A review on the role of proton exchange membrane on the performance of microbial fuel cell |
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| Authors: | Mostafa Rahimnejad Gholamreza Bakeri Mostafa Ghasemi Alireza Zirepour |
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| Institution: | 1. Biofuel and Renewable Energy Research Center, Faculty of Chemical Engineering, Babol Noshirvani University of Technology, , Babol, Iran;2. Advanced Membrane and Biotechnology Research Center, Faculty of Chemical Engineering, Babol Noshirvani University of Technology, , Babol, Iran;3. Fuel Cell Institute, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), , 43600 Bangi, Selangor Darul Ehsan, Malaysia |
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| Abstract: | Proton exchange membranes (PEMs) are the most frequently used separators in microbial fuel cells (MFCs). The role of proton transportation in MFC performance makes PEMs one of the most important components in the cell. The effect of PEMs in MFC performance is commonly determined according to generated power density and coulombic efficiency. Nafion is the commonly used membrane in MFCs, but there are still a number of problems associated with the use of Nafion including oxygen transfer rate, cation transport and accumulation rather than protons, membrane fouling and substrate loss. Moreover, additional problems can also be attributed to the effect of PEMs including internal resistance and pH change in MFCs. Recent developments in PEM performance are attributed to two categories including utilization of other types of membranes and improvements in Nafion by pre‐treatment methods. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. |
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| Keywords: | proton exchange membranes microbial fuel cells Nafion coulombic efficiency |
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