Oxygen transport through laccase biocathodes for a membrane-less glucose/O2 biofuel cell

The present study reports the development of operational membrane-less glucose/O₂ biofuel cell based on oxygen contactor. Glucose oxidation was performed by glucose oxidase (GOx) co-immobilized with the mediator 8-hydroxyquinoline-5-sulfonic acid hydrate (HQS) at the anode, whereas oxygen was reduced by laccase co-immobilized with 2,2′-azinobis (3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonate) diammonium salt (ABTS²⁻) at the cathode. Both enzymes and mediators were immobilized within electropolymerized polypyrrole polymers.Nevertheless, this system is limited by the secondary reaction of O₂ electro-reduction at the anode that reduces the electron flow through the anode and thus the output voltage. In order to avoid the loss of current at the anode in glucose/O₂ biofuel cell, we developed a strategy to supply dissolved oxygen separate from the electrolyte. Porous carbon tubes were used as electrodes and modified on the external surface by the couple enzyme/mediator. The inside of the cathode tube was continuously supplied with saturated dioxygen solution diffusing from the inner to the external surface of the porous tube. The assembled biofuel cell was studied under nitrogen at 37 °C in phosphate buffer at pH 5.0 and 7.0. The maximum power density reached 27 μW cm⁻² at a cell voltage of 0.25 V at pH 5.0 with 10 mM glucose. The power density was twice as high as compared to the same system with oxygen bubbling directly in the cell.     

Biofuel Cell Based on Anode and Cathode Modified by Glucose Oxidase

A single compartment biofuel cell (BFC) based on an anode and a cathode powered by the same fuel glucose is reported. Glucose oxidase (GOx) from Aspergillus niger was applied as a glucose consuming biocatalyst for both anode and cathode of the BFC. The 5‐amino‐1,10‐phenanthroline modified graphite rod electrode (GRE) with cross‐linked GOx was used as the bioanode, and the GRE with co‐immobilised horseradish peroxidase and GOx was exploited as the biocathode of the BFC. The open‐circuit voltage of the designed BFC exceeded 450 mV and a maximal power density of 3.5 µW/cm² was registered at a cell voltage of 300 mV.     

Concentric glucose/O2 biofuel cell

A concentric glucose/O₂ biofuel cell has been developed. The device is constituted of two carbon tubular electrodes, one in the other, and combines glucose electrooxidation at the anode and oxygen electroreduction at the cathode. The anodic catalyst is glucose oxidase co-immobilized with the mediator 8-hydroxyquinoline-5-sulfonic acid hydrate, and the cathodic catalyst is bilirubin oxidase co-immobilized with the mediator 2,2′-azinobis (3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonate) diammonium salt. Both enzymes and mediators are entrapped at the surface of the tubular electrodes by an electrogenerated polypyrrole polymer. The originality of the concentric configuration is to compartmentalize the anode and cathode electrodes and to supply dissolved oxygen separate from the electrolyte in order to avoid secondary reactions. The dissolved oxygen circulates through the inside of the cathode tube and diffuses from the inner to the external surface of the tube to react directly with the immobilized bilirubin oxidase. The assembled biofuel cell is studied at 37 °C in phosphate buffer pH 7.4. We show the influence of the thickness of the polypyrrole polymer on the electrochemical activity of the biocathodes. We also demonstrate the effect of the chemical reticulation of the enzymes by glutaraldehyde within the polymer on the performances of the bioelectrodes. The maximum power density delivered by the assembled glucose/O₂ biofuel cell reaches 42 μW cm⁻², evaluated from the geometric area of the electrodes, at a cell voltage of 0.30 V with 10 mM glucose. The results demonstrate that the concentric design of the BFC based on compartmented electrodes is a promising architecture for further development of micro electronic devices.     

Biofuel Cell Operating in Vivo in Rat

Biocatalytic electrodes made of buckypaper were modified with PQQ‐dependent glucose dehydrogenase on the anode and with laccase on the cathode. The enzyme modified electrodes were assembled in a biofuel cell which was first characterized in human serum solution and then the electrodes were placed onto exposed rat cremaster tissue. Glucose and oxygen dissolved in blood were used as the fuel and oxidizer, respectively, for the implanted biofuel cell operation. The steady‐state open circuitry voltage of 140±30 mV and short circuitry current of 10±3 µA (current density ca. 5 µA cm^?2 based on the geometrical electrode area of 2 cm²) were achieved in the in vivo operating biofuel cell. Future applications of implanted biofuel cells for powering of biomedical and sensor devices are discussed.     

A biofuel cell with electrochemically switchable and tunable power output

An electroswitchable and tunable biofuel cell based on the biocatalyzed oxidation of glucose is described. The anode consists of a Cu(2+)-poly(acrylic acid) film on which the redox-relay pyrroloquinoline quinone (PQQ) and the flavin adenine dinucleotide (FAD) cofactor are covalently linked. Apo-glucose oxidase is reconstituted on the FAD sites to yield the glucose oxidase (GOx)-functionalized electrode. The cathode consists of a Cu(2+)-poly(acrylic acid) film that provides the functional interface for the covalent linkage of cytochrome c (Cyt c) that is further linked to cytochrome oxidase (COx). Electrochemical reduction of the Cu(2+)-poly(acrylic acid) films (applied potential -0.5 V vs SCE) associated with the anode and cathode yields the conductive Cu(0)-poly(acrylic acid) matrixes that electrically contact the GOx-electrode and the COx/Cyt c-electrode, respectively. The short-circuit current and open-circuit voltage of the biofuel cell correspond to 105 microA (current density ca. 550 microA cm(-2)) and 120 mV, respectively, and the maximum extracted power from the cell is 4.3 microW at an external loading resistance of 1 kOmega. The electrochemical oxidation of the polymer films associated with the electrodes (applied potential 0.5 V) yields the nonconductive Cu(2+)-poly(acrylic acid) films that completely block the biofuel cell operation. By the cyclic electrochemical reduction and oxidation of the polymer films associated with the anode and cathode between the Cu(0)-poly(acrylic acid) and Cu(2+)-poly(acrylic acid) states, the biofuel cell performance is reversibly switched between "ON" and "OFF" states, respectively. The electrochemical reduction of the Cu(2+)-polymer film to the Cu(0)-polymer film is a slow process (ca. 1000 s) because the formation and aggregation of the Cu(0)-clusters requires the migration of Cu(2+) ions in the polymer film and their reduction at conductive sites. The slow reduction of the Cu(2+)-polymer films allows for the controlling of the content of conductive domains in the films and the tuning of the output power of the biofuel cell. The electron-transfer resistances of the cathodic and anodic processes were characterized by impedance spectroscopy. Also, the overall resistances of the biofuel cell generated by the time-dependent electrochemical reduction process were followed by impedance spectroscopy and correlated with the internal resistances of the cell upon its operation.     

Study on Glucose Biofuel Cells Using an Electrochemical Noise Device

An electrochemical noise (ECN) device was utilized for the first time to study and characterize a glucose/O₂ membraneless biofuel cell (BFC) and a monopolar glucose BFC. In the glucose/O₂ membraneless BFC, ferrocene (Fc) and glucose oxidase (GOD) were immobilized on a multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs)/Au electrode with a gelatin film at the anode; and laccase (Lac) and an electron mediator, 2,2′‐azinobis (3‐ethylbenzothiazoline‐6‐sulfonate) diammonium salt (ABTS), were immobilized on a MWCNTs/Au electrode with polypyrrole at the cathode. This BFC was performed in a stirred acetate buffer solution (pH 5.0) containing 40 mmol/L glucose in air, with a maximum power density of 8 μW/cm², an open‐circuit cell voltage of 0.29 V, and a short‐circuit current density of 85 μA/cm², respectively. The cell current at the load of 100 kΩ retained 78.9% of the initial value after continuous discharging for 15 h in a stirred acetate buffer solution (pH 5.0) containing 40 mmol/L glucose in air. The performance decrease of the BFC resulted mainly from the leakage of the ABTS mediator immobilized at the cathode, as revealed by the two‐channel quartz crystal microbalance technique. In addition, a monopolar glucose BFC was performed with the same anode as that in the glucose/O₂ membraneless BFC in a stirred phosphate buffer solution (pH 7.0) containing 40 mmol/L glucose, and a carbon cathode in Nafion‐membrane‐isolated acidic KMnO₄, with a maximum power density of 115 μW/cm², an open‐circuit cell voltage of 1.24 V, and a short‐circuit current density of 202 μA/cm², respectively, which are superior to those of the glucose/O₂ membraneless BFC. A modification of the anode with MWCNTs for the monopolar glucose BFC increased the maximum power density by a factor of 1.8. The ECN device is highly recommended as a convenient, real‐time and sensitive technique for BFC studies.     

Wireless Information Transmission System Powered by an Abiotic Biofuel Cell Implanted in an Orange

An “abiotic” biofuel cell composed of catalytic electrodes modified with inorganic nanoparticles (NPs) deposited on carbon black (CB) was used to activate a wireless information transmission system. The cathode and anode were made of carbon paper modified with Pt‐NPs/CB and buckypaper modified with Au₈₀Pt₂₀‐NPs/CB, respectively. The cathode/anode pair was implanted in orange pulp extracting power from its content (glucose and fructose in the juice). The open circuit voltage, V_oc, short circuit current density, j_sc, and maximum power produced by the biofuel cell, P_max, were found as 0.36 V, 1.3 mA cm^?2 and 182 µW, respectively. The voltage produced by the biofuel cell was amplified with an energy harvesting circuit and applied to a wireless transmitter. The present study continues the research line where different implantable biofuel cells are used for activation of electronic devices.     

A microfluidic glucose biofuel cell to generate micropower from enzymes at ambient temperature

A Y-shaped microfluidic channel is applied for the first time to the construction of a glucose/O₂ biofuel cell, based on both laminar flow and biological enzyme strategies. During operation, the fuel and oxidant streams flow parallel at gold electrode surfaces without convective mixing. At the anode, the glucose oxidation is performed by the enzyme glucose oxidase whereas at the cathode, the oxygen is reduced by the enzyme laccase, in the presence of specific redox mediators. Such cell design protects the anode from an interfering parasite reaction of O₂ at the anode and offers the advantage of using different streams of oxidant and fuel for optimal performance of the enzymes. Electrochemical characterizations of the device show the influence of the flow rate on the output potential and current density. The maximum power density delivered by the assembled biofuel cell reached 110 μW cm^?2 at 0.3 V with 10 mM glucose at 23 °C. The microfluidic approach reported here demonstrates the feasibility of advanced microfabrication techniques to build an efficient microfluidic glucose/O₂ biofuel cell device.     

A glucose/hydrogen peroxide biofuel cell that uses oxidase and peroxidase as catalysts by composite bulk-modified bioelectrodes based on a solid binding matrix

An improved composite bulk-modified bioelectrode setup based on a solid binding matrix (SBM) has been used to develop a glucose/hydrogen peroxide biofuel cell. Fuel is combined through a catalytically promoted reaction with oxygen into and oxidized species and electricity. The present work explores the feasibility of a sugar-feed biofuel cell based on SBM technology. The biofuel cell that utilizes mediators as electron transporters from the glucose oxidation pathway of the enzyme directly to electrodes is considered in this work. The anode was a glucose oxidase (GOx, EC 1.1.3.4)/ferrocene-modified SBM/graphite composite electrode. The cathode was a horseradish peroxidase (HRP, EC 1.11.1.7)/ferrocene-modified SBM/graphite composite electrode. The composite transducer material was layered on a wide polymeric surface to obtain the biomodified electrodic elements, anodes and cathodes and were assembled into a biofuel cell using glucose and H(2)O(2) as the fuel substrate and the oxidizer. The electrochemical properties and the characteristics of single composite bioelectrodes are described. The open-circuit voltage of the cell was 0.22 V, and the power output of the cell was 0.15 microW/cm(2) at 0.021 V. The biofuel cell proved to be stable for an extended period of continuous work (30 days). The reproducibility of the biotransducers fabrication was also investigated. In addition, an application of presented biofuel cell, e.g. the use of hydrolyzed corn syrup as renewable biofuels, was discussed.     

A membrane-, mediator-, cofactor-less glucose/oxygen biofuel cell

We report the fabrication and characterisation of a non-compartmentalised, mediator and cofactor free glucose-oxygen biofuel cell based on adsorbed enzymes exhibiting direct bioelectrocatalysis, viz. cellobiose dehydrogenase from Dichomera saubinetii and laccase from Trametes hirsuta as the anodic and cathodic bioelements, respectively, with the following characteristics: an open-circuit voltage of 0.73 V; a maximum power density of 5 microW cm(-2) at 0.5 V of the cell voltage and an estimated half-life of > 38 h in air-saturated 0.1 M citrate-phosphate buffer, pH 4.5 containing 5 mM glucose.     

Electrochemical study of single wall carbon nanotubes/graphene/ferritin composite for biofuel cell applications

A single wall carbon nanotubes (SWNTs)/graphene/ferritin/GOx layer on a glassy carbon electrode (GCE) acting as a biofuel cell anode was fabricated using a SWNTs/graphene/ferritin composite as an electron transfer mediator from the enzyme to the electrode. In the presence of glucose, the SWNTs/graphene/ferritin/GOx composite showed a higher current response than SWNTs/graphene/GOx composite and the electrocatalytic oxidation of glucose on the anode increased linearly with increasing concentration of glucose. The highly distributed SWNTs/graphene/ferritin composite acts as a platform for enzyme immobilization resulted in an enhanced electrocatalytic activity towards glucose. The SWNTs/graphene/ferritin composite showed an enhanced electron transfer from enzyme to the electrode; therefore, SWNTs/graphene/ferritin/GOx composite can be used as an anode in biofuel cells.     

Anodic electron shuttle mechanism based on 1-hydroxy-4-aminoanthraquinone in microbial fuel cells

In microbial fuel cells (MFCs), the electron transfer from microorganisms to the cell anode is a decisive factor on the power output. Though quinone derivatives can function as electron shuttles, the electron shuttle pathways have so far not been demonstrated. In this paper, the mechanism of electron shuttle via an exogenous mediator was studied in MFCs using Geobacter metallireducens (G. metallireducens). 1-hydroxy-4-aminoanthraquinone was labeled by fluorescamine and the product (HAQ-F) showed strong and stable fluorescence. The addition of HAQ-F into MFCs increased cell voltage from 170 mV to 290 mV, suggesting that the redox mediator could facilitate electron transfer from bacteria to anode. Further, confocal laser scanning microscopy imaging indicated that HAQ-F was present in microbial cells, demonstrating that the redox mediator shuttled across the membranes to get reduced within cells.     

Guanine/Ionic Liquid Derived Ordered Mesoporous Carbon Decorated with AuNPs as Efficient NADH Biosensor and Suitable Platform for Enzymes Immobilization and Biofuel Cell Design

Guanine‐ionic liquid derived ordered mesoporous carbon (GIOMC) decorated with gold nanoparticles was used as electrocatalyste for NADH oxidation and electrochemical platform for immobilization of glucose dehydrogenase (GDH) enzyme. The resulting GIOMC/AuNPs on the glassy carbon electrode can be used as novel redox‐mediator free for NADH sensing and this integrated system (GIOMC/AuNPs/GDH) shows excellent electrocatalytic activity toward glucose oxidation. Furthermore, the ionic liquid derived ordered mesoporous carbon derivate with Ph‐SO₃H (IOMC‐PhSO₃H) decorated with AuNPs has been developed to bilirubin oxidase enzyme (BOD) immobilization and the GC/IOMC‐PhSO₃H/BOD integrated system shows excellent bioelectrocatalytic activity toward oxygen reduction reaction. The proposed mesostructured platforms decorated by AuNPs have been developed to enhance mass transfer and charge transfer from biocatalyst to electrode, leading these bioanode and biocathode used for biofuel cell assembly. Integration designed bioanode and biocathode yielding a membrane‐less glucose/O₂ biofuel cell with power density of 33 (mW.cm⁻²) at 257 mV. The open circuit voltage of this biofuel cell and maximum produced current density were 508 mV and 0.252 (mA.cm⁻²) respectively.     

Development of a biofuel cell using glucose-oxidase- and bilirubin-oxidase-based electrodes

Biofuel cells have a tremendous opportunity to provide much higher energy densities and smaller footprints than batteries for powering implantable medical devices, leading to less intrusive implantable devices with longer lifetimes. This paper introduces biofuel cell anode and cathode designs based on mediated glucose oxidation by glucose oxidase and oxygen reduction by bilirubin oxidase, respectively. We report here the progress toward the development of components for biofuel cells working in physiological conditions. We have investigated enzymatic electrode formulations that have the potential to achieve higher current densities and longer stability of the electrodes: (a) high surface area by the use of multiscale carbon materials, (b) immobilization of redox mediator on the electrode surface, and (c) use of a protective biocompatible polymer coating. Part of this work was presented at the 213th Electrochemical Society Meeting as a poster     

The Application of Engineered Glucose Dehydrogenase to a Direct Electron–Transfer‐Type Continuous Glucose Monitoring System and a Compartmentless Biofuel Cell

Abstract

Continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) is expected to become an ideal way to monitor glycemic levels in diabetic patients. On the other hand, biofuel cells can be used as an alternative energy source in future implantable devices, such as implantable glucose sensors in the artificial pancreas. Glucose dehydrogenase from Acinetobacter calcoaceticus, which harbors pyrroloquinoline quinone as the prosthetic group (PQQGDH), is one of the enzymes most attractive as a glucose sensor constituent and as the anode enzyme in biofuel cells, due to its high catalytic activity and insensitivity to oxygen. However, the application of PQQGDH for these purposes is inherently limited because an electron mediator is required for the electron transfer to the electrode.

We have recently reported on the development of an engineered enzyme, quinohemoprotein glucose dehydrogenase (QH‐GDH), in which the cytochrome c domain of the quinohemoprotein ethanol dehydrogenase (QH‐EDH) was fused with PQQGDH, to enable electron transfer to the electrode in the absence of an artificial mediator. In this study, we constructed a direct electron‐transfer‐type CGM system employing QH‐GDH. This CGM system showed sufficient current response and high operational stability. Furthermore, we successfully constructed a compartmentless biofuel cell employing QH‐GDH.     

A biofuel cell with enhanced power output by grape juice

Glucose oxidase and laccase immobilized at multiwalled carbon nanotubes-ionic liquid gel modified electrodes are used as the catalysts of anode and cathode of biofuel cells (BFCs), respectively. The BFC based on glucose and air is proposed. When ferrocene monocarboxylic acid is adopted as the mediator of anode, the power output of the BFC is ca. 4.1 μW (power density ca. 10.0 μW cm⁻²), which is higher than the value of 2.7 μW (power density ca. 6.6 μW cm⁻²) by taking ferrocene dicarboxylic acid as the mediator. This implies that the mediator with formal potential closing to that of the enzyme does improve the power output. Furthermore, the power output of the BFC is greatly improved by taking grape juice as the fuel of anode rather than glucose. This system also indicates that grape juice as a fuel of the BFC not only is feasible and can also enhances the power output of the BFCs. Besides, it greatly lowers the cost and simplifies the preparation procedure of the BFCs, making the BFC towards “green” bioenergy.     

An implantable biofuel cell for a live insect

A biofuel cell incorporating a bienzymatic trehalase|glucose oxidase trehalose anode and a bilirubin oxidase dioxygen cathode using Os complexes grafted to a polymeric backbone as electron relays was designed and constructed. The specific power densities of the biofuel cell implanted in a female Blaberus discoidalis through incisions into its abdomen yielded maximum values of ca. 55 μW/cm(2) at 0.2 V that decreased by only ca. 5% after ca. 2.5 h of operation.     

A biofuel cell based on pyrroloquinoline quinone and microperoxidase-11 monolayer-functionalized electrodes

A pyrroloquinoline quinone (PQQ) monolayer-functionalized-Au-electrode and a microperoxidase-11 (MP-11)-modified Au-electrode are used as catalytic anode and cathode in a biofuel cell element, respectively. The cathodic oxidizer is H₂O₂ whereas the anodic fuel-substrate is 1,4-dihydronicotinamide adenine dinucleotide, NADH. The PQQ-monolayer electrode catalyzes the oxidation of NADH in the presence of Ca²⁺ ions. The MP-11-functionalized electrode catalyzes the reduction of H₂O₂. The biofuel cell generates an open-circuit voltage, V_oc, of ca. 320 mV and a short-circuit current density, I_sc, of ca. 30 μA·cm⁻². The maximum electrical power, W_max, extracted from the cell is 8 μW at an external load of 3 kΩ. The fill factor of the biofuel cell, f=W_max·I_sc⁻¹·V_oc⁻¹, is ca. 25%.     

Efficient Overall Water‐Splitting Electrocatalysis Using Lepidocrocite VOOH Hollow Nanospheres

Herein we report the control synthesis of lepidocrocite VOOH hollow nanospheres and further their applications in electrocatalytic water splitting for the first time. By tuning the surface area of the nanospheres, the optimal performance can be achieved with low overpotentials of 270 mV for the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) and 164 mV for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) at 10 mA cm⁻² in 1 m KOH, respectively. Furthermore, when used as both the anode and cathode for overall water splitting, a low cell voltage of 1.62 V is required to reach the current density of 10 mA cm⁻², making the VOOH hollow nanospheres an efficient alternative to water splitting.     

4-巯基苯甲酸功能化纳米金粒子固定葡萄糖氧化酶/漆酶基燃料电池性能

以4-巯基苯甲酸修饰纳米金粒子作为固酶载体和导电基体构建了新型纳米结构固酶葡萄糖/O₂燃料电池,其制备简单,长期使用性能稳定。利用纳米金粒子通过表面修饰基团和酶分子活性中心附近疏水结合位之间的相互作用固定葡萄糖氧化酶(GO_x)和漆酶(Lac)分子,分别制备了固酶阳极-4-巯基苯甲酸功能化纳米金粒子固定葡萄糖氧化酶修饰金盘电极GO_x/4-MBA@GNP/Au和固酶阴极-4-巯基苯甲酸功能化纳米金粒子固定漆酶修饰金盘电极Lac/4-MBA@GNP/Au。电化学实验结果表明,两种电极在不引入任何外加电子中介的条件下,均可以实现酶活性中心-纳米金粒子之间的直接电子迁移,而且具有较快的催化反应能力(固酶阳极和阴极的转化速率分别为1.3和0.5 s^-1;催化葡萄糖氧化和氧气还原的起始电位分别为-0.23和0.76 V)。评估了固酶阳极和阴极组装成的纳米结构固酶葡萄糖/O₂燃料电池的能量输出性能。该燃料电池在没有Nafion薄膜和阳极无N₂气保护下,开路电压和最大输出能量密度分别可达0.56 V和760.0 μW/cm²,使用一周后输出能量密度仍然可以达到最初值的~88%。进一步测试结果显示,该燃料电池呈现出与游离漆酶类似的pH依赖关系和热稳定性,这些实验结果均暗示:影响整个酶燃料电池性能的关键在于漆酶基阴极催化氧还原的过程。此外,这种燃料电池的性能虽然受到共存干扰物抗坏血酸的影响,但在人类血清中测试结果显示其仍然具有较高的输出能量密度(132.0 μW/cm²,开路电压0.40 V)。本文研究结果给出了设计高性能葡萄糖/O₂燃料电池的新思路,同时也为研究固酶燃料电池的构效关系提供了实验依据和有价值的启示。