ABSTRACT
There are three types of batteries: primary, secondary, and fuel cells. A fuel cell is an electrochemical device that converts chemical energy into electrical energy via catalysts. Fuel cells have many advantages over the two other types of batteries due to the fact they can be regenerated with the addition of fuel specific to the system. Traditional fuel cells employ heavy metal or precious metal catalysts, whereas biofuel cells employ biological catalysts (enzymes). Enzymes are highly specific catalysts, so they allow for the simplification of the fuel cell by eliminating the need for a polymer electrolyte membrane, which is one of the mostly costly parts of a fuel cell. Dehydrogenase enzymes have been employed at the anode of biofuel cells to oxidize alcohols. Methanol, ethanol, propanol, and butanol are examples of alcohols that can be used in biofuel 216cells. Long-term goals include investigating a variety of power applications for this technology ranging from portable electronics to sensors.
