Kinetics and performance evaluation of microbial fuel cell supplied with dairy wastewater with simultaneous power generation

Due to the growing demand for energy in the present-day world, it is obligatory to look for alternative sources of renewable energy. The derivation of power from microbial fuel cells (MFCs) has developed at the vanguard of the alternative source of renewable energy through the concomitant treatment of wastewater. Hence, the process development of MFC is obligatory for creating a sustainable source of renewable energy through the treatment of wastewater. To that end, an attempt was taken in the present study for sustainable power generation from single chamber microbial fuel cell (SCMFC) using Pseudomonas aeruginosa-MTCC-7814. The experiments were carried out in a batch process for 15 days with real dairy wastewater (RDW) having initial chemical oxygen demand (COD) of 8000 mg/L. The open-circuit voltage (OCV) found after 72 h of batch operation was 658 mV, which was maximum within the batch operation. The columbic efficiency (CE) of the batch process was found to be 46.59%. The maximum specific growth rate (μ_max) of Pseudomonas aeruginosa-MTCC-7814 was found to be 0.432 day^?1 during batch operation. However, saturation constant (Ks) and inhibition coefficient (K_i) were calculated as 608.74 mg/L, and 6582 mg/L, respectively. The maximum current density (I_max) and saturation constant (K_c) predicted from batch kinetics study were 132 mA/m² and 321 mg/L, respectively, which has resemblance with the data obtained from experiments. The maximum current density and power density from experiments were found to be 161 mA/m² and 34.82 mW/m², respectively. Results showed that a higher power density and current density values were obtained from the present study as compared to the earlier reports that utilized wastewater as the substrate for the MFC. Thus, the study suggests that Pseudomonas aeruginosa, (MTCC-7814) can be used as a promising biocatalyst in MFC for sustainable power generation through the utilization of wastewater treatment.     

New SrMo1−xCrxO3−δ perovskites as anodes in solid-oxide fuel cells

Oxides of composition SrMo_1−xCr_xO_3−δ (x = 0.1, 0.2) have been prepared, characterized and tested as anode materials in single solid-oxide fuel cells, yielding output powers higher than 700 mW cm⁻² at 850 °C with pure H₂ as a fuel. All the materials are suggested to present mixed ionic–electronic conductivity (MIEC) from neutron powder diffraction (NPD) experiments, complemented with transport measurements; the presence of a Mo⁴⁺/Mo⁵⁺ mixed valence at room temperature, combined with a huge metal-like electronic conductivity, as high as 340 S cm⁻¹ at T = 50 °C for x = 0.1, could make these oxides good materials for solid-oxide fuel cells. The magnitude of the electronic conductivity decreases with increasing Cr-doping content. The reversibility of the reduction–oxidation between the oxidized Sr(Mo,Cr)O_4−δ scheelite and the reduced Sr(Mo,Cr)O₃ perovskite phases was studied by thermogravimetric analysis, which exhibit the required cyclability for fuel cells. An adequate thermal expansion coefficient, without abrupt changes, and a chemical compatibility with electrolytes make these oxides good candidates for anodes in intermediate-temperature SOFC (IT-SOFCs).     

Hydrogen production and consumption of organic acids by a phototrophic microbial consortium

Alternative fuel sources have been extensively studied. Hydrogen gas has gained attention because its combustion releases only water, and it can be produced by microorganisms using organic acids as substrates. The aim of this study was to enrich a microbial consortium of photosynthetic purple non-sulfur bacteria from an Upflow Anaerobic Sludge Blanket reactor (UASB) using malate as carbon source. After the enrichment phase, other carbon sources were tested, such as acetate (30 mmol l⁻¹), butyrate (17 mmol l⁻¹), citrate (11 mmol l⁻¹), lactate (23 mmol l⁻¹) and malate (14.5 mmol l⁻¹). The reactors were incubated at 30 °C under constant illumination by 3 fluorescent lamps (81 μmol m⁻² s⁻¹). The cumulative hydrogen production was 7.8, 9.0, 7.9, 5.6 and 13.9 mmol H₂ l⁻¹ culture for acetate, butyrate, citrate, lactate and malate, respectively. The maximum hydrogen yield was 0.6, 1.4, 0.7, 0.5 and 0.9 mmol H₂ mmol⁻¹ substrate for acetate, butyrate, citrate, lactate and malate, respectively. The consumption of substrates was 43% for acetate, 37% for butyrate, 100% for citrate, 49% for lactate and 100% for malate. Approximately 26% of the clones obtained from the Phototrophic Hydrogen-Producing Bacterial Consortium (PHPBC) were similar to Rhodobacter, Rhodospirillum and Rhodopseudomonas, which have been widely cited in studies of photobiological hydrogen production. Clones similar to the genus Sulfurospirillum (29% of the total) were also found in the microbial consortium.     

Effect of open circuit voltage on performance and degradation of high temperature PBI–H3PO4 fuel cells

The impact of open circuit voltage (OCV) on the performance and degradation of polybenzimidazole–phosphoric acid (PBI–H₃PO₄) fuel cells operated at 180 °C was investigated. The OCV showed an initial quick increase in the first few minutes, followed by a much slower increase, and peaked after about 35 min. It then started an exponential and monotonous decline. Along with the decline of OCV, the performance of the fuel cell also declined. Operating the fuel cell with a load of 0.2 A cm⁻² could temporarily boost the OCV and the fuel cell performance, but it could not recover the lost performance permanently. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) indicated significant loss of catalyst activity and increase in mass transport resistance due to the relatively high potential at OCV. X-ray diffraction (XRD) measurement showed that the cathode Pt crystallite size increased by as much as 430% after a total of 244.5 h of exposure to OCV.     

Self-assembled mesoporous carbon sensitized with ceria nanoparticles as durable catalyst support for PEM fuel cell

Mesocarbon-ceria nanocomposite is proposed for developing highly durable catalyst for the application in fuel cells. Ordered arrays of the mesoporous channels with d spacing of ∼8 nm and wall thickness of ∼3 nm are fabricated through a self-assembly route between the phenolic oligomers and PEO-containing P123 block polymer combined with self-assembly of CeOH₂⁺ and the surfactant. As a result, the Pt-mesocarbon-ceria presents a high electrochemically active surface of 105 m²/g_Pt. It is also found that ceria has an appreciable influence on the performance of the fuel cell at low humidity due to the water retention of ceria nanoparticles. At 75 RH% humidity of 65 °C, single cell assembled with Pt-mesocarbon-ceria has performance better than that of the conventional Pt/C catalyst. The Pt-mesocarbon-ceria displays high resistance to corrosion because of radical scavenges of ceria. Under long period operation at open circuit voltage (OCV), the voltage of the fuel cell assembled with Pt-mesocarbon-ceria has a slight decay rate of 9.5 μV/min, in comparison to 28.5 μV/min of conventional Pt/C. After an OCV accelerated degradation of 2000 min, the electrochemically active surface of Pt-mesocarbon-ceria is 45%, much lower than 70% of Pt/C catalyst.     

A novel Chinese parasol leaf biochar fuelled direct carbon solid oxide fuel cell for high performance electricity generation

A direct carbon solid oxide fuel cell is a new technology for clean and efficient utilization of carbon resources to generate electricity, with the advantages of high power generation efficiency and wide available fuel flexibility. Biomass, in virtue of large specific surface area, numerous oxygen-containing functional groups which can promote the electrooxidation of carbon, and low ash content which can increase the cell stability, reveals promising feasibility as a fuel for direct carbon fuel cells. Here we report a high-performance direct carbon fuel cell utilizing Chinese parasol leaf biochar as fuel, among which Ag–Gd_0.1Ce_0.9O_2-δ and Al₂O₃ doped yttria-stabilized zirconia are employed as symmetrical electrodes and electrolyte materials, respectively. The cell with pure leaf biochar fuel gives a maximum power density of 249 mW cm^?2 and an open circuit voltage (OCV) of 1.008 V at 850 °C while an improved performance of 272 mW cm^?2 and OCV of 1.01 V are achieved for the cell fuelled by Fe catalyst-loaded leaf biochar. The above results demonstrate that Chinese parasol leaf biochar can be applied as a potential fuel for high performance direct carbon solid oxide fuel cells.     

Fast ion channels for crab shell-based electrolyte fuel cells

Biomaterials possess abundant micro and macrospores in their microstructures, which can be functionalized as higher ion-transport channels. Herein we report calcined crab shell (CCS) forming nanocomposites with La_0.6Sr_0.4Co_0.2Fe_0.8O₃ (LSCF) perovskite as functional electrolytes for low temperature solid oxide fuel cells (LTSOFCs). The single CCS electrolyte fuel cell achieved open circuit voltage (OCV) at 0.9 V and a peak power density of 70 mW cm⁻² at 550 °C; while the highest OCV of 1.21 V and a maximum power density of 440 mW cm⁻² were achieved for the CCS-LSCF (40 wt. % LSCF) electrolyte fuel cell. The results are attributed to the ion channel construction and interface effect built in the CCS-LSCF composite. This work may provide a new strategy to develop novel biomaterial-based materials for LTSOFCs.     

Effect of the CeO2 nanoparticles in microporous layers on the durability of proton exchange membrane fuel cells

In this work, the effect of the CeO₂ in the microporous layer (MPL) on the durability of proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cells is investigated. The 400 h dry-wet accelerated stress test (AST) and the open-circuit voltage (OCV) holding testing were used to identify the function of CeO₂ in the microporous layer (MPL) on the durability and performance of MEA. The results show that the performance decay of the sample with CeO₂ is much smaller than the sample without CeO₂ (e.g., 24 mV vs. 140 mV@ 1200 mA cm⁻²). More importantly, the OCV decrease rate for sample without CeO₂ is as high as 7.250μV/cycle, which is 9.6 times as the value of 0.752μV/cycle for sample with CeO₂. And it is interesting that the addition of CeO₂ in MPL does not increase the inner resistance in the cell. Therefore, the addition of CeO₂ to the MPL not only can significantly improve the cell durability but also can effectively alleviate the negative impact of Ce ions on the proton conductivity in proton exchange membrane.     

Enhanced performance of microbial fuel cells by electrospinning carbon nanofibers hybrid carbon nanotubes composite anode

A novel carboxylated multiwalled carbon nanotubes/carbon nanofibers (CNTs/CNFs) composite electrode was fabricated by electrospinning. Heat pressing process was applied to improve the interconnection of fiber aggregates, mechanical stability and reduce the contact resistance. Optimal dose of carbon nanotubes was selected to fabricate the anode in microbial fuel cells after comparing with plain electrospinning CNFs anode and commercial carbon felt (CF) anode. As a result, the optimal anode delivered a maximum power density of 362 ± 20 mW m⁻², which is 110%, 122% higher than that of carbon nanofibers and carbon felt anodes. Cyclic voltammograms, Tafel and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy tests also verified that the prepared electrode has largest catalytic current (148 μA cm⁻²) and exchange current density i₀ (6.3 × 10⁻⁵ A cm⁻²), as well as smallest internal resistance (∼40 Ω). The as-prepared anode exhibited a better conductivity, excellent biocompatibility, good hydrophilicity and superior electrocatalytic activity, which was not only beneficial to the attachment and reproduction of microorganisms, but also promoted extracellular electron transfer between bacteria cells and the anode. This result shows that electrospinning has a promising perspective in fabricating high performance electrodes for microbial fuel cells.     

High-performance metal (Au,Cu)–polypyrrole nanocomposites for electrochemical borohydride oxidation in fuel cell applications

Gold polypyrrole (AuPPy) and copper polypyrrole (CuPPy) nanocomposites were prepared by a simple one-step in situ oxidative polymerization of pyrrole monomer by Au³⁺ and Cu²⁺ ions. Owing to their characteristic physicochemical properties confirmed by optical and structural characterization methods, the behavior of these materials as electrocatalysts for borohydride oxidation reaction (BOR) was considered. BOR apparent activation energy was found to be 16 and 22 kJ mol^?1 for AuPPy and CuPPy electrocatalyst, respectively. The stability of the two electrocatalysts was assessed by chronoamperometry. Moreover, fuel cell tests were carried out with AuPPy and CuPPy as anode electrocatalyst of a direct borohydride-peroxide fuel cell (DBPFC). Open circuit voltage (OCV) of 1.30 V was obtained with both AuPPy and CuPPy, with the OCV increasing to 1.45 V upon adding a small amount of carbon (AuPPy-C). The peak power density of a DBPFC with BOR at AuPPy-C anode and hydrogen peroxide reduction reaction at Pt cathode was found to be ca. 162 mW cm^?2 at 65 °C.     

Dual-phase electrolytes for advanced fuel cells

Double-phase electrolyte (DPE) consisting of doped CeO₂/NiAl solid phase and NaOH liquid phase was used for fuel cells utilizing LiNiO₂ anode and Ag cathode at working temperatures over 450 °C. It was shown that the cells can produce a maximum output power of 716.2 mW cm⁻² at 590 °C even though utilized with relatively large thickness of electrolyte, from 0.8 to 1.2 mm. Most measurements of open circuit voltage (OCV) range between 1 and 1.2 V; a significantly higher OCV value of 1.254 V was also obtained. Liquid channel conductive mechanism of NaOH in DPE is proposed; both O²⁻ and H⁺ concur to conduct the current; the doped CeO₂ transports O²⁻ ions, whereas the molten second phase transports H⁺ protons. Moreover, SEM observations and EDS analysis suggest that Na⁺ and OH⁻ also contribute to enhance both OCV and output power of our cells. The addition of NiAl to the doped CeO₂ increases the mechanical strength and the output power of DPE; however the reasons of this latter effect are still to be further investigated. The results show that DPE is a promising electrolyte to manufacture fuel cells with advanced performances.     

Isolation and characterization of a novel photoheterotrophic strain ‘Rubrivivax benzoatilyticus TERI-CHL1’: Photo fermentative hydrogen production from spent effluent

A novel hydrogen producing photosynthetic bacterial strain identified as ‘Rubrivivax benzoatilyticus TERI-CHL1’ was isolated and purified from ‘TERI-CHL’ consortium’ enriched from the sediment samples of Chilika lagoon in Chilika, Odisha, India. Process parameters; pH & temperature, were optimized to enhance hydrogen production performence strain ‘TERI-CHL1’. Acetate, butyrate, sucrose and the spent effluent (DFE: Dark Fermentation effluent) from dark fermentative hydrogen production, explored to use as feed for monitoring hydrogen production performance of ‘TERI-CHL1’ through photo-heterotrophic growth mode. ‘TERI-CHL1’ produced 86.4 mmol/L of cumulative hydrogen from DFE at pH 7 and 37 °C temperature, with 75% H₂ yield efficiency. Hydrogen yield efficiency of ‘TERI-CHL1’ from DFE was 8.74 mol per mole of DFE based fermentable organic acids and sugar. This study is the first report on Rubrivivax benzoatilyticus strain ‘TERI-CHL1’ as a promising microbe for valorisation of organic acid rich spent effluent for photofermentative biohydrogen production from Chilika lagoon.     

Ni-Sm2O3 cermet anodes for intermediate-temperature solid oxide fuel cells with stabilized zirconia electrolytes

Ni-LnO_x cermets (Ln = La, Ce, Pr, Nd, Sm, Eu, Gd), in which LnO_x is not an oxygen ion conductor, have shown high performance as the anodes for low-temperature solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs) with doped ceria electrolytes. In this work, Ni-Sm₂O₃ cermets are primarily investigated as the anodes for intermediate-temperature SOFCs with scandia stabilized zirconia (ScSZ) electrolytes. The electrochemical performances of the Ni-Sm₂O₃ anodes are characterized using single cells with ScSZ electrolytes and LSM-YSB composite cathodes. The Ni-Sm₂O₃ anodes exhibit relatively lower performance, compared with that reported Ni-SDC (samaria doped ceria) and Ni-YSZ (yttria stabilized zirconia) anodes, the state-of-the-art electrodes for SOFCs based on zirconia electrolytes. The relatively low performance is possibly due to the solid-state reaction between Sm₂O₃ and ScSZ in fuel cell fabrication processes. By depositing a thin interlayer between the Ni-Sm₂O₃ anode and the ScSZ electrolyte, the performance is substantially improved. Single cells with a Ni-SDC interlayer show stable open circuit voltage, generate peak power density of 410 mW cm⁻² at 700 °C, and the interfacial polarization is about 0.7 Ω cm².     

Highly charged and stable cross-linked polysulfone alkaline membrane for fuel cell applications: 4,4,-((3,3'-bis(chloromethyl)-(1,1'-biphenyl)-4,4-diyl)bis(oxy))dianiline (BCBD) a novel cross-linker

Alkaline membrane (AM) shows fast transport of OH⁻ towards the anode, separates both electrodes, and prevents fuel cross-over. To achieve good membrane conductivity and performance, high concentration of positively charged groups (quaternary ammonium) is an essential requirement, which also leads excessive swelling and mechanical instability of the AMs. Further, directly grafted quaternary ammonium (QA) with main polymer chain substitution and/or elimination reactions under strong alkaline environment. To avoid above-mentioned problems, we report preparation of cross-linked chloromethylated polysulfone based AM using (4,4^,-((3,3′-bis(chloromethyl)-[1.1′-biphenyl]-4,4-diyl)bis(oxy))dianiline) (BCBD), a multi-functional novel cross-linking agent. Reported strategy compensates 2 mol of chloromethyl groups consumed during cross-linking, but additional functional groups (4 mol) with cross-linking agent. These AMs are designed to avoid the nucleophilic substitution (S_N²) (grafting quaternary ammonium (QA) groups at benzylic position), and Hofmann elimination (E²) reactions (unavailability of β-H), under strong alkaline environment. Effective cross-linking has been confirmed by spectral analysis, and improves membrane stabilities and fuel cell performance. Single-cell alkaline membrane fuel cell (AEMFC) performance of most suitable (CR-QPS-03) membrane, showed comparatively high performance (open circuit voltage (OCV): 0.813 V, maximum power density: 103.6 mW/cm² at 260.0 mA/cm²) in compare with Nafion 117 membrane (OCV: 0.682 V, maximum power density: 63.36 mW/cm² at 220.0 mA/cm²) under similar experimental conditions.     

Screen-printed thin YSZ films used as electrolytes for solid oxide fuel cells

A thin yttria-stabilized zirconia (8 mol% YSZ) film was successfully fabricated on a NiO-YSZ anode substrate by a screen-printing technique. The scanning electron microscope (SEM) results suggested that the YSZ film thickness was about 31 μm after sintering at 1400 °C for 4 h in air. A 60 wt% La_0.7Sr_0.3MnO₃ + 40 wt% YSZ was screen-printed onto the YSZ film surface as cathode. A single cell was tested from 650 to 850 °C using hydrogen as fuel and ambient air as oxidant, which showed an open circuit voltage (OCV) of 1.02 V and a maximum power density of 1.30 W cm⁻² at 850 °C. The OCV was higher than 1.0 V, which suggested that the YSZ film was quite dense and that the fuel gas leakage through the YSZ film was negligible. Screen-printing can be a promising method for manufacturing YSZ films for solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs).     

Small boreholes embedded in the sediment layers make big difference in performance of sediment microbial fuel cells: Bioelectricity generation and microbial community

The practical applications of sediment microbial fuel cells (SMFCs) are limited by their low power densities. In this work, a novel SMFC configuration with a cylindrical borehole embedded in the sediment layer is proposed with expectations of reducing internal resistance, enhancing mass transfer, and accordingly increasing power density. Two types of boreholes with same diameter of 10 cm, but different depths of 3 cm and 6 cm are constructed in SMFCs (SMFC-3 and SMFC-6). Results demonstrate that SMFC-3 produces the highest maximum power density (65.6 mW/m²), which is 25.5% and 65.6% higher than that in SMFC-6 (52.3 mW/m²) and the control SMFC (SMFC-C, 39.4 mW/m²), respectively. The improved power performance in SMFC-3 is mainly due to the greatly reduced internal resistance. Compared to SMFC-6, the higher power density in SMFC-3 is also due to the relatively low overlying water pH values, providing suitable pH condition for cathodic reactions. Microbial community analyses demonstrate that Alphaproteobacteria and Gammaproteobacteria are major contributors to the bioelectricity, and that electroactive species enriched on the top and bottom sides of anodes are significantly different. Generally, embedding a small borehole into the sediment layer is an easy-to-implement and cost-effective strategy for improving the power performance of SMFCs.     

Carbon nanotube/polyaniline composite as anode material for microbial fuel cells

A carbon nanotube (CNT)/polyaniline (PANI) composite is evaluated as an anode material for high-power microbial fuel cells (MFCs). Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) are employed to characterize the chemical composition and morphology of plain PANI and the CNT/PANI composite. The electrocatalytic behaviour of the composite anode is investigated by means of electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) and discharge experiments. The current generation profile and constant current discharge curves of anodes made from plain PANI, 1 wt.% and 20 wt.% CNT in CNT–PANI composites reveal that the performance of the composite anodes is superior. The 20 wt.% CNT composite anode has the highest electrochemical activity and its maximum power density is 42 mW m⁻² with Escherichia coli as the microbial catalyst. In comparison with the reported performance of different anodes used in E. coli-based MFCs, the CNT/PANI composite anode is excellent and is promising for MFC applications.     

CeO2 coated NaFeO2 proton-conducting electrolyte for solid oxide fuel cell

Nowadays, the low-temperature operation has become an inevitable trend for the development of SOFCs. Transition metal layered oxides are considered as promising electrolyte materials for low-temperature solid oxide fuel cells (LT-SOFCs). In this work, we report the CeO₂ coated NaFeO₂ as an electrolyte material for LT-SOFC. The study results revealed that the piling of CeO₂ significantly influenced the open-circuit voltage (OCV) as well as the power output of the fuel cells. In comparison with pure NaFeO₂, the denser structure of CeO₂ coated NaFeO₂ leads to higher OCV (1.06 V, 550 °C). The electrochemical impedance spectrum (EIS) fitted results showed that NaFeO₂–CeO₂ composites possessed higher ionic boundary conductivity. This is because that the hetero-interfaces between NaFeO₂ and CeO₂ provide fast ion conducting path. The high ionic conductivity of CeO₂ coated NaFeO₂ lead to admirable fuel cell power output of 727 mW cm^?2 at 550 °C.     

A triple (e−/O2−/H+) conducting perovskite BaCo0.4Fe0.4Zr0.1Y0.1O3-δ for low temperature solid oxide fuel cell

Low-temperature solid oxide fuel cells (LT-SOFCs) have recently gained enormous attention worldwide with a new research trend focusing on single layer fuel cells (SLFC), which have better cell performance than traditional SOFCs at low operating temperatures. In this study, a triple (e^?/O^2?/H⁺) conducting perovskite BaCo_0.4Fe_0.4Zr_0.1Y_0.1O_3-δ (BCFZY) is used as the intermediate layer material for SLFC. A high current density of 994 mA/cm² at 0.6 V and a peak power density of 610 mW/cm² with an OCV of 1.01 V has been achieved with a cell operating temperature of 550 °C, confirming the application feasibility of BCFZY in SLFCs. Furthermore, a typical proton conductor BaZr_0.8Y_0.2O_3-δ (BZY) is introduced into BCFZY to enhance the cell performance. By adjusting the mass ratio of the BCFZY-BZY layer, an optimal power density is obtained, achieving 703 mW/cm² with an OCV of 1.03 V at 550 °C with an 8BCFZY:2BZY (wt%) ratio. These findings prove that the proposed BCFZY-BZY holds great promise for developing SLFCs to realize low-temperature operation.     

Electrooxidation study of pure ethanol/methanol and their mixture for the application in direct alcohol alkaline fuel cells (DAAFCs)

Aliphatic alcohol mainly, ethanol, methanol and their mixture were subjected to electrooxidation study using cyclic voltammetry (CV) technique in a three electrodes half cell assembly (PGSTAT204, Autolab Netherlands). A single cell set up of direct alcohol alkaline fuel cell (DAAFC) was fabricated using laboratory synthesized alkaline membrane to validate the CV results. The DAAFC conditions were kept similar as that of CV experiments. The anode and cathode electrocatalysts were Pt-Ru (30%:15% by wt.)/Carbon black (C) (Alfa Aesar, USA) and Pt (40% by wt.)/High Surface Area Carbon (C_HSA) (Alfa Aesar, USA) respectively. The CV and single cell experiments were performed at a temperature of 30 °C. The anode electrocatalyst was in the range of 0.5 mg/cm² to 1.5 mg/cm² for half cell CV analysis. The cell voltage and current density data were recorded for different concentrations of fuel (ethanol or methanol) and their mixture mixed with different concentration of KOH as electrolyte. The optimum electrocatalyst loading in half cell study was found to be 1 mg/cm² of Pt-Ru/C irrespective of fuel used. The single cell was tested using optimum anode loading of 1 mg/cm² of Pt-Ru/C which was found in CV experiment. Cathode loading was kept similar, in the order of 1 mg/cm² Pt/C_HSA. In single cell experiment, the maximum open circuit voltage (OCV) of 0.75 V and power density of 3.57 mW/cm² at a current density of 17.76 mA/cm² were obtained for the fuel of 2 M ethanol mixed with 1 M KOH. Whereas, maximum OCV of 0.62 V and power density of 7.10 mW/cm² at a current density of 23.53 mA/cm² were obtained for the fuel of 3 M methanol mixed with 6 M KOH. The mixture of methanol and ethanol (1:3) mixed with 0.5 M KOH produced the maximum OCV of 0.66 V and power density of 1.98 mW/cm² at a current density of 11.54 mA/cm².