Miniaturized ascorbic acid fuel cells with flexible electrodes made of graphene-coated carbon fiber cloth

Abstract

Abstract Ascorbic acid (AA) is a biologically friendly compound and exists in many products such as sports drinks, fruit, and even in human blood. Thus, a miniaturized and flexible ascorbic acid fuel cell (AAFC) is expected be a power source for portable or implantable electric devices. In this study, we fabricated an AAFC with anode and cathode dimensions of 3 × 10 mm 2 made of a graphene-coated carbon fiber cloth (GCFC) and found that GCFC electrodes significantly improve the power generated by the AAFC. This is because the GCFC has more than two times the effective surface area of a conventional carbon fiber cloth and it can contain more enzymes. The power density of the AAFC in a phosphate buffer solution containing 100 mM AA at room temperature was 34.1 µW/cm 2 at 0.46 V. Technical issues in applying the AAFC to portable devices are also discussed.