Spontaneous modification of graphite anode by anthraquinone-2-sulfonic acid for microbial fuel cells

In this study, anthraquinone-2-sulfonic acid (AQS), an electron transfer mediator, was immobilized onto graphite felt surface via spontaneous reduction of the in situ generated AQS diazonium cations. Cyclic voltammetry (CV) and energy dispersive spectrometry (EDS) characterizations of AQS modified graphite demonstrated that AQS was covalently grafted onto the graphite surface. The modified graphite, with a surface AQS concentration of 5.37 ± 1.15 × 10−9 mol/cm2, exhibited good electrochemical activity and high stability. The midpoint potential of the modified graphite was about −0.248 V (vs. normal hydrogen electrode, NHE), indicating that electrons could be easily transferred from NADH in bacteria to the electrode. AQS modified anode in MFCs increased the maximum power density from 967 ± 33 mW/m2 to 1872 ± 42 mW/m2. These results demonstrated that covalently modified AQS functioned as an electron transfer mediator to facilitate extracellular electron transfer from bacteria to electrode and significantly enhanced the power production in MFCs.