Generating clean electricity with chicken feathers

Every year, the food industry generates massive amounts of waste, including 40 million tonnes of chicken feathers from poultry production. These feathers are typically incinerated, releasing large amounts of CO2 and toxic gases such as sulphur dioxide. However, researchers at ETH Zurich and Nanyang Technological University Singapore (NTU) have found a way to repurpose this industrial waste.

Chicken Feathers: Fuel Cells’ New Membrane

The researchers have developed a simple and environmentally friendly process to extract the protein keratin from the feathers and convert it into ultra-fine fibres known as amyloid fibrils. The membrane of a fuel cell then uses these keratin fibrils.

Fuel cells generate CO2-free electricity from hydrogen and oxygen, releasing only heat and water. They could play an important role as a sustainable energy source in the future. At the heart of every fuel cell lies a semipermeable membrane. It allows protons to pass through but blocks electrons, forcing them to flow through an external circuit from the negatively charged anode to the positively charged cathode, thereby producing an electric current.

So far, manufacturers have made these membranes in conventional fuel cells using highly toxic chemicals, or “forever chemicals”, which are expensive and don’t break down in the environment.

The membrane developed by the ETH and NTU researchers, on the other hand, consists mainly of biological keratin, which is environmentally compatible and available in large quantities – chicken feathers are 90 percent keratin. This means the membrane manufactured in the laboratory is already up to three times cheaper than conventional membranes.

New membrane overcomes hydrogen production challenges

“I’ve devoted a number of years to researching different ways we can use food waste for renewable energy systems,” says Raffaele Mezzenga, Professor of Food and Soft Materials at ETH Zurich.

“Our latest development closes a cycle: we’re taking a substance that releases CO2 and toxic gases when burned and used it in a different setting: with our new technology it not only replaces toxic substances, but also prevents the release of CO2, decreasing the overall carbon footprint cycle”, Mezzenga says.

However, there are further challenges to overcome before hydrogen can become established as a sustainable energy source. “Hydrogen is the most abundant element in the universe – just unfortunately not on Earth,” Mezzenga says.

Hydrogen doesn't occur here in its pure form, thus requiring a great deal of energy for production. The future may well benefit from the new membrane, as its use extends to not only fuel cells but also water splitting.

Electrolysis, a known process, passes direct current through water, causing oxygen to form at the (this time) positively charged anode, while hydrogen escapes at the negatively charged cathode. Pure water doesn't conduct electricity enough for this process, so it often requires adding acids.

The new membrane, however, is permeable to protons and thus enables the particle migration between anode and cathode necessary for efficient water splitting, even in pure water.

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