Hydrogen desorption from nanostructured magnesium hydride composites

Abstract

The influence of 3d transition metal addition (Fe, Co and Ni) on the desorption properties of magnesium hydride were studied. The ball milling of MgH2-3d metal blends was performed under Ar. Microstructural and morphological characterization were performed by XRD and SEM analysis, while the hydrogen desorption properties were investigated by DSC. The results show a strong correlation between the morphology and thermal stability of the composites. The complex desorption behavior (the existence of more than one desorption peak) was correlated with the dispersion of the metal additive particles that appear to play the main role in the desorption. The desorption temperature can be reduced by more than 100 degrees if Fe is added as additive. The activation energy for H2 desorption from the MgH2-Fe composite is 120 kJ/mol, implying that diffusion controls the dehydration process.

Keywords

• hydrogen storage
• nanostructurated materials
• magnesium hydride
• catalysis
• morphology