NEWS : TECH (NFPC)

Marshes Could Produce Electricity: DNews Nugget

Marshes Could Produce Electricity: About 6 percent of the Earth's surface is covered in marshes and wetlands. Researchers in The Netherlands think that some of these areas could become sources of renewable energy.

They've developed a Plant-Microbial Fuel Cell that generates electricity as plants grow without harm their environment. The fuel cell is made from an electrode and anode, basic components that make up a battery. The electrode is placed in the soil near the plants roots, where organic material is excreted by the roots and where naturally occurring bacteria release electrons as a waste product. By capturing these electrons, the fuel cell is able to generate electricity.

In addition to harvesting electricity from the soil, the researchers also think their technique could be used to produce energy on houses that have green roofs, that is, roofs made of living plants. Grasses such as common cordgrass and rice produce a low-voltage direct current, which can be directly used to charge batteries and power LEDs.

via Gizmag

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New Ferry Goes To Zero Emissions

A passenger ferry that emits zero carbon will be plying the routes between Denmark, Germany and Sweden in the next five years. FutureShip, a subsidiary of GL Group, has designed a ship that runs on a combination of solar power, fuel cells, batteries and wind power. It can hold 1,500 passengers and about 1.3 miles of parking space for cars.

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The ship is built with a streamlined hull designed for traveling up to 18 knots (21 miles per hour) and would average about 17 knots (20 miles per hour). Storage batteries hold some 2,400 kilowatt-hours and a set of fuel cells totaling 8,300 kilowatts power the engines. Turbines capture additional electricity from the wind.

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Surplus electricity from the grid produces the hydrogen for the fuel cells, which is stored in tanks on board. There are no diesel engines and thus no emissions. Further efficiencies come from the shape of the hull and propellers.

Such vessels are designed for short trips, where the energy requirements are not as large as for long-haul shipping. The total cost, FutureShip says, is only about 25 percent more than a conventional ferry.

While ferries don't often use the heavy "bunker oil" that older cargo ships do, they do burn a lot of fuel –- about a ton per crossing. They also emit sulphur and oxides of nitrogen in addition to tons of carbon dioxide. So anything that cuts this back is a welcome step in curbing global warming.

via Maritime Propulsion

Credit: GL Group

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Fuel Cells Turns Waste Into Electricity

Waste not, want not...even when it comes to electricity.

Waste treatment plants may soon have a new way to treat wastewater that will also generate electricity. Oregon State University has developed a method using microbial fuel cells that can generate 10 to 50 times more electricity from waste treatment plants than methods that use similar cells. 

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Currently, waste treatment plants use a process called "activated sludge" to speed up the decomposition process of solids in waste water. This uses microbes to break down organic material. During this process, anaerobic organisms (that don't require oxygen) convert organic materials to methane.

It's effective but has environmental drawbacks because methane is a greenhouse gas.

OSU's microbial fuel cell uses microorganisms to break down the particles directly on an anode, which generates electrons and protons. These transfer from the anode to a cathode (terminals where electricity flows in and out) inside of the fuel cell which creates an electric current. 

Engineers on the project say the method was improved by reducing the space between the anode and cathode and using advanced microbes. This made it possible to produce more than two kilowatts per cubic meter of waste.

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So, why is this important? According to a press release from OSU, 3 percent of electrical energy in the United States and other countries is used to treat waste water. Most of that electricity comes from coal, oil or gas.

A fuel cell process could make it so that waste treatment plants can create their own electricity to power their facilities.

If this process is put into place, treatment plants could even sell the excess electricity. Now we can't just focus on the wonders of sewage, this process can also be used for breweries, animal waste, dairy byproducts and water treatment plants.

A full pilot study will be underway soon in the hopes of moving the concept towards commercial use.

via Engadget

Credit: Oregon State University 

 

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Fuel Cell Uses Brain Power

The phrase, "use your brainpower" may soon become literal. Engineers at MIT have developed a tiny prototype fuel cell that creates electricy from the body's natural sugars.

The fuel cell could be used to power brain implants for treating epilepsy, Parkinson's diseases and paralysis. Currently, devices implanted in the body are typically powered by lithium-ion batteries, but they have a limited lifetime and need to be replaced. Opening up the body to replace a battery is not something doctor like to do, but doing it in the brain is even less desirable.

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The researchers, led by Rahul Sarpeshkar, an associate professor of electrical engineering and computer science, built the fuel cell using a platinum catalyst at one end and a layer of carbon nanotubes at the other. It rests on a silicon chip, allowing it to be connected to electronics that would be used in brain implants.

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As glucose passes over the platinum, electrons and hydrogen ions are stripped off as it is oxidized. That's what makes the current. At the other end of the cell, oxygen mixes with the hydrogen to make water when it hits the layer of single-walled carbon nanotubes. The cell produces up to 180 microwatts, enough to power a brain implant that might send signals to bypass damaged region, or stimulate part of the brain (a treatment used in disorders such as Parkinson's).

Glucose fuel cells are an old idea, dating to the 1970s, and a similar kind of fuel cell was proposed by French scientists in 2010 to power pacemakers. That cell was a mix of graphite and enzymes that separated the electrons from the glucose. The problem is that the enzyme-powered cells weren't able to run as long with as much output as lithium-ion batteries.

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MIT's cell will keep working as long as there is glucose and water. The glucose to power it would come from the cerebrospinal fluid that surrounds the brain. Much of the glucose there isn't used by the body, and the fuel cell only uses a small fraction of that, so it shouldn't affect brain function.

The cell hasn't yet been tested in an actual brain, just a solution that mimics the fluid around it. It is still a promising step towards implants, even though it will be years before anyone is walking around with one in their heads.

The team published their work in the June 12 edition of the journal PLoS ONE.

via MIT

Credit: MIT

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Space Bacteria Boost Fuel Cell Power

Bacteria from the edge of space might one day be used to boost power in fuel cells.

At Newcastle University in the U.K., researchers found a species of bug called Bacillus stratosphericus. The bacteria likes the environment at about 18 miles above the surface of the Earth, an altitude usually reserved for spy planes. Some of the bacteria makes it to the ground, though, and the Newcastle group was able to find some in the River Wear, in northeastern England.

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Bacteria generate current as they eat, by releasing electrons during chemical reactions. Currently such bacteria are used in microbial fuel cells, and similar species are used in sewage treatment and microbial fuel cells are often sold as kits for science classes.

The researchers, led by Keith Scott, professor of electrochemical engineering, took the B. stratosphericus, along with 75 other varieties, and tested them for power generation. Many of these bacteria make biofilms (basically, slime). The film sits on the electrodes of a fuel cell and boosts the power output by more efficiently transmitting electrons. By mixing various species one can get a slime that maximizes that power. In this case the team got a microbial fuel cell to go from 105 Watts per cubic meter to 200 Watts.

BLOG: Cyborg Cockroach Turned into a Fuel Cell

That isn't a lot of power, but in a place without any electricity at all it's enough to run a light bulb and even a small device or computer (laptops typically use less than 80 Watts).

Biofilms have been used before, but this was the first time anyone tried deliberately manipulating the mixture of bacteria, controlling the growth of the film and using it to increase fuel cell output. If microbial fuel cells can be made smaller, then they will go a long way to making small-scale sustainable energy a reality.

The work was published in the American Chemical Society's Journal of Environmental Science and Technology.

Credit: Wikimedia Commons / Alam Muntasir

Cyborg Cockroach Turned into a Fuel Cell

Get this: A cockroach has been turned into a fuel cell.

A team at Case Western Reserve University led by Michelle Rasmussen and Daniel Scherson has tapped into the metabolic system of a cockroach to produce electricity. This isn't the first time anyone has tried building a cyborg bug of sorts. A University of Michigan team tried it using piezoelectric materials. What's interesting here is that Rasmussen's group used the insect's own body chemistry to produce electricity.

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When a cockroach eats, it produces a sugar called trehalose, which is broken down by one set of enzymes in the cockroach's blood, called haemolymph. It takes several steps for different enzymes to finish breaking down and converting sugars for food, but in the last step, electrons are released.

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By inserting a wire into the cockroach, the scientists were able to tap into the electrons and harness the electricity. The amount of power isn't huge, only about 50 to 60 microamperes per square centimeter at 0.2 volts. But it's a proof of principle that shows that an insect's own body could be used to power tiny devices, such as sensors and microphones into places that would be otherwise out of reach.

And in case you're concerned by the little roach's comfort, inserting the wire doesn't hurt it, in part because cockroaches don't have blood vessels. They have an "open" circulatory system, which simply bathes organs in haemolymph. Consequently there is no pressure, so puncturing a cockroach with an electrode isn't as much of a problem as it is for a vertebrate.

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Trehalose is present in the circulatory systems of many insects, and some have even higher concentrations than cockroaches do. It's also present in mushrooms. The team tested shiitakes, and got current from there as well.

Image: Wikipedia

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iPhones Powered by Hydrogen Fuel Cells?

Apple has applied for two hydrogen fuel cell patents. Citing consumer awareness about fossil fuel's environmental and political impact, the move indicates the company has been looking into a new system to recharge their portable device batteries for over a year.

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"As a consequence of this increased consumer awareness," one application stated, "electronics manufacturers have become very interested in developing renewable energy sources for their products, and they have been exploring a number of promising renewable energy sources such as hydrogen fuel cells."

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The application goes on to say: "Hydrogen fuel cells have a number of advantages. Such fuel cells and associated fuels can potentially achieve high volumetric and gravimetric energy densities, which can potentially enable continued operation of portable electronic devices for days or even weeks without refueling."

Using hydrogen fuel cells to power mobile devices is nothing new. Horizon's MINIPAK and Toshiba's Dynario have been on the market for years, yet they aren't exactly small enough to integrate with mobile phones unless you're going for the Zack Morris look, 80's brick cell phone included.

However, Apple says their sleek fuel cell design would be able to eliminate the need for a bulky battery pack.

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The patent applications were published by the US Patent & Trademark Office last week. The first patent, "Fuel Cell System to Power a Portable Computing Device", was filed in August 2010, while the second patent, "Fuel Cell System Coupled to a Portable Computing Device" was filed in April 2011, suggesting Apple has had their eye on this technology for a while.

Adrianna Williams/Corbis

[Via GizMag]

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Meet The Fuel of the Future: Bugs

Archaean bacterium Credit: Corbis

In talking to ARPAe chief Arun Majumdar last week, I asked him about the future of transportation fuels.

Even with more hybrids and electric vehicles on the road, the U.S. Energy Information Administration says the American driver will rely on liquid fuels for the next 20 years. Corn-based ethanol needs big subsidies and is of dubious environmental benefit.

So to break the stranglehold of foreign oil, scientists and engineers are developing something called electro-fuels. The alternative fuel comes from running a charge of electricity through a solution containing strange microorganisms that feed on harmful ammonia or hydrogen sulfides. The charge induces to the organisms to convert carbon dioxide into the same kind of fuels we use to run our cars.

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These bugs make the conversion without petroleum, biomass or sunlight –- all in an enclosed cell. The DOE is funding 15 labs across the country to find the best electro-fuel solution, and of course at a reasonable cost. Vice President Biden recently gave a nod to Boulder, Colo.-based OPX Biotechnologies, which claims it will produce its first renewable chemical product, BioAcrylic, at lower cost than petro-acrylic with a 75 percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions. The company's second product is diesel fuel bio-processed from carbon dioxide and hydrogen, according to its website.

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A team at North Carolina State University is combining enzymes from one microbe that grows at 75 degrees Celsius (167 F) with a second one that feeds off hydrogen. This genetic marriage produces precursors to biofuels like ethanol and butanol.

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Majumdar told me only biofuels capture 1 percent of the energy from sunlight, while these new electro-fuels are approaching 100 percent efficiency.

The DOE has been under the gun with a Congressional and Federal investigation into the failure of solar tech Solyndra, as well as planned budget cuts to the very research program that Majumdar is so ecstatic about. It would be too bad if promising research -- even high-risk research -- gets scuttled by the S.S. Solyndra.

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Bacteria, Salt Water Make Hydrogen Fuel

The 'hydrogen economy' requires a lot of things, but first is an easy and cheap supply of hydrogen. There are lots of ways to make it, but most of them don't produce large quantities quickly or inexpensively. 

Professor Bruce Logan, director of the Hydrogen to Energy Center at Penn State University, has found a way to change that. He used a process called reverse electrodialysis, combined with some ordinary bacteria to get hydrogen out of water by breaking up its molecules.

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Water -- which is made of two atoms of hydrogen and one of oxygen -- can be broken down with electricity. (This is a pretty common high school science experiment). The problem is that you need to pump a lot of energy into the water to break the molecules apart.

Logan thought there had to be a better way. He combined two methods of making electricity -- one from microbial fuel cell research and the other from reverse electrodialysis.

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In a microbial fuel cell, bacteria eat organic molecules and during digestion, release electrons.

In a reverse electrodialysis setup, a chamber is separated by a stack of membranes that allow charged particles, or ions, to move in only one direction. Filling the chamber with salt water on one side and fresher water on the other causes ions to try and move to the fresher side. That movement creates a voltage. Adding more membranes increases the voltage, but at a certain point it becomes unwieldy.

By putting the bacteria in the side of the reverse electrodialysis chamber with the fresh water, and using only 11 membranes, Logan was able to generate enough voltage to generate hydrogen. Ordinarily he would need to generate about 0.414 volts. With this system, he can get .8 volts, nearly double. (The microbial part of the cell generates 0.3 volts and the RED system creates about 0.5.)

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Using seawater, some less salty wastewater with sewage or other organic matter in it and the bacteria, Logan's apparatus can produce about 1.6 cubic meters of hydrogen for every cubic meter of liquid through the system of chambers and membranes. Another bonus is that less energy goes into pumping the water -- if anything, flow rates and pressure have to be kept relatively low so as not to damage the membranes. 

Making hydrogen cheaper is a necessity if hydrogen cars are to be a reality. Some car companies already make hydrogen-powered models. The state of Hawaii is already experimenting with hydrogen fuel systems. Producing cheaper, abundant hydrogen -- especially from sewer water and seawater -- is a big step in that direction.

Image: Bruce Logan, Penn State University.

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Nanotech-Enhanced Fuel Cells to Provide Cleaner Coal

The idea of clean energy may conjure up images of vast fields filled with windmills slowly churning away or an entire cityscape covered with solar panels. But this idyllic vision must cede to a more realistic one where we accept that fossil fuels -- at least for the short term -- will continue to play a major role in energy production.

In this spirit, there has been much research to increase the dismal efficiency and the environmental cleanliness of coal power plants. One major innovation to this end has been the solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC). Instead of just burning lumps of coal to heat water and drive turbines, the fuels cells oxidize the coal in a more controlled way, resulting in a much higher efficiencies and lower emissions.

By the anodes are typically constructed of a material that eventually gets gunked up with carbon buildup, causing the anodes to degrade over time.

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A solution to the problem has been proposed by a team of scientists led by Meilin Liu at the Georgia Institute of Technology. The team has found a way to embed the material with barium oxide nanostructures that prevents the carbon from building up and deactivating the anode. According to Nanowerk, the structures oxidize "the carbon as it forms, keeping the nickel electrode surfaces clean even when carbon-containing fuels are used at low temperatures."

The team hopes that because the solution builds on previous technology, it will be easily integrated into existing systems. Liu has high hopes for the technology and tells Nanowerk "This could ultimately be the cleanest, most efficient and cost-effective way of converting coal into electricity."

Credit: Creativ Studio Heinemann/Westend61/Corbis

 

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