A shriveled rectangular carbon tube with the concave surface for high-performance enzymatic glucose/O2 biofuel cells

Abstract

In this study, a novel carbon tube was prepared by carbonizing a rectangular polypyrrole (RPPy) tube at a high temperature for the construction of enzymatic biofuel cells with high performance. SEM and TEM images clearly showed that the initial PPy presented a rectangular tube shape, while the carbonized PPy became a shriveled rectangular tube with a concave surface, which might be beneficial for enzyme immobilization and electrochemical applications. The glucose oxidase (GOx)- or laccase (Lac)-modified electrodes based on carbonized RPPy exhibited excellent bioelectrochemical performance. In addition, a biofuel cell (GOx, glucose/O2, Lac) was assembled, and the open-circuit voltage reached 1.16 V. The maximum power density was measured to 0.350 mW cm−2, which correlated to the gravimetric power density of 0.265 mW mg−1 (per mg of GOx) at 0.85 V. The constant-current discharge method was used to further evaluate the continuous discharge capacity. The discharge time reached 49.9 h at a discharge current of 0.2 mA before the voltage was lower than 0.8 V. Furthermore, three of the fabricated biofuel cells in series were able to continually light up a white light-emitting diode (LED) whose turn-on voltage was ca. 2.4 V for more than 48 h. This study suggests that carbonized conducting polymers may become a useful electrode material for the development of enzymatic biofuel cells.