12 page

    Synergistic advancements in sewage-driven microbial fuel cells: novel carbon nanotube cathodes and biomass-derived anodes for efficient renewable energy generation and wastewater treatment

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    Microbial fuel cells (MFCs) offer a dual solution of generating electrical energy from organic pollutants-laden wastewater while treating it. This study focuses on enhancing MFC performance through innovative electrode design. Three-dimensional (3D) anodes, created from corncobs and mango seeds via controlled graphitization, achieved remarkable power densities. The newly developed electrode configurations were evaluated within sewage wastewater-driven MFCs without the introduction of external microorganisms or prior treatment of the wastewater. At 1,000°C and 1,100°C graphitization temperatures, corncob and mango seed anodes produced 1,963 and 2,171 mW/m2, respectively, nearly 20 times higher than conventional carbon cloth and paper anodes. An advanced cathode composed of an activated carbon-carbon nanotube composite was introduced, rivaling expensive platinum-based cathodes. By optimizing the thermal treatment temperature and carbon nanotube content of the proposed cathode, comparable or superior performance to standard Pt/C commercial cathodes was achieved. Specifically, MFCs assembled with corncob anode with the proposed and standard Pt/C cathodes reached power densities of 1,963.1 and 2,178.6 mW/m2, respectively. Similarly, when utilizing graphitized mango seeds at 1,100°C, power densities of 2,171 and 2,151 mW/m2 were achieved for the new and standard cathodes, respectively. Furthermore, in continuous operation with a flow rate of 2 L/h, impressive chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal rates of 77% and 85% were achieved with corncob and mango seed anodes, respectively. This work highlights the significance of electrode design for enhancing MFC efficiency in electricity generation and wastewater treatment

    Parameter induction in continuous univariate distributions: Well-established G families

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    Immobilized Non-Precious Electrocatalysts for Advanced Energy Devices

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    The expected near depletion of fossil fuels encourages both the research and industrial communities to focus their efforts to find effective and sustainable alternatives [...

    Effective NiMn Nanoparticles-Functionalized Carbon Felt as an Effective Anode for Direct Urea Fuel Cells

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    The internal resistances of fuel cells strongly affect the generated power. Basically, in the fuel cell, the anode can be prepared by deposition of a film from the functional electrocatalyst on a proper gas diffusion layer. Accordingly, an interfacial resistance for the electron transport is created between the two layers. Electrocatalyst-functionalized gas diffusion layer (GDL) can distinctly reduce the interfacial resistance between the catalyst layer and the GDL. In this study, NiMn nanoparticles-decorated carbon felt is introduced as functionalized GDL to be exploited as a ready-made anode in a direct urea fuel cell. The proposed treated GDL was prepared by calcination of nickel acetate/manganese acetate-loaded carbon felt under an argon atmosphere at 850 °C. The physiochemical characterizations confirmed complete reduction for the utilized precursors and deposition of pristine NiMn nanoparticles on the carbon felt fiber. In passive direct urea fuel cells, investigation the performance of the functionalized GDLs indicated that the composition of the metal nanoparticles has to be optimized as the GDL obtained from 40 wt % manganese acetate reveals the maximum generated power density; 36 mW/m2 at room temperature and 0.5 M urea solution. Moreover, the electrochemical measurements proved that low urea solution concentration is preferred as utilizing 0.5 M solution resulted into generating higher power compared to 1.0 and 2.0 M solution. Overall, this study opens a new avenue toward functionalization of the GDL as a novel strategy to overcome the interfacial resistance between the electrocatalyst and the GDL

    Molybdenum carbide/Ni nanoparticles-incorporated carbon nanofibers as effective non-precious catalyst for urea electrooxidation reaction

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    Abstract In this study, molybdenum carbide and carbon were investigated as co-catalysts to enhance the nickel electro-activity toward urea oxidation. The proposed electrocatalyst has been formulated in the form of nanofibrous morphology to exploit the advantage of the large axial ratio. Typically, calcination of electropsun polymeric nanofibers composed of poly(vinyl alcohol), molybdenum chloride and nickel acetate under vacuum resulted in producing good morphology molybdenum carbide/Ni NPs-incorporated carbon nanofibers. Investigation on the composition and morphology of the proposed catalyst was achieved by XRD, SEM, XPS, elemental mapping and TEM analyses which concluded formation of molybdenum carbide and nickel nanoparticles embedded in a carbon nanofiber matrix. As an electrocatalyst for urea oxidation, the electrochemical measurements indicated that the proposed composite has a distinct activity when the molybdenum content is optimized. Typically, the nanofibers prepared from electrospun nanofibers containing 25 wt% molybdenum precursor with respect to nickel acetate revealed the best performance. Numerically, using 0.33 M urea in 1.0 M KOH, the obtained current densities were 15.5, 44.9, 52.6, 30.6, 87.9 and 17.6 mA/cm2 for nanofibers prepared at 850 °C from electropsun mats containing 0, 5, 10, 15, 25 and 35 molybdenum chloride, respectively. Study the synthesis temperature of the proposed composite indicated that 1000 °C is the optimum calcination temperature. Kinetic studies indicated that electrooxidation reaction of urea does not follow Arrhenius’s law
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