Solid State & Structural Chemistry Unit

Indian Institute of Science, BengaluruE-mail: anindajb@iisc.ac.in

Aninda J. Bhattacharyya

Microbial Electrochemical Technologies

Clean and Renewable Energy Technologies via Chemical Route, JNCASR, Bengaluru: November 28, 2017

Humanity needs water…..

2

http://www.unwater.org/worldwaterday/learn/en/#sthash.phUCS0RQ.dpuf

@ the core of sustainable development

Managing water…

Water Energy

Environment/

Climate

3

➢Prevalent strategies, methods:

How effective are they?

4

Cleaning water…Sewage systems

https://bwssb.gov.in/

Introduction to Microbiology: A Case History Approach

John L. Ingraham, Catherine A. Ingraham, 2004

5

Treatment of organic rich wastewater consumes a lot

power (energy) cost-intensive, inefficient

❖ few tens of GW are spent in treating water

(sizeable fraction of total power produced in a large country)

can we derive anything useful from waste

(water) ? What can be the solutions

Instead of treating organic rich wastewater with energy

intensive methods…….

Bruce E. Logan, Penn State Univ.

1. Harness energy from waste water

(reduce/eliminate energy waste arising from waste water treatment)

2. Waste biomass energy Produce useful chemicals

Benefits from Waste Water ?

Wastewater (domestic, industrial, animal) contain: tens of GW(power derived from agricultural practices can be up to several hundreds of GW)

Exploration route(s): Electrochemistry/ Electrochemical methods ?

6

Useless Useful

7

Electricity

Waste Water

...Electrochemical reaction....

(biology/biological systems)

Generated power

Energy waste 25 W

can power a small device ?

Human food intake / day

8

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK26882/figure/A290/?report=objectonly

Digestion of Food

Eat food

Respiratory

Enzymes

O2

Ox (-e-)

involves a series of redox steps

Red (+e-)

9

10

Chemiosmosis (in bacteria)

Metabolism in Microorganisms

ADP ATP

Introduction to Microbiology: A Case History Approach

John L. Ingraham, Catherine A. Ingraham, 2004

11

Electrochemical processes, energy, devices…………

(chemical) Redox Reaction

(Electricity)

Energy

Generation

Storage

12

Electrochemistry……Electrochemical Devices

Luigi Galvani (1780)

Allessandro Volta

Early Battery (1800)

Pb-Acid Battery: Gaston Plante (1859)

H2/O2 Gas Battery William Grove (1838) (highlighted by Wilhelm Ostwald, 1896)

Coining of “Fuel Cell” : Charles Langer, Ludwig Mond (1889) (FC with air and coal gas)

H2-O2 FC: Francis Bacon (1932) ( 5 KW system, 1959)

Capacitors (GE, 1950s (GE)…. Supercapacitors: Conway (1999)

Li-ion battery: Sony (1991)

Laws of electrolysis: Faraday (1834)

Conductors

Ionic (i)/

Electronic (e)Mixed (Di, e)

Materials design

Structure Property ( Device function)

Electrochemical Energy Harvest and Storage

(Electrochemical) Energy Generation & Storage Technologies:

Fuel Cells, EDLCs, Rechargeable Batteries

Primary Battery /

Fuel cell

Rechargeable

BatteryPseudo / EDL

Capacitor

Winter, Brodd, Chem. Rev. 2004, 104, 4245

-1 theo

OCV s OCV

n.FWh.kg =E ×C E

M

-1 theo

T sWh.kg =E ×C

Energy Charge transport in Electrodes, Electrolytes, Interfaces

(chemical composition, structure, physical state, cell configuration)

Nanocrystal (Quantum dot) sensitized solar cells

S2-

Sn2

-

Cd

S

S. Mazumdar Thesis, 2015

Ragone plot: E-Chem Devices

Ragone, D., "Review of Battery Systems for Electrically

Powered Vehicles," SAE Technical Paper 680453, 1968,

doi:10.4271/680453.

1 s

<1 s

1 h 10 h

Solar Energy

100 Wkg-1

( 100h)

Hydrogen >30000 Whkg-1

Combustion

Engine, Gas

TurbineFlywheels/ Pneumatics

1 s – 5 min

Human metabolism 10 Whkg-1 (1 Wkg-1);10h

Hydrocarbon fuel > 10000 Whkg-1

16

17

Electrochemistry……Electrochemical Devices

Luigi Galvani (1780)

Allessandro Volta

Early Battery (1800)

Pb-Acid Battery: Gaston Plante (1859)

H2/O2 Gas Battery William Grove (1838) (highlighted by Wilhelm Ostwald, 1896)

Coining of “Fuel Cell” : Charles Langer, Ludwig Mond (1889) (FC with air and coal gas)

H2-O2 FC: Francis Bacon (1932) ( 5 KW system, 1959)

Capacitors (GE, 1950s (GE)…. Supercapacitors: Conway (1999)

Li-ion battery: Sony (1991)

Laws of electrolysis: Faraday (1834)

>1900: Microorganisms…liberation

of electrical energy

Microorganisms … Electrical Energy

18

1960s: NASA for space missions

1983: H.P. Bennetto et al (mediator based electron transfer)(Biochem. Soc. Trans 11 (1983), 451-453; Biotechnol. Bioengg. 25 (1983), 559-568)

19

Bioelectrochemical Systems (BES): 21st Century

ISI Web of Science, Jan/2017

Santoro, Arbizzani, Erable, Ieropoulos J. Power Sour.

356 (2017), 225-244

Electrochemical Energy Generation: Fuel Cells

(Electrolyte, pH: acidic/alkaline, type of fuels, operating temperatures)

20

H2 + 1/2O2 H2O

Cell voltage: 1.23 V

Specific energy: 3660 Wh/kg

21

Electricity

Benefits from Waste Water ?

...Electrochemical reaction....

(biology/biological systems)

Chemical Microbial Fuel Cells

Microbial Fuel Cells

22

Microbial Fuel Cells

➢ produces 0.5 V, (multiplied with current power)

(Theo: 1.2 V)

-0.3 V 0.2 V

23

How does bacteria capture and process energy: How

does MFC work?

24

❖Max Potential: -1.2 V

Potential diff. between

NADH and O2

❖ Early e- exit @ Vred < VrO2

less ATP production; deficit

potential w.r.t. O2 can be

used for electricity

generation

How do MFCs Work ?

25

Logan, Regan Environ. Sci. Tech. 356 (2006), 5172-5180

H2 Production using MEC

Cathode: H2 production @ under

standard conditions and normal pH

0.41 V (theo.)

Anode (Acetate Oxidation) -0.28 V

Energy supplied from outside -0.13 V

Water splitting: -1.2 V

26

Bruce E. Logan, Penn State Univ.

(without microbes)

CH4

CO2

27

Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC)

Microbial Electrolysis Cell (MEC)

Microbial Electrochemical Technologies

28Rabaey, Rozendal Nature Rev.: Microbiology 8 (2010), 706-716

Bioelectrochemical system-based bio-productionH2O2 Bio-plastic

Butanol Bioproduction

processes

29Rabaey, Rozendal Nature Rev.: Microbiology 8 (2010), 706-716

Santoro, Arbizzani, Erable, Ieropoulos J. Power Sour. 356 (2017), 225-244

Desalination cell

Technical Challenges

System Architecture

Materials

Microbiology

30

Mechanisms: ac-methods, spectroscopy, microscopy,

microbiology techniques (clone sequencing, pyrosequencing,…

Electrode potential, Power, Power Density, W/m2 (W/m3),

Coulombic Efficiency,…electrochemical methods

Technical Challenges: System Architecture

➢ Rint is critical for obtaining high power density (W.m-2)

P= 2 mW/m2 P= 40 mW/m2

➢ P EOCV

Eanode: independent of systems

Ecathode (oxidant, catholyte)

➢ Rint depends on the state of oxidant, type

Rint : dissolved O2 O2 (air), ferricyanide, MnO2

Air Cathode

Ferricyanide Catholyte

➢ Substrates (glucose, acetate), flow patterns,….

31Logan, Regan Environ. Sci. Tech. 356 (2006), 5172-5180

Rabaey, Rozendal Nature Rev.: Microbiology 8 (2010), 706-716

Technical Challenges: Electroactive components

32

Interactions: EA-Biofilm and Anode surface

electrical conductivity

corrosion resistance

high mechanical strength

surface area (biofilm)

biocompatibility (environment friendly)

low cost

33Santoro, Arbizzani, Erable, Ieropoulos J. Power Sour. 356 (2017), 225-244

Technical Challenges: Anodes

34

Anodes….Surface chemistry and morphology

35

Technical Challenges: Cathode catalysts and Reaction

Mechanisms

➢ enzymes, microbes

➢ abiotic: (Pt-based, carbonaceous, Pt-group-free-materials-PGM)(4e

-) (2e

-) (4e

-/2e

-)

site specific interactions

Technical Challenges: Microbiology

Modes of Electron Transfer

from Bacteria to Electrodes

36

➢species diversity including gram

+ve and -ve (electroactive)

micro-organisms

37Logan, Regan, Trends in

Microbiology, 2006

Technical Challenges: Microbiology (Substrates)

38

Kiely, Regan, Logan Curr Opinion Biotech 2011, 22, 378-385

39https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/EcoBot

41

Summary

Scientific curiosity ?

▪ Microbes are accurate sensors of

their environment: versatile

devices

42

Summary

Scientific curiosity ?

➢ MFCs/MESs: Platform technology for other technologies

▪ Technology out of waste: remote

area power applications,

sanitation, materials synthesis

▪ Design strategies for MFC, MEC, MES

(Key issues: Materials, Microorganisms, Performance, Costs)

43

Summary

Scientific curiosity ?

➢ MFCs: Platform technology for other technologies

➢ Interdisciplinary research field

➢ Great Education Tool

Thank You…

44