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Projects: Projects for Investigator
Reference Number EP/D047943/1
Title The Supergen Biological Fuel Cells Consortium
Status Completed
Energy Categories Hydrogen and Fuel Cells(Fuel Cells, Stationary applications) 80%;
Renewable Energy Sources(Bio-Energy, Applications for heat and electricity) 20%;
Research Types Basic and strategic applied research 100%
Science and Technology Fields PHYSICAL SCIENCES AND MATHEMATICS (Chemistry) 45%;
PHYSICAL SCIENCES AND MATHEMATICS (Metallurgy and Materials) 15%;
ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY (Civil Engineering) 20%;
ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY (Mechanical, Aeronautical and Manufacturing Engineering) 20%;
UKERC Cross Cutting Characterisation Not Cross-cutting 100%
Principal Investigator Professor FA (Fraser ) Armstrong
No email address given
Oxford Chemistry
University of Oxford
Award Type Standard
Funding Source EPSRC
Start Date 18 April 2006
End Date 17 October 2010
Duration 54 months
Total Grant Value £2,022,490
Industrial Sectors Energy; Transport Systems and Vehicles
Region South East
Programme Energy : Energy
 
Investigators Principal Investigator Professor FA (Fraser ) Armstrong , Oxford Chemistry, University of Oxford (99.995%)
  Other Investigator Dr GC (Giuliano ) Premier , School of Technology, University of Glamorgan (0.001%)
Professor RCT (Robert ) Slade , Chemistry, University of Surrey (0.001%)
Professor ZX (Zheng Xiao ) Guo , Chemistry, University College London (0.001%)
Professor CJ Pickett , Chemical Sciences and Pharmacy, University of East Anglia (0.001%)
Dr WT Sloan , Civil Engineering, University of Glasgow (0.001%)
  Industrial Collaborator Project Contact , CMR Fuel Cells Ltd (0.000%)
Project Contact , MAST Carbon (0.000%)
Project Contact , Thames Water Utilities Plc (0.000%)
Project Contact , Anglian Water (0.000%)
Project Contact , Biocatalysts Ltd (0.000%)
Project Contact , Chameleon Biosurfaces Ltd (0.000%)
Project Contact , Yorkshire Water (0.000%)
Web Site http://www.biologicalfuelcells.org.uk/
Objectives
Abstract A consortium of teams from 6 universities aims to achieve major advances in a technology that potentially produces electricity directly from sustainable biological materials and air, in devices known as biological fuel cells. These devices are of two main types: in microbial fuel cells micro-organisms convert organic materials into fuels that can be oxidised in electrochemical cells, and in enzymatic fuel cells electricity is produced as a result of the action of an enzyme (a biological catalyst). Fuels that can be used include (1) pure biochemicals such as glucose, (2) hydrogen gas and (3) organic chemicals present in waste water.The Consortium programme involves a unique combination of microbiology, enzymology, electrochemistry, materials science and computational modelling. Key challenges that the Consortium will face include modelling and understanding the interaction of an electrochemical cell and a population of micro-organisms, attaching and optimising appropriate enzymes, developing and studying synthetic assemblies that contain the active site of a natural enzyme, optimising electrode materials for this application, and designing, building and testing novel biologicalfuel cells.A Biofuel Cells Industrial Club is to be formed, with industrial partners active in water management, porous materials, microbiology, biological catalysis and fuel cell technology. The programme and its outcomes will be significant steps towards producing electricity from materials andtechniques originating in the life sciences. The technology is likely to be perceived as greenerthan use of solely chemical and engineering approaches, and there is considerable potential for spin off in changed technologies (e.g. cost reductions, reduction in the need for precious metals, biological catalysts for production of hydrogen by electrolysis)
Publications (none)
Final Report (none)
Added to Database 01/01/07