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Full-Text Articles in Engineering

Anodic Catalysts For Anion Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells, Aaron Joseph Roy Dec 2017

Anodic Catalysts For Anion Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells, Aaron Joseph Roy

Chemical and Biological Engineering ETDs

With a limited availability of energy resources from petroleum and other fossil fuels, as well as growing concerns relating to the environmental implications of fossil fuel emissions, non-carbon fuels which can be utilized in proton and anion exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFC’s/AEMFC’s), such as hydrogen and hydrazine hydrate (HH), are becoming more attractive as alternative fuels. Historically, platinum and platinum group metal catalysts (PGM) have been used as cathode and anode catalyst materials for both PEMFC’s and AEMFC’s. Although these catalysts are the highest performing catalysts available for the conversion of hydrogen energy in fuel cells, the limited availability and …


Microbial Desalination Cells With Efficient Platinum Group Metal-Free Cathode Catalysts, Morteza Rezaei Talarposhti Nov 2017

Microbial Desalination Cells With Efficient Platinum Group Metal-Free Cathode Catalysts, Morteza Rezaei Talarposhti

Chemical and Biological Engineering ETDs

Iron-nitrogen-carbon based catalyst was used at the cathode of a microbial desalination cell (MDC) and compared with platinum (Pt) and activated carbon (AC) cathode. Fe-N-C catalyst was prepared using nicarbazin (NCB) as organic precursor by sacrificial support method (SSM). Rotating ring disk electrode (RRDE) experiments shows that Fe-NCB had higher electrocatalytic activity compared to AC and Pt. The utilization of Fe-NCB into the cathode improved substantially the performance output with initial maximum power density of 49±2 μWcm-2 in contrast to Pt and AC catalysts which have shown lower values of 34±1 μWcm-2 and 23.5±1.5 μWcm-2, respectively. …


Designing Nanocomposite Materials For Catalyzing Electrochemical Reactions In Anion Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells, Sadia Afrin Kabir Jul 2017

Designing Nanocomposite Materials For Catalyzing Electrochemical Reactions In Anion Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells, Sadia Afrin Kabir

Chemical and Biological Engineering ETDs

Fuel cells are considered to be one the most promising sustainable energy technologies for energy conversion and electric power generation. With the development of stable, conductive and high performance anion exchange membranes and ionomers, there has been an increased interest towards studying various electrochemical reactions in Anion Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells (AEMFC). This increased attention has been attributed to the comparatively facile reaction kinetics, minimized corrosion effects and reduced fuel crossover in alkaline media. However, the oxygen reduction reactions (ORR) taking place in the cathode compartment of fuel cells plays a crucial role in optimizing the electrochemical energy conversion efficiency, …


Microdischarges Utilized In Portable Gas Sensing And Their Atmospheric Contaminants, Colin H. Sillerud Jul 2017

Microdischarges Utilized In Portable Gas Sensing And Their Atmospheric Contaminants, Colin H. Sillerud

Chemical and Biological Engineering ETDs

Portable applications of microdischarges such as the chemical detection, remediation of gaseous wastes, or the destruction of volatile organic compounds will mandate operation in the presence of contaminant species. This work examines the temporal evolution of microdischarge optical and ultraviolet emissions during pulsed operation by experimental methods. By varying the pulse length of a microdischarge initiated in a 4-hole silicon microcavity array operating in a 655 Torr ambient primarily composed of Ne, we were able to measure the emission growth rates for different contaminant species native to the discharge environment as a function of pulse length. It was found that …


Activity Of Pgm-Free Electrocatalysts For Oxygen Reduction Reaction: Ph And Co-Catalysis Effects, Mario Santiago Rojas Carbonell 8148369 Apr 2017

Activity Of Pgm-Free Electrocatalysts For Oxygen Reduction Reaction: Ph And Co-Catalysis Effects, Mario Santiago Rojas Carbonell 8148369

Chemical and Biological Engineering ETDs

Fuel cells offer a source to the current and always increasing demand for electric power. But as any new technology, there are challenges that need to be addressed to render it feasible for the market place. One of this challenges is finding the appropriate materials to catalyze the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) that occurs in the cathode. Oxygen is used as an oxidant in a significant portion of the fuel cells due to its readily availability and high reduction potential. Now, one the bottlenecks that stops the large-scale adoption is the expensive and rare metals that have been used as …