Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jan 30, 2026

Ion-Exchange Membranes for the Fabrication of Reverse Electrodialysis Device
Published on: July 20, 2021
Behavior of two-chamber microbial electrochemical systems started-up with different ion-exchange membrane separators
László Koók1, Elie Desmond-Le Quéméner2, Péter Bakonyi1
1Research Institute on Bioengineering, Membrane Technology and Energetics, University of Pannonia, Egyetem ut 10, 8200 Veszprém, Hungary.
Abstract:
In this study, microbial fuel cells (MFCs) - operated with novel cation- and anion-exchange membranes, in particular AN-VPA 60 (CEM) and PSEBS DABCO (AEM) - were assessed comparatively with Nafion proton exchange membrane (PEM). The process characterization involved versatile electrochemical (polarization, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy - EIS, cyclic voltammetry - CV) and biological (microbial structure analysis) methods in order to reveal the influence of membrane-type during start-up. In fact, the use of AEM led to 2-5 times higher energy yields than CEM and PEM and the lowest MFC internal resistance (148 ± 17 Ω) by the end of start-up. Regardless of the membrane-type, Geobacter was dominantly enriched on all anodes. Besides, CV and EIS measurements implied higher anode surface coverage of redox compounds for MFCs and lower membrane resistance with AEM, respectively. As a result, AEM based on PSEBS DABCO could be found as a promising material to substitute Nafion.
Related Concept Videos
Ion Exchange
What is an Electrochemical Gradient?
The chemical gradient relies on differences in the abundance of a substance on the outside versus the inside of a cell and flows from areas of high to low ion concentration. In contrast, the electrical gradient revolves around an...
Ion-Exchange Chromatography
Social Exchange Theory
Gas Exchange and Transport
Ion Channels
Ion channels are specialized integral membrane proteins on the plasma membrane that allow...

