In-Situ Continuous Production of Hydrogen Gas from Molasses Using Mutated Enterobacter aerogenes ADH43 for Fuel Cell Application

(Received: October 13, 2011; Accepted: November 25, 2011) Abstract: The performance of the continuous stirred tank reactor (CSTR) for the in-situ production of hydrogen gas (H ) integrated with a polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) was investigated. Facultative 2 anaerobe fermentation of Enterobacter aerogenes ADH-43 was conducted into CSTR 50 rpm of agitation speed, 37°C of temperature, 6.3 of pH and 0.15; 0.3; 0.45; 0.60 hG of dilution rate. Bio-H produced was assessed after 1 2 inserting it into a fuel cell to generate electricity and measuring voltages. The system was integrated with a ceramic membrane having 0.2 μm pore size for recycling the retentive cell into reactor and separating the permeate supernatant during the fermentation. The obtained H was purified from CO by absorption in Ca(OH) 2 2 2 solution prior to feed to PEMFC. The CSTR was initially operated on batch basis to increase the bacterial cell density to ensure the production of sufficient H and develop a feeding culture strategy for continues operation 2 mode. The result showed that the highest H production achieved at continuous system resulted in 0.30 hG 2 1