Design & Development of Direct Bioethanol Fuel

Cell of Manual and Automatic Draining &

Replenishment using Arduino Microcontroller
Cristian Jay P. Gamboa#1, Renato M. Lizardo III#2, Alvin C. Romero#3, Aaron Jay Ricardo S. Silva#4,
Jesus M. Martinez#5, Dr. Allan N. Soriano#6
,School of Electrical, Electronics and Computer Engineering
Mapúa University
Muralla St., Intramuros, Manila 1002 Metro Manila, Philippines
1
cjdgamboa@mymail.mapua.edu.ph, 2rimlizardo@mymail.mapua.edu.ph, 3adromero@mymail.mapua.edu.ph,
4
ajrssilva@mymail.mapua.edu.ph, 5jmmartinez@mapua.edu.ph, 6ansoriano@mapua.edu.ph
aims to conduct efficacy test using manual control to
Abstract- The purpose of this thesis is to design a direct ethanol determine its capacity, and compare its relationship
fuel system able to harness electricity from mixture of bioethanol
and water. Using the concept of electrochemical reaction where between the percentage content bioethanol to pH level, liquid
the reactions are placed at the MEA (Membrane Electrode level and the voltage and current generated; and to determine
Assembly) which consists of anode, cathode and the membrane. the percent content of bioethanol needed to obtain constant
The output is DC voltage through the stack of the fuel cell where
output voltage using automatic control of the valves of the
it is connected in series. The Arduino microcontroller will be the
one measuring the voltage, current, and the water level and will storage tank to the fuel cell tank to charge a battery and
control the servo motor. Through capacity test using manual powering common low-power gadgets or lighting.
control, the capacity was determined, and its relationship
between the percentage content bioethanol was compare liquid The coverage of this study will focus on the design
level and the voltage and current generated; and to determine the and construction of a fuel cell that can convert the mixture of
percent content of bioethanol needed to obtain constant output water and different percent content of bioethanol with and
voltage using automatic control of the servo motor. The data without automatic control. Thus, this study will not cover the
measured in the Arduino microcontroller was displayed through fermentation of the yields and searching for other sources that
LCD screen.
can produce higher percent content. The study is also limited
Keywords – Direct Ethanol Fuel Cell, Electrochemical Reaction, to produce only voltage outputs enough to charge batteries and
Membrane Electrode Assembly, Bioethanol, Microcontroller powering common low-power gadget and lightning as we
found out there is no intensive research method yet of
I. INTRODUCTION increasing the output values of the fuel cell.

The demand for the technology on renewable source

II. METHODOLOGY
of electricity is now increasing as many of these are now being
in research and development which will improved to sustain
electrical energy. As these alternative sources of energy are
discovered it should be efficient and environment friendly. In
addition, there is also increase in consumption on portable
devices however it has it has limited period of operation due to
energy storage limits. One of the things that can harness
renewable energy in the form of electrical energy is using Fuel
Cells. Fuel Cells are devices that convert chemical energy
from a fuel into electrical energy without combustion. One
type of this is Direct Ethanol Fuel Cells or DEFCs in which it
is a device that will convert mixture of water and derived
ethanol into electrical energy. Usage of Bioethanol is
sustainable and as classified as a renewable source as it can be
produced from agricultural byproducts through fermentation.
Fig. 1 Methodology Flow Process

The study aims to design and develop a Direct Bioethanol Fig. 1 displays the process that the study will follow. It
Fuel Cell comprising of Manual and Automatic Draining & will start on the design of the fuel cell where it should be
Replenishment using Arduino Microcontroller. Specifically, it capable in producing electricity from the inserted bioethanol.
Thus, the researcher must gather the most suitable material for
the anode and the cathode in which it can provide high Fig. 3 shows the design for exhaustion and intake
efficiency in converting to electricity. The researcher must Gases which, where small holes are shown which is required
also take in consideration the design of between plates to to reduce spillage in the flow. Also, it includes the intake of
adjust necessary for the intake and exhaust of gases, ethanol the mixture of the Water and Bioethanol and the drain for the
and water. Next up will be the Development of Program Water. Two acrylic plates together with the holes for the
Algorithm on Arduino Microcontroller connected to the screws are included to secure the two plates together. The
sensors to monitor the voltage of the Fuel Cell and the booster output of the fuel cell is connected to each of the cathode
voltage, mixture level and servo motor which will be used to where the positive terminal is connected and the anode is the
control the flow between the storage tanks and the waste tank negative terminal.
where the water is drained. Initialization of the Direct
Bioethanol Fuel Cell System is done by manually controlling
the valves to charge the battery connected to the Fuel Cell in
order for the battery to store electricity. The Modification and
Calibration is conducted on the program of the microcontroller
to make the measurement accurate and to stabilize the system.
A Final test will be conducted by measuring the needed
parameters from the sensors to the Arduino microcontroller.
And lastly, the Gathering of Data will be extracted from the Fig. 3 Fuel Cell
microcontroller which is displayed for the Statistical Analysis
to determine if the objective is achieved. The aim of this study B. Setup for the Direct Ethanol Fuel Cell
is to design a fuel cell that can produce electricity from the
bioethanol mixture. It includes the construction of a fuel cell
consisting of automatic refilling which can provide constant
output DC voltage. The materials and procedures done for the
Fuel Cell system will be discussed here. It will also be
discussed in this chapter the valves, Arduino and other
materials used to construct the DEFC system on how it can
make the output stable together with the key processes for its
operation, its implementation, the test that will be conducted
and its measurements. The hands-on usage of bioethanol will
systematically be presented in chartered results.
Fig. 4 Setup for the Direct Ethanol Fuel Cell

A. Design & Construction of Direct Ethanol Fuel Cell
System
The figure below shows how the fuel cell will
convert mixture of ethanol and water into electrical energy. Its
Catalyst in the Anode and the Cathode will be Platinum based,
having a membrane in the middle. The figure shows how the
water and ethanol is consumed by the Anode and the Protons
(H+) is transported by the Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM)
to the Cathode in which will react to the Oxygen that will
produce water. Electrons are generated from Anode to
Cathode thus producing the current.
This figure shows the setup for direct bioethanol fuel
cell. (1) The storage tank contains the trial mixture of the
bioethanol and water; (2) then it flows through a tube and is
connected to an ethanol container where the fuel cell is
directly connected. In between will be a servo motor where the
flow is controlled which will depend on the output of the fuel
cells; (3) the output of the fuel cell is connected to the
rechargeable battery where it will be charged. Also, the
Arduino UNO is connected for measuring the voltage and its
current. When the Arduino microcontroller measured a
voltage that is below the threshold voltage, it will switch the
servo motor 2 on to drain for 5 sec; (4) then a Voltage Booster
that is connected to the battery will boost up the voltage that is
coming from the battery up to 5V and above and connects it to
the (5) load; and lastly, (6) the tank where the waste mixture
of bioethanol and water will flow is specified.

C. System Development and Prototyping

Fig. 2 Chemical Reaction Inside the Fuel Cell

 Fig. 5 A.) Arduino Uno B.) Rechargeable Battery C.) Voltage Booster
During the development of the prototype, the group
used one Arduino Uno microcontroller, LCD 4x20 Screen,
Voltage Booster, Push Button Switch, Toggle Switch, Rocker
Switch, USB Cable and two Rechargeable Battery N1-CD.
Arduino Uno is a microcontroller that operates at 5V, has 14
digital I/O and 6 analog input pins, a USB connection, and a
reset button. The Arduino software were used to program and
in coding the microcontroller with the group desired system
program flow and algorithm to operate the transmittal
information coming from the input devices like ultrasonic
sensor, floater sensor, push button, switches, batteries and
ethanol fuel cells and also to control the output data that will
show on the LCD screen. The two rechargeable batteries N1-
CD were used as an electricity storage that is coming from the
fuel cells while the voltage booster will boost up the electricity
to reach the desired 5V output.
D. Testing and Data Gathering Procedure
An experimental set-up was created to test the
function and voltage output of the prototype if it will
accomplish the objectives. The prototype is composed of two
tanks which are the storage tank and waste tank, an ultrasonic
sensor and floater sensor to detect the volume of the mixture
in the tank and to control the flow of mixture in the prototype
two ervo motors was installed, three fuel cells that will convert
the mixture to electricity, rechargeable batteries that serves as
electricity storage, voltage booster to boost up the voltage to a
minimum of 5V and Arduino microcontroller to control the
servo motors and measure the voltage and current. To
determine the suitable percent content of bioethanol and/or
water level suitable to obtain the most efficient in terms of
generating voltage and current, the researchers conducted
different trials which are 10% and 15% of bioethanol mixture.
Fig. 6 Direct Bioethanol Fuel Cell Prototype Setup
The mixture will be put in the storage tank which will
be transported to the container where the fuel cell is
connected. Different content of percentage of the bioethanol
will be situated in the storage tank and two types of test will
be made where the first part is at manual control and the
second part is with the automatic control. Before testing, The
Fuel cell is initially charged for 15 minutes to increase the
efficiency. The voltage output and current generated of the
fuel cell, the voltage output of the booster, and the water level
of the storage tank is measured simultaneously in an interval
of 5 minutes. These data that are processed by the Arduino
connected to the LCD screen which are tabulated and graphed
for statistical analysis.
III. PROCEDURES
The determination of the suitable percent content of
bioethanol and/or water level suitable are obtained in the most
efficient terms of generating voltage and current, where
different trials are conducted regarding on content percentage
of the bioethanol. The mixture is layed in the storage tank that
will be transported to the container where the fuel cell is
connected. Different percentage content of the bioethanol is
placed in the storage tank and two types of test were made,
wherein the first part is the automatic control deferred and the
second part is with the automatic control. The voltage output,
current generated and the water level is measured
simultaneously measured in an interval of 5 minutes. The data
gathering ceases when the voltage generated is nearly zero.
The Arduino microcontroller is connected to the computer
which will be linked to the LCD screen where the data for
acquisition is shown and this data will be needed for
tabulation and statistical analysis.
IV. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
For the first part of the testing, the servo motor is
manually controlled and two different percent content of
bioethanol is inserted in the bioethanol tank.
Table I
Capacity Test at 10% Bioethanol mixture at Manual Control
Tables I and II shows the data sheet of bioethanol content of
both 10% and 15% to the process time, voltage & current of
fuel cell, voltage of the output booster, and water level at
manual control. As the ethanol mixture of 10% content
bioethanol coming from the bioethanol tank enters by means
of a servo motor which is manually controlled, through the
storage tank, different trials will be made to deduce the
voltage output and current generated of the mixture that can be
possibly made over time.
Table II
Capacity Test at 15% Bioethanol mixture at Manual Control
To see more clearly the difference and comparison of
voltage output of booster and fuel cell, current generated and
liquid level, Fig. 7 to 10 shows the graph of the data gathered
in Tables I and II.
As can be seen in Fig. 7 and 10, the reading between
the voltage output in booster and water level when the
bioethanol are in 10% (Blue) and 15% (Orange), the voltage
output is stable and equal.
As can be seen in Fig. 8 and 9 the reading is
decreasing from the time that it started to charge the fuel cell
until the last trial. But it can be noticed that the first voltage
output has the higher output than others.
Fig. 7 Time vs Voltage Booster Output Comparison between 10% and 15%
bioethanol mixture at Manual Control
Fig. 8 Time vs Fuel Cell Voltage Output Comparison between 10% and 15%
bioethanol mixture at Manual Control
Fig. 9 Time vs Fuel Cell Current Output Comparison between 10% and 15%
bioethanol at Manual Control
Fig. 10 Time vs Water Level Comparison between 10% and 15% bioethanol
at Manual Control
Based from the data measured, as the time increases
it shows that the voltage of the fuel cell decreases from 3.21V
to 2.46V as well as the current generated. For the Water level
since this is manual testing, there is minimal change in the
level of the water in the tank. For the 15% bioethanol mixture,
the measured data and the graph also shown that as the time
increases the voltage of the fuel also decreases however by
comparison from the graph it showed that it has higher voltage
compared to the 10% bioethanol mixture.
For the second part of the initial testing, the valve is
automatic controlled by means of Arduino which is dependent
on regular replenish of fuel cell for every 30 mins.
Table III
Capacity Test at 15% Bioethanol mixture at Automatic Control
 Table IV
Capacity Test at 10% Bioethanol mixture at Automatic Control
Tables III and IV shows the relationship of the
bioethanol content to the process time, voltage, current, and
water level at automatic control. As the ethanol mixture of
10% and 15% content bioethanol coming from the storage
tank enters by means of a valve which is automatically
controlled by Arduino microcontroller, through the ethanol
container, different trials will be made to deduce the voltage
output and current generated that can be possibly made over
time.
Fig. 11 Time vs Voltage Booster Output Comparison between 10% and 15%
bioethanol at Automatic Control
Fig. 12 Time vs Fuel Cell Voltage Output Comparison between 10% and 15%
bioethanol at Automatic Control
Fig. 13 Time vs Fuel Cell Current Output Comparison between 10% and 15%
bioethanol at Automatic Control
Fig. 14 Time vs Water Level Output Comparison between 10% and 15%
bioethanol at Automatic Control
Fig. 11 to 14 shows the characteristics of the voltage
output of the fuel cell, voltage booster, current generated and
water level during 10% and 15% bioethanol mixtures.
As can be seen in Fig. 11, the voltage output of the
booster is stable. It has the same voltage output of the booster
during manual mode.
As can be seen in Fig. 12, the voltage output of the
fuel cell decreases as the time increases. During 15 to 20
minutes it has the highest voltage drop.
As can be seen in Fig. 13, the graph in the current
generated during 10% and 15% bioethanol during automatic
mode is fluctuating. There are times that it is rising and falling
during the 20 trials.
As can be seen in Fig. 14, the graph in water level in
automatic mode is same during the trial of 10% and 15%
bioethanol.
V. CONCLUSION
The researchers were able to design and construct a
fuel cell which can convert the mixture of water and different
percent content of bioethanol with and without automatic
control using an Arduino Microcontroller. The group were
able to construct a Direct Ethanol Fuel Cell where it can
convert a mixture of Bioethanol and Water. 3 sets of DEFC
fuel cell were made with out of 0.8V. To increase its voltage,
it is connected in series and it is connected to a rechargeable
battery. The DC booster will be then increase the voltage of
the rechargeable battery to make an output voltage of 5V and
maintain its constant output.
The capacity was determined by comparing the
relationship between the effect of percentage content of the
bioethanol through voltage output of the fuel cell, the voltage
output of the booster and the current generated. Based from
the result, it shows that as the time increases it shows that the
voltage of the fuel cell decreases as well as the current
generated at Manual Control. However, when at automatic
control it has a stable output voltage since over time the
bioethanol is replenished. It was also observed that higher
concentration of bioethanol mixture yields higher output
voltage and current generated.
By conducting the t-test it was used to compare the
difference between Manual and Automatic control at different
percentage of Bioethanol. From the result of the t-test, it was
shown that there is significance difference between the output
voltage of the Fuel cell at Manual and Automatic at 15 %
bioethanol mixture.
From the series of test conducted, it was determined
that the Automatic Control of Draining and Replenish of the
Direct Bioethanol Fuel Cell increases the efficiency and 15%
Bioethanol mixture increases the output voltage and current in
the charging a battery and powering common low-power
gadgets or lighting.
VI. RECOMMENDATION
Even though the paper is successful in demonstrating
the concepts and functionality of the proposed system, a few
problems and opportunities for improvement that are beyond
the scope of this paper are noted.
The system is still having problems in terms of the
accuracy of the readings specially when conducting several
trials on differing percentage content of the ethanol. It may
seem to make this situation be more precise by ensuring that
the structure of the whole system is well-built, like the tubes
should be connected fittingly to the tanks to prevent leakage of
the liquid mixture so that the efficiency of the whole system in
converting ethanol to electricity will increase and the sensor
should be working properly. We found out that these factors
may play a very big role on testing the system for data
acquisition. A system reliability test is recommended in order
to evaluate the system if it is capable for long time or
continuous usage.
We recommend that the number of fuel cells to be
used increase in the next study in order to increase the voltage
output of the whole system, and that make the connection of
these fuel cells parallel for the current output to rise enough to
control both the Arduino microcontroller, the servo motors
and the load respectively. We also think that a pH level sensor
is also appropriate to be added in the next study as it can help
to automatically detect if the mixture is more or less acidic,
and when the mixture is less acidic, an additional pump can
maybe help in recycling this mixture back to the storage tank
for future use. Lastly, since that the researchers only used
laboratory-grade ethanol that is already available at the
market, further study on finding other cheap sources of
ethanol can prove to be useful for future uses. The concept of
this study is that a Bioethanol fuel cell can be a good
alternative to the hydrogen fuel cells that is commonly used
nowadays and can be used to charge a battery and powering
low-power gadgets and lighting.
VII. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
We would like to thank to the following people for
their effort of providing assistance in making this thesis
possible.
First of all, we would like to express our deepest
gratitude to the God Almighty for His giving support and
guidance that He shared through our friends, classmates and
family whom are instrumental in making this thesis possible.
Second, to Prof. Jesus M. Martinez Jr. for providing
us his continuous guidance on the thesis from the very
beginning until the end, for his patience, motivation, and
sharing his vast knowledge and ideas in order to improve our
research.
Third, to Engr. Gorgonio C. Vallestero II, Engr.
Esperanza E. Chua, and Engr. Janette C. Fausto for their
insightful comments and recommendations which strives us to
improve our research from various perspectives.
Fourth, to our respective parents and relatives for
their tireless support physically, mentally and financially in
order for us to overcome this challenge that made us a better
person.
And lastly to our friends, classmates and professors
for sharing their varying ideas that enabled the researchers to
came up with what they were able to achieve through this
study.
For this achievement, we give back all the glory and
praises to the omnipotent Father Almighty.
VII. REFERENCES
[1] Acosta, L., Dr., & Eugenio, E. (n.d.). Sustainability TRade-offs And
Pathways (STRAP). Retrieved September 12, 2016, from http://strap.pik-
potsdam.org/home/?page_id=48
[2] Rousseau, S., Coutanceau, C., Lamy, C., & Léger, J. (2006). Direct
ethanol fuel cell (DEFC): Electrical performances and reaction products
distribution under operating conditions with different platinum-based
anodes. Journal of Power Sources, 158(1), 18-24.
doi:10.1016/j.jpowsour.2005.08.027
[3] Zakaria, Z., Kamarudin, S., & Timmiati, S. (2016). Membranes for direct
ethanol fuel cells: An overview. Applied Energy, 163, 334-342.
doi:10.1016/j.apenergy.2015.10.124
[4] Akhairi, M., & Kamarudin, S. (2016). Catalysts in direct ethanol fuel cell
(DEFC): An overview. International Journal of Hydrogen Energy, 41(7),
4214-4228. doi:10.1016/j.ijhydene.2015.12.145
[5] First Land Plants and Fungi Changed Earth's Climate, Paving the Way for
Explosive Evolution of Land Animals, New Gene Study Suggests. (n.d.).
Retrieved March 26, 2016, from
http://science.psu.edu/news-and-events/2001-news/Hedges8-2001.htm
[6] Malça, J., & Freire, F. (2006). Renewability and life-cycle energy
efficiency of bioethanol and bio-ethyl tertiary butyl ether (bioETBE):
Assessing the implications of allocation. Energy, 31(15), 3362-3380.
doi:10.1016/j.energy.2006.03.013
[7] Aurel Gaba and Stefania Felicia Iordache (2011). Reduction of Air
Pollution by Combustion Processes, The Impact of Air Pollution on
Health, Economy, Environment and Agricultural Sources, Dr. Mohamed
Khallaf (Ed.), InTech, DOI: 10.5772/16959. Retrieved from:
http://www.intechopen.com/books/the-impact-of-air-pollution-on-health-
economy-environment-and-agricultural-sources/reduction-of-air-
pollution-by-combustion-processes