Preparation and catalytic effect of porous Co3O4 on the hydrogen storage properties of a Li-B-N-H system

A porous Co_3O_4 with a particle size of 1–3 μm was successfully prepared by heating Co-based metal organic frameworks MOF-74(Co) up to 500 °C in air atmospheric conditions. The as-prepared porous Co_3O_4 significantly reduced the dehydrogenation temperatures of the LiBH_4-2LiNH_2 system and improved the purity of the released hydrogen. The LiBH_4-2LiNH_2-0.05/3Co_3O_4 sample started to release hydrogen at 140 °C and released hydrogen levels of approximately 9.7 wt% at 225 °C. The end temperature for hydrogen release was lowered by 125 °C relative to that of the pristine sample. Structural analyses revealed that the as-prepared porous Co_3O_4 is in-situ reduced to metallic Co, which functions as an active catalyst, reducing the kinetic barriers and lowering the dehydrogenation temperatures of the LiBH_4-2LiNH_2 system. More importantly, the porous Co_3O_4-containing sample exhibited partially improved reversibility for hydrogen storage in the LiBH_4-2LiNH_2 system.     

Improved hydrogen desorption properties of Co-doped Li<Subscript>2</Subscript>BNH<Subscript>6</Subscript>

The hydrogen desorption properties of Li 2 BNH 6 were improved by doping with cobalt. With the addition of CoCl 2 (7 wt%), more than 8 wt% of hydrogen was released from Li 2 BNH 6 at temperatures below 210°C, which is approximately 90°C lower than that of pristine Li 2 BNH 6 . X-ray diffraction, Fourier transform-infrared and Raman characterizations revealed that the dehydrogenation was a stepwise process with the formation of intermediates Li 4 BN 3 H 10 and LiBH 4 and final products of Li 3 BN 2 and LiH. The introduction of Co greatly accelerated the dehydrogenation of Li 4 BN 3 H 10 . X-ray absorption near-edge structure measurements revealed that Co and CoB species formed during ball milling of CoCl 2 with LiBH 4 and LiNH 2 , which may function as catalyst in the subsequent dehydrogenation.     

Catalytic effect of a novel MgC_(0.5)Co_3 compound on the dehydrogenation of MgH_2

The application of magnesium hydride(MgH_2) is limited due to the high reaction temperature and slow kinetics during dehydrogenation. In order to ameliorate the dehydrogenation property of MgH_2, MgC_(0.5)Co_3 compound with induction and catalytic effects was introduced into the Mg/MgH_2 system via ball-milling and hydriding combustion methods in present study. Compared to the pure MgH_2,the initial hydrogen desorption temperature of MgH_2–MgC_(0.5)Co_3 composite lowered to 237°C, decreasing by 141°C. At 325°C the MgH_2–MgC_(0.5)Co_3 composite could release 4.38 wt% H_2 within 60 min, which is 4.5 times the capacity of hydrogen released by as milled-MgH_2. Besides, the hydrogen desorption activation energy of the MgH_2–MgC_(0.5)Co_3 composite was dramatically reduced to 126.7 ± 1.4 k J/mol. It was observed that MgC_(0.5)Co_3 was chemically stable and no chemical transformation occurred after cycling, which not only inhibited the nucleation and growth of composite particles, but also had a positive effect on the hydrogen desorption reaction of MgH_2 due to its catalytic effect.This study may provide references for designing and synthesizing Mg–C–Co alloy compound for the Mg-based hydrogen storage area.     

Current Research Progress in Magnesium Borohydride for Hydrogen Storage (A review)

Hydrogen storage in solid-state materials is believed to be a most promising hydrogen-storage technology for high efficiency, low risk and low cost. Mg(BH₄)₂ is regarded as one of most potential materials in hydrogen storage areas in view of its high hydrogen capacities (14.9 ​wt% and 145–147 ​kg ​cm⁻³). However, the drawbacks of Mg(BH₄)₂ including high desorption temperatures (about 250 ​°C–580 ​°C), sluggish kinetics, and poor reversibility make it difficult to be used for onboard hydrogen storage of fuel cell vehicles. A lot of researches on improving the dehydrogenation reaction thermodynamics and kinetics have been done, mainly including: additives or catalysts doping, nanoconfining Mg(BH₄)₂ in nanoporous hosts, forming reactive hydrides systems, multi-cation/anion composites or other derivatives of Mg(BH₄)₂. Some favorable results have been obtained. This review provides an overview of current research progress in magnesium borohydride, including: synthesis methods, crystal structures, decomposition behaviors, as well as emphasized performance improvements for hydrogen storage.     

Enhanced hydrogen storage properties of NaBH4–Mg(BH4)2 composites by NdF3 addition

As two important members of complex hydrides, Mg(BH₄)₂ and NaBH₄ have a high gravimetric capacity (14.9 and 10.8 ​wt%, respectively). In this study, the Mg(BH₄)₂ was synthesized by the ion exchange method. Afterwards, the Mg(BH₄)₂ and NaBH₄ composites with different amounts (30, 40 and 50 ​wt%) of NdF₃ were prepared by mechanical milling. Effects of the NdF₃ on the microstructural evolution and hydrogen storage properties were investigated. The results show that NdF₃ catalyst can significantly improve the dehydrogenation kinetics of the eutectic composites of NaBH₄–Mg(BH₄)₂. The onset hydrogen desorption temperature of the composites is about 88.6 ​°C, which is about 110 ​°C lower than that of Mg(BH₄)₂ and NaBH₄ composites. Mg(BH₄)₂–NaBH₄-0.5NdF₃ composites can released 5.2 ​wt% H₂ at 250 ​°C within 30 ​min, and the dehydrogenation capacity is significantly higher than that of Mg(BH₄)₂–NaBH₄ composites. The analysis of the dehydrogenation mechanism reveals that NdF₃ takes participate in the reaction to generate NaMgF₃ to promote the dehydrogenation reaction process of the composites.     

Dehydrogenation and reaction pathway of Perovskite-Type NH4Ca(BH4)3

Perovskite-type borohydride, NH_4Ca(BH_4)_3, is considered as a promising hydrogen storage material due to its high gravimetric hydrogen capacity(15.7 wt%). In this work, the dehydrogenation performance and reaction pathway of NH_4Ca(BH_4)_3 have been systematically investigated. It is found that the initial decomposition temperature is only 65 °C, suggesting a low thermodynamic stability of NH4Ca(BH4)3. The desorption kinetics conducted by differential scanning calorimetry(DSC) indicates that the activation energy of decomposition is about 226.1 k J/mol. The dehydrogenation pathway of NH_4Ca(BH_4)_3 characterized by fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy(FTIR) and solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance(NMR) shows a stepwise decomposition process,in which the initial dehydrogenation is due to destabilization of H~+ in NH4 and H-in BH4 followed by the subsequent dehydrogenation steps arising from the decomposition of homologous NH_3BH_3 and the final decomposition of Ca(BH_4)_2 at a high temperature, respectively.     

Effect of modifying agents on the hydrophobicity and yield of zinc borate synthesized by zinc oxide

The aim of this study was to synthesize zinc borate using zinc oxide, reference boric acid, and reference zinc borate (reference ZB) as the seed, and to investigate the effects of modifying agents and reaction parameters on the hydrophobicity and yield, respectively. The reaction parameters include reaction time (1–5 h), reactant ratio (H₃BO₃/ZnO by mass: 2–5), seed ratio (seed crystal/(H₃BO₃+ZnO) by mass: 0–2wt%), reaction temperature (50–120℃), cooling temperature (10–80℃), and stirring rate (400–700 r/min); the modifying agents involve propylene glycol (PG, 0–6wt%), kerosene (1wt%–6wt%), and oleic acid (OA, 1wt%–6wt%) with solvents (isopropyl alcohol (IPA), ethanol, and methanol). The results of reaction yield obtained from either magnetically or mechanically stirred systems were compared. Zinc borate produced was characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), and contact angle tests to identify the hydrophobicity. In conclusion, zinc borate is synthesized successfully under the optimized reaction conditions, and the different modifying agents with various solvents affect the hydrophobicity of zinc borate.     

Hydrogen storage properties of MgH<Subscript>2</Subscript> co-catalyzed by LaH<Subscript>3</Subscript> and NbH

To improve the hydrogen storage properties of Mg-based alloys, a composite material of MgH₂ + 10wt%LaH₃ + 10wt%NbH was prepared by a mechanical milling method. The composite exhibited favorable hydrogen desorption properties, releasing 0.67wt% H₂ within 20 min at 548 K, which was ascribed to the co-catalytic effect of LaH₃ and NbH upon dehydriding of MgH₂. By contrast, pure MgH₂, an MgH₂ + 20wt%LaH₃ composite, and an MgH₂ + 20wt%NbH composite only released 0.1wt%, 0.28wt%, and 0.57wt% H₂, respectively, under the same conditions. Analyses by X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy showed that the composite particle size was small. Energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopic mapping demonstrated that La and Nb were distributed homogeneously in the matrix. Differential thermal analysis revealed that the dehydriding peak temperature of the MgH₂ + 10wt%LaH₃ + 10wt%NbH composite was 595.03 K, which was 94.26 K lower than that of pure MgH₂. The introduction of LaH₃ and NbH was beneficial to the hydrogen storage performance of MgH₂.     

Hydrogen absorption-desorption characteristic of (Ti0.85Zr0.15)1.1Cr1-xMoxMn based alloys with C14 Laves phase

The microstructure and hydrogen absorption-desorption characteristic of (Ti_0.85Zr_0.15)_1.1Cr_1-xMo_xMn (x ?= ?0.05, 0.1, 0.15, 0.2 ?at.%) alloys were investigated. The results showed that the corresponding alloys were determined as a single phase of C14-type Laves structure. With the increase of Mo content, the maximum and reversible hydrogen absorption capacity decreased, the slope factor H_f increased. Among the studied alloys, (Ti_0.85Zr_0.15)_1.1Cr_0.95Mo_0.05Mn had the best overall properties for practical application of hydrogen storage materials. The maximum and reversible hydrogen storage capacity were 1.76 ?wt% and 1.09 ?wt%, the slope factor H_f was 0.51, and its dissociation enthalpy (ΔH_d) and entropy change (ΔS_d) were 23.1 ?kJ ?mol^?1H₂, 93.8J ?K^?1mol^?1H₂ at 303K, respectively. By studying the dissociation pressures of the synthesized metal hydrides, it was found that Mo had a special effect on the dissociation pressure of Ti–Zr–Cr–Mo–Mn alloys. Among the four alloys, (Ti_0.85Zr_0.15)_1.1Cr_0.95Mo_0.05Mn alloy had the largest hydrogen absorption capacity and the fastest hydrogen desorption rate, which can meet the commercialization demand of hydrogen fuel cell hydrogen supply system.     

Microstructure and electrolysis behavior of self-healing Cu-Ni-Fe composite inert anodes for aluminum electrowinning

The microstructure evolution and electrolysis behavior of (Cu₅₂Ni₃₀Fe₁₈)-xNiFe₂O₄ (x=40wt%, 50wt%, 60wt%, and 70wt%) composite inert anodes for aluminum electrowinning were studied. NiFe₂O₄ was synthesized by solid-state reaction at 950℃. The dense anode blocks were prepared by ball-milling followed by sintering under a N₂ atmosphere. The phase evolution of the anodes after sintering was determined by scanning electron microscopy and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy. The results indicate that a substitution reaction between Fe in the alloy phase and Ni in the oxide phase occurs during the sintering process. The samples were also examined as inert anodes for aluminum electrowinning in the low-temperature KF-NaF-AlF₃ molten electrolyte for 24 h. The cell voltage during electrolysis and the corrosion scale on the anodes were analyzed. The results confirm that the scale has a self-repairing function because of the synergistic reaction between the alloy phase with Fe added and the oxide phase. The estimated wear rate of the (Cu₅₂Ni₃₀Fe₁₈)-50NiFe₂O₄ composite anode is 2.02 cm·a-1.     

Specific structural features of LnZrOx (Ln: La, Sm) mixed oxides prepared by different methods

LnZrOx(Ln: La, Sm) mixed oxides of Ln: Zr = 1 were prepared by different methods(complex polymerized method, sorption of cations on starch from aqueous salt solution and conventional co-precipitation with additional redispersion of precipitate by ultra sound) and calcined at 700–1300 °C. Their specific structural features and changes were studied and discussed. Various characterization methods were used such as X-ray diffraction,Electron microscopy, Fourier-transform infrared and Raman spectroscopy, UV–Vis spectroscopy, X-Ray absorption fine structure and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy.The formation of pyrochlore structure occurred at 1100–1300 °C from fluorite-like pseudocubic phase ZrO_2 regardless the method of preparation. This phase had a block-like structure consisting of ZrO_2 nanocrystals stabilized by Ln cations and residual anions such as hydroxyls and carbonates. The desorption of such anions with heating already started at 900 °C and lead to local changes of Zr cations coordination to octahedral and to the formation of pyrochlore nanodomains inclusions within fluorite-like phase. The increased cation mobility and further elimination of anions caused by further heating was accompanied by the formation of bulk pyrochlore phase at 1100–1300 °C. Even after calcination at 1300 °C the local microheterogeneity as well as defects were identified at domains boundaries or sintered microstructure. These specific features of the formed pyrochlores depend on the method of preparation.     

CNa42+团簇的结构及其储氢性能研究

氢是一种理想的二次能源,它将成为化石燃料最有希望的替代能源之一,也是亟待开发的重要能源。而氢能的储存成本高,危险性大是急需解决的问题。理论上预测CNa_4~(2+)的储氢性能,通过理论分析,发现了每个CNa_4~(2+)团簇最多可与16个H2分子有效结合,获得23.5%的质量储氢密度。在B3LYP理论水平上,H2分子与CNa_4~(2+)团簇的平均相互作用能在2.107～4.948Kcal/mol之间。由于CNa_4~(2+)的质量储氢密度在7.1～23.7wt%之间,符合美国能源部的要求目标(5.5 wt%)。研究结果表明,CNa_4~(2+)在一定环境条件下可逆吸放氢性能良好,可作为潜在的理想高容量储氢材料。     

Preferential Oxidation of CO in a Hydrogen-Rich Gas Through Au/NaY Catalytic Membranes

This paper describes novel Au/NaY catalytic membranes for preferential oxidation of CO (CO-PROX) in an H2-rich gas. NaY zeolite membranes with a high CO2/N2 separation factor were loaded with nanosized Au particles using an ion-exchanged method. X-ray diffraction analyses showed that the structure of the NaY zeolite was not damaged by the ion exchange process. CO-PROX experiments showed that the catalytic membranes had excellent catalytic performance for selective oxidation of CO. The CO/H2 molar ratio on the permeate side decreased with increasing operating temperature in the range of 80-200℃. At 200℃, almost no CO was detected from the permeate stream of a catalytic membrane with the feed con-taining 0.67% CO, 1.33% O2, 32.67% H2, and He in balance. Thus, these Au/NaY catalytic membranes show a promise for CO removal from hydrogen fuels.     

Novel approaches to produce Al2O3– TiC/TiCN– Fecomposite powders directly from ilmenite

Al2O3 –TiC/TiCN–Fe composite powders were successfully prepared directly from ilmenite at 1300–1400℃.The effects of Al/C ratio,sintering atmosphere,and reaction temperature and time on the reaction products were investigated.Results showed that the nitrogen atmosphere was bene cial to the reduction of ilmenite and the formation of Al2O3 –TiC/TiCN–Fe composite powders.When the reaction temperature was between 600 and 1100℃,the intermediate products,TiO2,Ti3O5 and Ti4O7 were found,which changed to TiC or TiCN at higher temperature.Al/C ratio was found to affect the reaction process and synthesis products.When Al addition was 0.5 mol,the Al2O3 phase did not appear.The content of carbon in TiCN rose when the reaction temperature was increased.     

Improvement in hydrogen storage performance of Mg by mechanical grinding with molten salt etching Ti3C2Clx

Mg-based materials are currently a hot research topic as hydrogen storage materials due to their considerable theoretical hydrogen storage capacity. However, the kinetic performance of hydrogen absorption and desorption of Mg is too slow and requires high temperature, which seriously hinders the application of this material. MXene is a new type of two-dimensional material with significant role in improving thermodynamics and kinetics. In this experiment, a two-dimensional layered MXene containing Cl functional group was prepared by molten salt etching using the Ti-containing MAX phase as the raw material. Then different ratios of Ti₃C₂Cl_x were uniformly dispersed onto the surface of Mg by high energy ball milling. The samples were characterized by hydrogen absorption and desorption kinetics, SEM, XRD, XPS, and DSC to investigate the effect of Ti₃C₂Cl_x on the hydrogen absorption and desorption performance of Mg. The onset hydrogen absorption temperature can be reduced to room temperature and the hydrogen release temperature is reduced by 200 ​°C by doping Ti₃C₂Cl_x. And there is also 5.4 ​wt% hydrogen storage in the isothermal hydrogen absorption test at 400 ​°C. The results of DSC demonstrate that the E_a of Mg+15 ​wt% Ti₃C₂Cl_x was reduced by 12.6% compared to pristine Mg. The ΔH is almost invariable. The results of XPS show that the presence of multivalent Ti promotes electron transfer and thus improves the conversion between Mg²⁺/Mg and H⁻/H. This study provides a guideline for further improving the hydrogen absorption and desorption performance of Mg-based hydrogen storage materials.     

Synthesis and characterization of monoclinic TiO<Subscript>2</Subscript> nanosheets

A novel two-step method for the synthesis of monoclinic titanium oxide （i.e. TiO2（B）） nanosheets is presented in this report. The method is featured by two steps： 1） synthesis of hydrogen titanate nanosheets, followed by 2） calcination of the titanate nanosheets at elevated temperatures. The hydrogen titanate nanosheets were prepared first by autoclaving anatase TiO2 powders, obtained by air cal- cining an ethanol-gel of Ti（OH）4 at 500℃, in aqueous NaOH （10 mol/L） at 150-200℃, and then by washing with hydro- chloric acid under supersonic irradiation. While sizes of the nanosheets were found to increase with increasing the temperature of the hydrothermal treatment, the calcination at 400-500℃ of the hydrogen titanate nanosheets that were synthesized at higher autoclaving temperatures （180-200℃） produced monoclinic TiO2 nanosheets with a uniform morphology. By contrast, the same calcination of the titanate nanosheets synthesized at the autoclaving temperature 180℃ led to anatase TiO2 nanoparticles.     

Study on the hydrogen storage property of (TiZr0.1)xCr1.7-yFeyMn0.3 (1.05

Jigang Li  Li Xu  Xiaojing Jiang  Xingguo Li 《自然科学进展(英文版)》2018,28(4):470-477

Solid electrolyte composite Li_4P_2O_7-Li_3PO_4 for lithium ion battery

The researches on solid electrolyte have been significantly increasing due to the safety problem in lithium ion battery.The lithium phosphates are chosen due to environmentally friendly.In the present study Li_4 P_2 O_7 was synthesized by solid state reaction using NH_4 H_2 PO_4 and Li_2 CO_3 with the ratio 1:2 at various temperatures of600 ℃,800 ℃ and 900℃.The products were characterized by x-ray diffraction,scanning electron microscopy and impedance spectroscopy.The x-ray diffraction showed that all samples consisted of two phases.It was found that the products consisted of 52.44% Li_4 P_2 O_7 and 47.56% LiPO_3;93.56% Li_4 P_2 O_7 and 6.44% Li_3 PO_4;and46.27% Li_4 P_2 O_7 and 53.67% Li_3 PO_4 under the synthesizing temperature of 600 ℃,800℃ and 900 ℃,respectively.The highest ionic conductivity of 3.85 ×10~(-5) S/m was achieved for composite Li_4 P_2 O_7-Li_3 PO_4 with the highest content of 93.56% Li_4 P_2 O_7.This conductivity is higher compared with single phase of LiPO_3,Li_3 PO_4 and Li_4 P_2 O_7.The increase in ionic conductivity may be due to the mixed anion effects related to the phosphate networks,and it also corresponds to the existence of anorthic phase Li_4 P_2 O_7 with the space group P-1(2).The crystal lattice analysis showed that the reactant Li_4 P_2 O_7 consisted of diphosphate groups P_2 O_7.The lithium tetrahedral LiO_4 were linked to P_2 O_7 groups formed a continuous framework containing large voids,available for Li~+ ion transport,and thus it exhibited high conductivity.A composite Li_4 P_2 O_7-Li_3 PO_4 is a promising solid electrolyte for solid state battery.     

Synthesis of Mg2B2O5 whiskers via coprecipitation and sintering process

Mg₂B₂O₅ whiskers with high aspect ratio were synthesized by coprecipitation and sintering process using MgCl₂·6H₂O, H₃BO₃, and NaOH as raw materials and KCl as a flux. Their formation process was investigated by thermogravimetry and differential scanning calorimetry (TG-DSC), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and scanning electron microcopy (SEM). It is found that the products synthesized at 832°C are monoclinic Mg₂B₂O₅ whiskers with a diameter of 200?C400 nm and a length of 50?C80 ??m. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and selected area electron diffraction (SAED) analyses show that the whiskers obtained at 832°C are single crystalline and grow along with the [010] direction. The growth mechanism of Mg₂B₂O₅ whiskers was also presented.     

Electroless copper-phosphorus coatings with the addition of silicon carbide (SiC) particles

Cu-P-silicon carbide (SiC) composite coatings were deposited by means of electroless plating. The effects of pH values, temperature, and different concentrations of sodium hypophosphite (NaH₂PO₂·H₂O), nickel sulfate (NiSO₄·6H₂O), sodium citrate (C₆H₅Na₃O₇·2H₂O) and SiC on the deposition rate and coating compositions were evaluated, and the bath formulation for Cu-P-SiC composite coatings was optimised. The coating compositions were determined using energy-dispersive X-ray analysis (EDX). The corresponding optimal operating parameters for depositing Cu-P-SiC are as follows: pH 9; temperature, 90℃; NaH₂PO₂·H₂O concentration, 125 g/L; NiSO₄·6H₂O concentration, 3.125 g/L; SiC concentration, 5 g/L; and C₆H₅Na₃O₇·2H₂O concentration, 50 g/L. The surface morphology of the coatings analysed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) shows that Cu particles are uniformly distributed. The hardness and wear resistance of Cu-P composite coatings are improved with the addition of SiC particles and increase with the increase of SiC content.