Engineered surfaces for enhanced control of electrochemical bubbles
Author(s)
Lake, John R.,S.M.Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Download1201697731-MIT.pdf (8.846Mb)
Other Contributors
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Mechanical Engineering.
Advisor
Kripa K. Varanasi.
Terms of use
Metadata
Show full item recordAbstract
In this thesis, we investigate the impact of rationally designing a micro-textured electrode to enhance the release of electrochemically generated bubbles from its surface. By systematically studying the effects of altering the microscale surface texture of an electrode, we are able to demonstrate the ability for the geometry of an electrode's surface to enhance the release of bubbles from the surface, therefore enhancing the electrochemical output for a gas-evolving reaction. To this end, we fabricate a variety of micro textures and perform tests to show how the geometry of the surface can be used to enhance the release of bubbles from the electrode. From this, we are able to demonstrate that there is an optimal microtexture that maximizes the electrochemical output for a given condition. As a result, this thesis presents a novel approach to rationally design the surfaces of electrochemical electrodes to move towards 'bubble-free' surfaces for a variety of applications..
Description
Thesis: S.M., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Mechanical Engineering, June, 2019 Cataloged from PDF version of thesis. Includes bibliographical references (pages 61-66).
Date issued
2019Department
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Mechanical EngineeringPublisher
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Keywords
Mechanical Engineering.