Incorporating Bioinspired Nanomaterials for Increased Efficiency in Fuel Cell Technology

Abstract

Efficient energy harvesting and storing methods hold the key to a sustainable society. With the advances in computation and modeling over the past few decades, novel approaches to discovery, design and fabrication of unconventional nanomaterials and biomaterials have been proposed. Here we describe our efforts in designing and fine-tuning the properties of a hybrid bilayer membrane (HBM) nanosystem to optimize the performance of an oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) catalyst which can lead to innovative scalable fuel cell technology [1]. Biophysical modeling further supports the mechanistic findings related to the HBM [2]. The nanosystem, consisting of five parts with tunable parameters, can be used to independently adjust and catalyze the rates of electron and proton transfer. By selectively fine-tuning the rates, elimination of undesired by-products can be achieved, increasing the energy efficiency of the process. Simulation studies on the diffusion mechanism across the HBM support the proposed transport mechanism and can lead to new adjustable parameters, further enhancing the performance of the bio-inspired nanomaterial. Interdisciplinary discussions on the scalable fabrication of the nanosystem, with insights from computational studies, will be facilitated with the presentation of recent data. In summary, our nanosystem will shed light on not only the catalytic performance of fine-tuned hybrid bilayer membrane, but also offer opportunities to further develop innovative fuel cell technology with nanomaterials of tomorrow.