Effect of Carbon Sources on the Catalytic Performance of Ni/β-Mo2C

In this paper, Ni/β-Mo₂C(S) and Ni/β-Mo₂C(G) were prepared from solution-derived precursor with two different carbon sources (starch and glucose) and tested as anodic noble-metal-free catalysts in air-cathode microbial fuel cells (MFCs). The carburized catalyst samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscope (SEM), and Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET). The activity of the electrocatalyst towards the oxidation of several common microbial fermentation products (formate, lactate, and ethanol) was studied for MFC based on Klebsiella pneumoniae conditions. The composite MFC anodes were fabricated, and their catalytic behavior was investigated. With different carbon sources, the crystalline structure does not change and the crystallinity and surface area increase. The electrocatalytic experiments show that the Ni/β-Mo₂C(G) gives the better bio- and electrocatalytic performance than Ni/β-Mo₂C(S) due to its higher crystallinity and BET surface area.