?url_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Adc&rft.relation=http%3A%2F%2Fd-scholarship-dev.library.pitt.edu%2F19352%2F&rft.title=Understanding+the+Influence+of+the+Electrode+Material+on+Microbial+Fuel+Cell+Performance&rft.creator=Sanchez%2C+David+V.P.&rft.description=In+this+thesis%2C+I+deploy+sets+of+electrodes+into+microbial+fuel+cells+(MFC)%2C+characterize+their+performance%2C+and+evaluate+the+influence+of+both+platinum+catalysts+and+carbon-based+electrodes+on+current+production.+The+platinum+work+centers+on+improving+current+production+by+optimizing+the+use+of+the+catalyst+using+nano-fabrication+techniques.+The+carbon-electrode+work+seeks+to+determine+the+influence+of+the+bare+electrode+on+biofilm-anode+current+production.+%0D%0A%0D%0AThe+development+of+electrodes+for+MFCs+has+boomed+over+the+past+decade%2C+however%2C+experiments+aimed+at+identifying+how+catalyst+deposition+methods+and+electrode+properties+influence+current+production+have+been+limited.+The+research+conducted+here+is+an+attempt+to+expand+this+knowledge+base+for+platinum+catalysts+and+carbon+electrodes.+In+the+initial+chapters+(4+and+5)%2C+I+discuss+our+attempt+to+decrease+catalyst+loadings+while+increasing+current+production+through+the+use+of+platinum+nanoparticles.+The+results+demonstrate+that+incorporating+platinum+nanoparticles+throughout+the+anode+and+cathode+is+an+efficient+means+of+increasing+MFC+current+production+relative+to+surface+deposition+because+it+increases+catalyst+surface+area.+%0D%0A%0D%0AThe+later+chapters+(chapters+6+and+7)+develop+an+understanding+of+the+importance+of+electrode+properties+(i.e.+surface+area%2C+activation+resistance%2C+conductivity%2C+surface+morphology)+by+electrochemically+evaluating+well-studied+anode-respiring+pure+cultures+on+different+carbon+electrode+architectures.+Two+different+architectures+are+produced+by+using+tubular+and+platelet+shaped+constituent+materials+(i.e.+carbon+fibers+and+graphene+nanoplatelets)+and+the+morphologies+of+the+electrodes+are+varied+by+altering+the+size+of+the+constituent+material.+%0D%0A+%0D%0AThe+electrodes+are+characterized+and+evaluated+in+MFCs+using+either+Shewanella+oneidensis+MR-1+or+Geobacter+sulfurreducens+as+the+innoculant+because+their+bioelectrochemical+physiologies+are+the+most+documented+in+the+literature.+Using+the+electrochemical+results%2C+the+electrode+characterizations+and+previous+studies+on+their+physiology+I+am+able+to+extrapolate+that+it+is+the+difference+in+the+electrode+morphology+that+significantly+alters+current+production.+For+the+carbon+fiber%2C+smaller+constituent+materials+create+a+tighter+mesh+and+spacing+that+is+more+amenable+to+biofilm+colonization+and+increases+current+production.+In+the+second+experiment%2C+the+larger+graphene-nanoplatelet+constituents+provided+a+morphology+that+better+promoted+biofilm-growth%2C+after+the+initial+colonization%2C+which+enabled+significantly+higher+current+production.+%0D%0A&rft.date=2013-09-25&rft.type=University+of+Pittsburgh+ETD&rft.type=PeerReviewed&rft.format=application%2Fpdf&rft.language=en&rft.identifier=http%3A%2F%2Fd-scholarship-dev.library.pitt.edu%2F19352%2F1%2FSanchezDavidVP_etdPitt2013.pdf&rft.identifier=++Sanchez%2C+David+V.P.++(2013)+Understanding+the+Influence+of+the+Electrode+Material+on+Microbial+Fuel+Cell+Performance.++Doctoral+Dissertation%2C+University+of+Pittsburgh.++++(Unpublished)++