Destabilization and regeneration of LiBH4 using N-containing hydrocarbon based polymers for hydrogen storage

Two N-containing hydrocarbon based polymers polyacrylonitrile (PAN) and polyaniline (PANI) were found to be able to destabilize LiBH 4 , a potential hydrogen storage material, resulting in larger hydrogen capacities of more than 10 wt% with peak dehydrogenation temperatures around 344 °C. The results suggest that a co-destabilization effect was achieved through the interaction of B H and C H bonds, which was further enhanced due to the presence of nitrogen atoms in polymers. After rehydrogenation of the dehydrogenated products, LiBH 4 was found to be regenerated to a large extent in both of the LiBH 4 +polymer composites. Detailed analysis including XRD, FTIR, DSC-TG-MS, HRTEM, Raman, XPS and solid-state 11 B MAS NMR was performed to elucidate the dehydrogenation and rehydrogenation mechanisms in these composites. The results provide considerable information about interaction mechanisms among B H, C H, N H and C N bonds and also shed lights on the enhancement of LiBH 4 dehydrogenation and reversibility.