Sustainable Energy Generation and Wastewater Treatment Using CuO Nanoparticles-decorated activated carbon and Biomass -Derived Electrodes in Microbial Fuel Cells | ||||
Journal of Advanced Engineering Trends | ||||
Volume 44, Issue 1, January 2025 PDF (410.57 K) | ||||
Document Type: Original Article | ||||
DOI: 10.21608/jaet.2024.317193.1323 | ||||
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Authors | ||||
Nasser A. M. Barakat ![]() ![]() | ||||
1Chemical Engineering Department, Faculty of Engineering, Minia University, El-Minia, Egypt | ||||
2Civil Engineering Department, Faculty of Engineering, Minia University, El-Minia, Egypt | ||||
Abstract | ||||
Synthesis and application of copper oxide (CuO) nanoparticles-decorated activated carbon for use as a cathode material in microbial fuel cells (MFCs) is introduced. The CuO-decorated activated carbon was prepared by dissolving copper nitrate in ethanol, followed by the addition of activated carbon to the copper nitrate/ethanol solution. The resulting slurry was dried and thermally treated at 300°C for 3 hours. The copper nitrate was used at a concentration of 7 wt.% relative to the activated carbon. X-ray diffraction analysis confirmed the presence of CuO nanoparticles on the activated carbon. The modified activated carbon was then used to fabricate the cathode. This involved mixing the CuO-decorated activated carbon with polyvinylidene fluoride polymer and dimethyl formamide to form a paste, which was subsequently cast onto carbon cloth. The coated carbon cloth was then thermally treated at 280°C. The anode was prepared from graphitized corncob, treated under an inert atmosphere at 900°C. An air cathode, single-chamber MFC was assembled and operated using sewage wastewater. The power and current densities were monitored over a period of two weeks, with maximum current and power densities of 2.12 A/m² and 0.466 W/m² achieved after 7 and 9 days, respectively. | ||||
Keywords | ||||
Microbial fuel cells; Sewage wastewater; Non-precious cathode; Biomass-derived anode; Power generation | ||||
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