Abstract: A fuel cell is provided having excellent performance and being capable of achieving a sufficient buffer ability in a high-output operation when an enzyme is immobilized on at least one of a positive electrode and a negative electrode and of sufficiently exhibiting the ability inherent in the enzyme. A biofuel cell includes a structure in which a positive electrode and a negative electrode are opposed to each other with an electrolyte layer containing a buffer material provided therebetween, an enzyme being immobilized on at least one of the positive electrode and the negative electrode. The electrolyte layer contains as the buffer material a compound including an imidazole ring. As the compound including an imidazole ring, imidazole, 1-methylimidazole, 2-methylimidazole, 4-methylimidazole, 2-ethylimidazole, or the like is used.

Abstract: A porous electroconductive material is provided. The electroconductive material enables efficient enzymatic metabolic reactions on electrodes and yields electrodes having immobilized enzymes thereon which remain stable in any working environment. The porous electroconductive material, which has a three-dimensional network structure, is formed from a skeleton of porous material and a carbonaceous material covering the surface of the skeleton. The porous material constituting the skeleton is foamed metal or alloy. This porous electroconductive material is made into an electrode, and enzymes are immobilized on this electrode. The resulting electrode with immobilized enzymes thereon is used as the anode of a bio-fuel cell.

Abstract: A fuel cell that can have a higher battery capacity without degradation of cathode characteristics is provided. In a biofuel cell that includes one or more battery cell units (1) in which an oxidoreductase exists on the surface of an anode (2) and/or a cathode (3), and the cathode (3) is in contact with both a liquid phase and a gas phase, a selective transmission film (6) that restrains permeation of at least the fuel component is provided between an anode solution unit (4) provided around the anode (2) and a cathode solution unit (5) provided around the cathode (3). The fuel component concentration in the solution in contact with the anode (2) is higher than that in the solution in contact with the cathode (3).

Abstract: A separator formed of a material, which does not transmit liquid, is provided between a cell unit including an electrode on a surface of which an oxidoreductase is present and a fuel storage unit provided adjacent to the cell unit. It is configured such that power generation is started by supply of fuel solution stored in the fuel storage unit to the cell unit by removal of at least a part of the separator.

Abstract: A power supply device in which an enzyme is immobilized as a catalyst on negative electrodes and/or positive electrodes, includes electromotive portions in which at least two of the negative electrodes and the positive electrodes are connected in series, and a fuel supply portion which communicates with the negative electrodes and which simultaneously supply a fuel to the negative electrodes, and in the power supply device, the fuel supply portion includes fuel-supply adjusting portions which adjust fuel supply to the negative electrodes.

Abstract: A zoom lens includes a first lens unit having a negative refractive power, a second lens unit having a positive refractive power, and a third lens unit having a positive refractive power. The first lens unit, the second lens unit, and the third lens unit are arranged in order from an object side to an image side. Distances between the lens units change during zooming. The first lens unit consists of two lenses. Radii of curvature of a lens surface closest to the object side and a lens surface closest to the image side in the first lens unit, a focal length of the first lens unit, and a focal length of the entire zoom lens at a telephoto end are set appropriately.

Abstract: A fuel cell is provided. The fuel cell includes at least one of a plant essential oil and a plant essential oil ingredient in an effective amount so as to function as a biological repellent.

Abstract: A thermal printer has a thermal head for performing printing on a continuously fed recording sheet. A platen roller is mounted to undergo rotation for feeding the recording sheet between the platen roller and the thermal head. A cutting member cuts the recording sheet after printing is performed thereon by the thermal head. A sheet presenter mechanism discharges the recording sheet cut by the cutting member to the exterior. The sheet presenter mechanism is mounted to undergo movement to vary a discharge direction of the recording sheet.

Abstract: A fuel supply body is partially or wholly formed from a material having a biopolymer as a main component and a biocatalyst that metabolically decomposes the biopolymer is contained therein or immobilized thereto. A bio-fuel cell system is constituted of the fuel supply body and a bio-fuel cell including electrodes with an oxidation-reduction enzyme present on a surface thereof to supply fuel and/or the biocatalyst from the fuel supply body to the bio-fuel cell and also to use the fuel supply body itself as the fuel.

Abstract: A vehicle steering control apparatus (10) is provided with: a steering force applying device (15, 30) for applying a steering force front wheels (5, 6); and a lateral force detecting device (42) for detecting a lateral force of each of the front wheels and rear wheels (7, 8), the steering force applying device applying, to the front wheels, a convergent steering force which steers the front wheels in a direction in which yaw oscillation converges, if a ratio of the lateral force (Fr) of the rear wheels to the lateral force (Ff) of the front wheels becomes a ratio of possibly causing the yaw oscillation in a vehicle (1).

Abstract: An electrolytic method of a fuel capable of suppressing reverse reaction of an enzyme and improving electrolytic rate is provided. In electrolyzing a fuel such as glucose by using an enzyme/electron mediator obtained by immobilizing an enzyme such as gluconate-5-dehydrogenase, alcohol dehydrogenase, and malate dehydrogenase and an electron mediator onto a porous electrode made of a carbon material, electrode reaction is generated only in the enzyme/electron mediator electrode.

Abstract: A fuel cell which utilizes the biogenic metabolism to produce a high current density is provided. The fuel cell generates electric power in such a way that the fuel is decomposed stepwise by a plurality of enzymes and those electrons formed by oxidation are transferred to the electrode. The enzymes work such that the enzyme activity of the enzyme involved in decomposition in the early stage is smaller than the sum of the enzyme activities of the enzymes involved in decomposition in the later stage. In the case where a coenzyme is involved, the enzyme activity of the oxidase that oxidizes the coenzyme is greater than the sum of the enzyme activities of the enzymes involved in the formation of the reduced form of the coenzyme, out of the enzymes involved in the stepwise decomposition of the fuel.

Abstract: A fuel cell includes: one or a plurality of cell sections having an electrode with an oxidoreductase present at a surface thereof; and a container in which the cell section or sections are contained; wherein the container is provided with a fuel solution pouring port through which to pour a fuel solution into the cell section or sections, and the fuel solution pouring port is oriented in a fixed direction at least at the time of pouring the fuel solution.

Abstract: Disclosed herein is a fuel analyzing method for a fuel cell, including the steps of: measuring a physical property and/or an electric characteristic of a fuel to be used in a biofuel cell having an electrode with an oxidoreductase present at a surface thereof; and determining the quantity of an effective component which contributes to power generation in the fuel, from the physical property and/or the electric characteristic.

Abstract: Disclosed herein is a biofuel cell including a polymer gel reversibly swelling and contracting in response to variations in a property of a fuel solution making contact therewith, the polymer gel being on a surface of an electrode and/or in the inside of the electrode.

Abstract: Provided is a fuel cell that is high in performance capabilities of initial power generation and in volume power density, and produces a stable power. Between fixing plates, first and second cell portions are provided. The first cell portion includes an anode, a cathode, and a proton conductor, and the second cell portion includes an anode, a cathode, and a proton conductor. To a space formed by gas-liquid separation and permeable films, cathode spacers, and an anode spacer, a fuel solution is filled. The gas-liquid separation and permeable films are disposed between the fixing plate and the cathode, and between the fixing plate and the cathode. The cathode spacers are provided around the cathodes, respectively, and the anode spacer is provided between the anodes.

Abstract: Provided are an enzyme immobilizing method, a fuel cell and an electrode for the fuel cell which employ the enzyme immobilizing method, and a method for manufacturing the fuel cell and the electrode. The enzyme immobilizing method prevents reduction in enzyme activity when the enzyme is immobilized on the electrode, so as to make it possible to obtain a high catalyst current value. In the method for immobilizing an enzyme on the electrode used in the fuel cell, an enzyme variant with at least one amino acid residue being deleted, substituted, added, or inserted in a wild-type amino acid sequences is used as the enzyme, and the enzyme variant increases in activity through heat treatment. The immobilization is performed within a temperature range which makes it possible to increase the activity of the enzyme variant.

Abstract: A fuel cell with which in the case where an enzyme is immobilized to at least one of a cathode and an anode, sufficient buffer ability is able to be obtained even at the time of high output operation, ability inherent in the enzyme is able to be sufficiently demonstrated, and which has superior performance is provided. In a bio-fuel cell which has a structure in which a cathode and an anode are opposed to each other with an electrolyte layer containing a buffer substance in between, and in which an enzyme is immobilized to at least one of the cathode and the anode, a compound containing an imidazole ring is contained in the electrolyte layer as a buffer substance, and one or more acids selected from the group consisting of acetic acid, phosphoric acid, and sulfuric acid are further added.

Abstract: Provided is a fuel cell having a structure in which a cathode and an anode face each other with a proton conductor therebetween. In this fuel cell, an oxygen reductase or the like is immobilized on at least the cathode, and the cathode is composed of a material having pores therein such as porous carbon. In this fuel cell, the volume of water contained in the cathode is controlled to be 70% or less of the volume of the pores of the cathode, whereby a high current value can be stably obtained through optimization of the amount of moisture contained in the cathode when an enzyme is immobilized on at least the cathode. Also provided is a method for operating the fuel cell.

Abstract: A fuel cell which can directly extract electric power from a polysaccharide, such as starch, is provided. A fuel electrode is formed by immobilizing with an immobilizer, on an electrode comprised of, e.g., carbon, an enzyme responsible for decomposing a polysaccharide into monosaccharides, an enzyme responsible for decomposing the monosaccharide formed, a coenzyme (e.g., NAD? or NADP+) which forms a reductant due to the oxidation reaction in the monosaccharide decomposition process, a coenzyme oxidase (e.g., diaphorase) for oxidizing the reductant of the coenzyme (e.g., NADH or NADPH), and an electron mediator (e.g., ACNQ or vitamin K3) for receiving electrons generated due to the oxidation of the coenzyme from the coenzyme oxidase and delivering the electrons to the electrode. The fuel cell comprises the fuel electrode and the air electrode that sandwich an electrolyte layer.