ASU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
This collection includes most of the ASU Theses and Dissertations from 2011 to present. ASU Theses and Dissertations are available in downloadable PDF format; however, a small percentage of items are under embargo. Information about the dissertations/theses includes degree information, committee members, an abstract, supporting data or media.
In addition to the electronic theses found in the ASU Digital Repository, ASU Theses and Dissertations can be found in the ASU Library Catalog.
Dissertations and Theses granted by Arizona State University are archived and made available through a joint effort of the ASU Graduate College and the ASU Libraries. For more information or questions about this collection contact or visit the Digital Repository ETD Library Guide or contact the ASU Graduate College at gradformat@asu.edu.
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- Creators: Phillips, Stephen
Description
A Microbial fuel cell (MFC) is a bio-inspired carbon-neutral, renewable electrochemical converter to extract electricity from catabolic reaction of micro-organisms. It is a promising technology capable of directly converting the abundant biomass on the planet into electricity and potentially alleviate the emerging global warming and energy crisis. The current and power density of MFCs are low compared with conventional energy conversion techniques. Since its debut in 2002, many studies have been performed by adopting a variety of new configurations and structures to improve the power density. The reported maximum areal and volumetric power densities range from 19 mW/m2 to 1.57 W/m2 and from 6.3 W/m3 to 392 W/m3, respectively, which are still low compared with conventional energy conversion techniques. In this dissertation, the impact of scaling effect on the performance of MFCs are investigated, and it is found that by scaling down the characteristic length of MFCs, the surface area to volume ratio increases and the current and power density improves. As a result, a miniaturized MFC fabricated by Micro-Electro-Mechanical System(MEMS) technology with gold anode is presented in this dissertation, which demonstrate a high power density of 3300 W/m3. The performance of the MEMS MFC is further improved by adopting anodes with higher surface area to volume ratio, such as carbon nanotube (CNT) and graphene based anodes, and the maximum power density is further improved to a record high power density of 11220 W/m3. A novel supercapacitor by regulating the respiration of the bacteria is also presented, and a high power density of 531.2 A/m2 (1,060,000 A/m3) and 197.5 W/m2 (395,000 W/m3), respectively, are marked, which are one to two orders of magnitude higher than any previously reported microbial electrochemical techniques.
ContributorsRen, Hao (Author) / Chae, Junseok (Thesis advisor) / Bakkaloglu, Bertan (Committee member) / Phillips, Stephen (Committee member) / Goryll, Michael (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2016
Description
The recording of biosignals enables physicians to correctly diagnose diseases and prescribe treatment. Existing wireless systems failed to effectively replace the conventional wired methods due to their large sizes, high power consumption, and the need to replace batteries. This thesis aims to alleviate these issues by presenting a series of wireless fully-passive sensors for the acquisition of biosignals: including neuropotential, biopotential, intracranial pressure (ICP), in addition to a stimulator for the pacing of engineered cardiac cells. In contrast to existing wireless biosignal recording systems, the proposed wireless sensors do not contain batteries or high-power electronics such as amplifiers or digital circuitries. Instead, the RFID tag-like sensors utilize a unique radiofrequency (RF) backscattering mechanism to enable wireless and battery-free telemetry of biosignals with extremely low power consumption. This characteristic minimizes the risk of heat-induced tissue damage and avoids the need to use any transcranial/transcutaneous wires, and thus significantly enhances long-term safety and reliability. For neuropotential recording, a small (9mm x 8mm), biocompatible, and flexible wireless recorder is developed and verified by in vivo acquisition of two types of neural signals, the somatosensory evoked potential (SSEP) and interictal epileptic discharges (IEDs). For wireless multichannel neural recording, a novel time-multiplexed multichannel recording method based on an inductor-capacitor delay circuit is presented and tested, realizing simultaneous wireless recording from 11 channels in a completely passive manner. For biopotential recording, a wearable and flexible wireless sensor is developed, achieving real-time wireless acquisition of ECG, EMG, and EOG signals. For ICP monitoring, a very small (5mm x 4mm) wireless ICP sensor is designed and verified both in vitro through a benchtop setup and in vivo through real-time ICP recording in rats. Finally, for cardiac cell stimulation, a flexible wireless passive stimulator, capable of delivering stimulation current as high as 60 mA, is developed, demonstrating successful control over the contraction of engineered cardiac cells. The studies conducted in this thesis provide information and guidance for future translation of wireless fully-passive telemetry methods into actual clinical application, especially in the field of implantable and wearable electronics.
ContributorsLiu, Shiyi (Author) / Christen, Jennifer (Thesis advisor) / Nikkhah, Mehdi (Committee member) / Phillips, Stephen (Committee member) / Cao, Yu (Committee member) / Goryll, Michael (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2020