Nickel oxide/carbon nanotube/polyaniline nanocomposite as bifunctional anode catalyst for high-performance Shewanella-based dual-chamber microbial fuel cell

A novel nickel oxide/carbon nanotube/polyaniline (NCP) nanocomposite has been prepared and used to modify the electrocatalytic properties of carbon cloth anode in fabricating dual-chamber MFC. The prepared nanocomposite was characterized by scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, and fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The carbon cloth coated with the NCP nanocomposite showed the enhanced electrochemical performance as compared to bare carbon cloth anode. The electrochemical properties of the fabricated MFC with the modified anode have been investigated by linear sweep voltammetry and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. The maximum power density of the MFC using the novel NCP nanocomposite-carbon cloth anode increased by 61.88% compared to that of the bare carbon cloth anode. In comparison to the bare carbon cloth anode, the new composite anode showed 26.8% enhancement of current density output which it can be due to the enhancement of the charge transfer capability.