Thermodynamics and kinetics of hydriding and dehydriding reactions in Mg-based hydrogen storage materials

Mg-based materials are one of the most promising hydrogen storage candidates due to their high hydrogen storage capacity,environmental benignity,and high Clarke number characteristics.However,the limited thermodynamics and kinetic properties pose major challenges for their engineering applications.Herein,we review the recent progress in improving their thermodynamics and kinetics,with an emphasis on the models and the influence of various parameters in the calculated models.Subsequently,the impact of alloying,composite,and nanocrystallization on both thermodynamics and dynamics are discussed in detail.In particular,the correlation between various modification strategies and the hydrogen capacity,dehydrogenation enthalpy and temperature,hydriding/dehydriding rates are summarized.In addition,the mechanism of hydrogen storage processes of Mg-based materials is discussed from the aspect of classical kinetic theories and microscope hydrogen transferring behavior.This review concludes with an outlook on the remaining challenge issues and prospects.

Influence of substituting Ni with Co on hydriding and dehydriding kinetics of melt spun nanocrystalline and amorphous Mg_2Ni-type alloys

In order to improve the hydriding and dehydriding kinetics of the Mg2Ni-type alloys,Ni in the alloy is substituted by element Co. The nanocrystalline and amorphous Mg2Ni-type Mg2Ni1-xCox (x=0,0.1,0.2,0.3,0.4) alloys were synthesized by melt-spinning technique. The structures of the as-cast and spun alloys were studied with an X-ray diffractometer (XRD) and a high resolution transmission electronic microscope (HRTEM). An investigation on the thermal stability of the as-spun alloys was carried out with a differential scanning calorimeter (DSC). The hydrogen absorption and desorption kinetics of the alloys were measured with an automatically controlled Sieverts apparatus. The results demonstrate that the substitution of Co for Ni does not alter the major phase of Mg2Ni but results in the formation of secondary phase MgCo2. No amorphous phase is detected in the as-spun Co-free alloy,but a certain amount of amorphous phase is clearly found in the as-spun Co-containing alloys. The substitution of Co for Ni exerts a slight influence on the hydriding kinetics of the as-spun alloy. However,it dramatically enhances the dehydriding kinetics of the as-cast and spun alloys. As Co content (x) increases from 0 to 0.4,the hydrogen desorption capacity increases from 0.19% to 1.39% (mass fraction) in 20 min for the as-cast alloy,and from 0.89% to 2.18% (mass fraction) for the as-spun alloy (30 m/s).

Hydriding and dehydriding kinetics of nanocrystalline and amorphous Mg_2Ni_(1-x)Mn_x(x=0-0.4) alloys prepared by melt spinning

A partial substitution of Ni by Mn was implemented in order to improve the hydriding and dehydriding kinetics of the Mg2Ni-type alloys. The nanocrystalline and amorphous MgzNi-type Mg2Nil-xMnx （x=0, 0. 1, 0.2, 0.3, 0.4） alloys were synthesized by the melt-spinning technique. The structures of the as-cast and spun alloys were studied by X-ray diffractometry （XRD）, scanning electron microscopy （SEM） and high resolution transmission electron microscopy （HRTEM）. The hydrogen absorption and desorption kinetics of the alloys were measured with an automatically controlled Sieverts apparatus. The results show that the as-spun Mn-free alloy holds a typical nanocrystalline structure, whereas the as-spun alloys containing Mn display a nanocrystalline and amorphous structure, confirming that the substitution of Mn for Ni intensifies the glass forming ability of the Mg2Ni-type alloy. The hydrogen absorption and desorption capacities and kinetics of the alloys increase with increasing the spinning rate, for which the nanocrystalline and amorphous structure produced by the melt spinning is mainly responsible. The substitution of Mn for Ni evidently improves the hydrogen desorption performance. The hydrogen desorption capacities of the as-cast and spun alloys rise with the increase in the percentage of Mn substitution.

Hydriding and dehydriding kinetics of melt spun nanocrystalline Mg20Ni10-xCux (x = 0-4) alloys

The nanocrystalline Mg2Ni-type electrode alloys with nominal compositions of Mg20Ni10-xCux (x = 0, 1, 2, 3, 4) were synthesized by melt-spinning technique. The microstructures of the alloys were characterized by XRD, SEM and HRTEM. The hydrogen absorption and desorption kinet-ics of the alloys were measured using an auto-matically controlled Sieverts apparatus. The re- sults show that all the as-spun alloys hold ty- pical nanocrystalline structure. The substitution of Cu for Ni does not change the major phase Mg2Ni but it leads to the formation of the sec-ondary phase Mg2Cu. The hydrogen absorption capacity of the alloys first increases and then decreases with rising Cu content, but the hy-drogen desorption capacity of the alloys mono- tonously grows with increasing Cu content. The melt spinning significantly improves the hydro- genation and dehydrogenation capacities and kinetics of the alloys.

Recent progress in thermodynamic and kinetics modification of magnesium hydride hydrogen storage materials

Hydrogen energy has emerged as a pivotal solution to address the global energy crisis and pave the way for a cleaner,low-carbon,secure,and efficient modern energy system.A key imperative in the utilization of hydrogen energy lies in the development of high-performance hydrogen storage materials.Magnesium-based hydrogen storage materials exhibit remarkable advantages,including high hydrogen storage density,cost-effectiveness,and abundant magnesium resources,making them highly promising for the hydrogen energy sector.Nonetheless,practical applications of magnesium hydride for hydrogen storage face significant challenges,primarily due to their slow kinetics and stable thermodynamic properties.Herein,we briefly summarize the thermodynamic and kinetic properties of MgH2,encompassing strategies such as alloying,nanoscaling,catalyst doping,and composite system construction to enhance its hydrogen storage performance.Notably,nanoscaling and catalyst doping have emerged as more effective modification strategies.The discussion focuses on the thermodynamic changes induced by nanoscaling and the kinetic enhancements resulting from catalyst doping.Particular emphasis lies in the synergistic improvement strategy of incorporating nanocatalysts with confinement materials,and we revisit typical works on the multi-strategy optimization of MgH2.In conclusion,we conduct an analysis of outstanding challenges and issues,followed by presenting future research and development prospects for MgH2 as hydrogen storage materials.

Hydriding and dehydriding characteristics of nanocrystalline and amorphous Mg_(20-x)La_xNi_(10)(x=0-6) alloys prepared by melt-spinning

In order to improve the hydrogenation and dehydrogenation performances of the Mg2Ni-type alloys, Mg was partially substituted by La in the alloy, and melt spinning technology was used for the preparation of the Mg20-xLaxNi10 （x=0, 2, 4, 6） hydrogen storage alloys. The structures of the alloys were studied by X-ray diffraction （XRD）, scanning electron microscopy （SEM） and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy （HRTEM）. It was found that no amorphous phase formed in the as-spun La-free alloy, but the as-spun alloys containing La held a major amorphous phase. When La content x≤2, the major phase in the as-cast alloys was Mg2Ni phase, but with further increase of La content, the major phase of the as-cast alloys changed into LaNi5＋LaMg3 phase. Thermal stability of the as-spun alloys was studied by differential scanning calorimetry （DSC）, showing that spinning rate was a negligible factor on the crystallization temperature of the amorphous phase. The hydrogen absorption and desorption kinetics of the as-cast and as-spun alloys were measured using an automatically controlled Sieverts apparatus, confirming that the hydrogen absorption and desorption capacities and kinetics of the as-cast alloys clearly increased with rising La content. For La content x=2, the as-spun alloy displayed optimal hydrogen desorption kinetics at 200 ℃.

Hydriding-dehydriding properties of Mg_2Ni alloy modified by ball-milling in tetrahydrofuran

A new approach of ball-milled Mg_2Ni in tetrahydrofuran (THF) to improve thehydriding kinetics of Mg_2Ni alloy is suggested and studied. It is found that the modified alloydisplayed the improved activity for hydriding even at relatively low temperature (e.g., 323-373 K).In the case of the sample milled in THF for 20 h, the hydrogen content (mass fraction) reaches 1.6 %at 323 K, 2.1% at 348 K and 3.4% at 448 K, respectively. The use of THF during grinding led to thechange of the structure, which is reflected by the broadening and weakening of the diffraction peaksin the XRD spectra. The XPS analysis shows that Mg (2s) binding energy peak of Mg_2Ni aftermodification shifted from a lower binding energy to a higher one, indicating the charge transferencebetween Mg and THF and the formation of catalytically active electron donor-acceptor (EDA)complexes on the surface of modified Mg_2Ni alloy.

Hydrogen desorption kinetics mechanism of Mg-Ni hydride under isothermal and non-isothermal conditions

The Mg-Ni hydride was prepared by hydriding combustion synthesis under a high magnetic field. The dehydriding kinetics of the hydrides was measured under the isothermal and non-isothermal conditions. A model was applied to analyzing the kinetics behavior of Mg-Ni hydride. The calculation results show that the theoretical value and the experimental data can reach a good agreement, especially in the case of non-isothermal dehydriding. The rate-controlling step is the diffusion of hydrogen atoms in the solid solution. The sample prepared under magnetic field of 6 T under the isothermal condition can reach the best performance. The similar tendency was observed under the non-isothermal condition and the reason was discussed.

Kinetics and mechanism of titanium hydride powder and aluminum melt reaction

Based on the measurement of the released hydrogen gas pressure （PH2）, the reaction kinetics between TiH2 powder and pure aluminum melt was studied at various temperatures. After cooling the samples, the interface of TiH2 powder and aluminum melt was studied. The results show that the-time curves have three regions; in the first and second regions, the rate of reaction conforms zero and one order, respectively; in the third region, the hydrogen gas pressure remains constant and the rate of reaction reaches zero. The main factors that control the rate of reaction in the first and second regions are the penetration of hydrogen atoms in the titanium lattice and the chemical reaction between molten aluminum and titanium, respectively. According to the main factors that control the rate of reaction, three temperature ranges are considered for the reaction mechanism： （a） 700-750°C, （b） 750-800°C, and （c） 800-1000°C. In the first temperature range, the reaction is mostly under the control of chemical reaction; at the temperature range of 750 to 800°C, the reaction is controlled by the diffusion and chemical reaction; at the third temperature range （800-1000°C）, the dominant controlling mechanism is diffusion.

Improving hydrogen storage thermodynamics and kinetics of Ce-Mg-Ni-based alloy by mechanical milling with TiF_(3)

Mg-based hydrides are too stable and the kinetics of hydrogen absorption and desorption is not satisfactory.An efficient way to improve these shortcomings is to employ reactive ball milling to synthesize the nanocomposite materials of Mg and additives.In this experiment,TiF_(3)was selected as an additive,and the mechanical milling method was employed to prepare the experimental alloys.The alloys used in this experiment were the as-cast Ce_(5)Mg_(85)Ni_(10),as-milled Ce_(5)Mg_(85)Ni_(10)and Ce_(5)Mg_(85)Ni_(10)+3 wt.%TiF3.The phase transformation,structural evolution,isothermal and non-isothermal hydrogenation and dehydrogenation performances of the alloys were inspected by XRD,SEM,TEM,Sievert apparatus,DSC and TGA.It revealed that nanocrystalline appeared in the as-milled samples.Compared with the as-cast alloy,ball milling made the particle dimension and grain size decrease dramatically and the defect density increase significantly.The addition of TiF_(3)made the surface of ball milling alloy particles markedly coarser and more irregular.Ball milling and adding TiF_(3)distinctly improved the activation and kinetics of the alloys.Moreover,ball milling along with TiF_(3)can decrease the onset dehydrogenation temperature of Mg-based hydrides and slightly ameliorate their thermodynamics.

Kinetics in Mg-based hydrogen storage materials:Enhancement and mechanism

Mg-based materials have been intensively studied for hydrogen storage applications due to their high energy density up to 2600 Wh/kg or 3700 Wh/L.However,the Mg-based materials with poor kinetics and the necessity for a high temperature to achieve 0.1 MPa hydrogen equilibrium pressure limit the applications in the onboard storage in Fuel cell vehicles(FCVs).Over the past decades,many methods have been applied to improve the hydriding/dehydriding(H/D)kinetics of Mg/MgH 2 by forming amorphous or nanosized particles,adding catalysts and employing external energy field,etc.However,which method is more effective and the intrinsic mechanism they work are widely differing versions.The hydrogenation and dehydrogenation behaviors of Mg-based alloys analyzing by kinetic models is an efficient way to reveal the H/D kinetic mechanism.However,some recently proposed models with physical meaning and simple analysis method are not known intimately by researchers.Therefore,this review focuses on the enhancement method of kinetics in Mg-based hydrogen storage materials and introduces the new kinetic models.

Kinetics of the hydrogen absorption and desorption processes of hydrogen storage alloys: A review

High hydrogen absorption and desorption rates are two significant index parameters for the applications of hydrogen storage tanks.The analysis of the hydrogen absorption and desorption behavior using the isothermal kinetic models is an efficient way to investigate the kinetic mechanism.Multitudinous kinetic models have been developed to describe the kinetic process.However,these kinetic models were de-duced based on some assumptions and only appropriate for specific kinetic measurement methods and rate-controlling steps(RCSs),which sometimes lead to confusion during application.The kinetic analysis procedures using these kinetic models,as well as the key kinetic parameters,are unclear for many researchers who are unfamiliar with this field.These problems will prevent the kinetic models and their analysis methods from revealing the kinetic mechanism of hydrogen storage alloys.Thus,this review mainly focuses on the summarization of kinetic models based on different kinetic measurement methods and RCSs for the chemisorption,surface penetration,diffusion of hydrogen,nucleation and growth,and chemical reaction processes.The analysis procedures of kinetic experimental data are expounded,as well as the effects of temperature,hydrogen pressure,and particle radius.The applications of the kinetic models for different hydrogen storage alloys are also introduced.

Investigation of Structure and Hydriding Properties of La0.6 Nd0.4 Ni4.s Mn0.2 Cux Alloys

The structure and hydriding performance of La0.6Nd0.4Ni4.8Mn0.2Cux (x = 0 ～ 0.4) alloys were investigated in order to develop suitable materials for metal hydride air conditioner. The effect of Cu addition on the crystal structure,equilibrium pressure, hydrogen capacity and hysteresis as well as hydrogen absorption/desorption kinetics were systematically studied by using the measurement of P-C isotherms, X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy. As the amount of Cu increases, the plateau pressure increases and hydrogen absorption/desorption kinetics is improved, but the effective hydrogen storage capacity decreases. It is shown that variations in the basal plane parameter a can be used as an indication for the plateau pressure changes. With the increase of parameter a, the plateau pressure decreases. For La0.6 Nd0.4Ni4.8Mn0.2Cux(x = 0 ～ 0.4) alloys there is a relationship between the effective hydrogen storage capacities and the ratios of their unit cell parameters c and a. The effective hydrogen storage capacity decreases with increase of a/c.

Laser rapid forming of low cost hydride-dehydride titanium alloy powder

Low cost hydride-dehydride (HDH) Ti-6Al-4V (Ti-64) alloy powder was employed to investigate the metallurgical quality and mechanical properties of laser formed samples. With appropriate control of the laser forming processing parameters and the loose density of HDH powder, two kinds of defect, i.e. porosity and ill-bonding, can be avoided. Rare earth Nd powder was added to HDH Ti-64 powder to purify laser formed alloy. The results show that with a few additive of Nd, the microstructure of laser formed alloy changes from Widmanstatten morphology to a basket weave microstructure. Accordingly an appropriate addition of Nd is effective to improve both the strength and ductility of laser formed HDH Ti-64 alloy. The values of tensile test meet the wrought specification with the content of Nd ranging from 0.1%-0.2%(mass fraction).

Desorption behaviour and microstructure change of nanostructured hydrided AZ31 Mg alloy powders

In order to optimize the dehydriding process for producing nanocrystalline Mg alloy powders by hydriding-dehydriding treatment,nano-structured as-hydrided Mg-3%Al-1%Zn(AZ31 Mg)(mass fraction)alloy powders were thermally dehydrided at various temperatures from 275 to 375℃.The kinetics of hydrogen desorption was examined by hydrogen discharge measurement during dehydriding.The microstructure of the as-hydrided and the subsequently fully dehydrided alloy powders was investigated by X-ray diffraction analysis(XRD)and transmission electron microscopy(TEM),respectively.Both the desorption kinetics and the grain size of the alloy after complete dehydriding were found to be strongly dependent on the processing temperature.The higher the temperature,the faster the desorption,and the more significant the grain growth.When the desorption temperature was raised from 300 to 375℃,the time to achieve complete dehydriding was shortened from 190 to 20 min,and the average grain size increased correspondingly from 20 to 58 nm.

The electrochemical characteristics of AB_(4)-type rare earth-Mg-Ni-based superlattice structure hydrogen storage alloys for nickel metal hydride battery

Rare earth-Mg-Ni-based alloys with superlattice structures are new generation negative electrode materials for the nickel metal hydride batteries.Among them,the novel AB_(4)-type superlattice structure alloy is supposed to have superior cycling stability and rate capability.Yet its preparation is hindered by the crucial requirement of temperature and the special composition which is close to the other superlattice structure.Here,we prepare rare earth-Mg-Ni-based alloy and study the phase transformation of alloys to make clear the formation of AB_(4)-type phase.It is found Pr_(5)Co_(19)-type phase is converted from Ce_(5)Co_(19)-type phase and shows good stability at higher temperature compared to the Ce_(5)Co_(19)-type phase in the range of 930-970℃.Afterwards,with further 5℃increasing,AB_(4)-type superlattice structure forms at a temperature of 975℃by consuming Pr_(5)Co_(19)-type phase.In contrast with A_(5)B_(19)-type alloy,AB_(4)-type alloy has superior rate capability owing to the dominant advantages of charge transfer and hydrogen diffusion.Besides,AB_(4)-type alloy shows long lifespan whose capacity retention rates are 89.2%at the 100;cycle and 82.8%at the 200;cycle,respectively.AB_(4)-type alloy delivers 1.53 wt.%hydrogen storage capacity at room temperature and exhibits higher plateau pressure than Pr_(5)Co_(19)-type alloy.The work provides novel AB_(4)-type alloy with preferable electrochemical performance as negative electrode material to inspire the development of nickel metal hydride batteries.

Synthesis of nanostructured Mg_2FeH_6 hydride and hydrogen sorption properties of complex

Reactive mechanical alloying(RMA)was carried out in a planetary ball mill for the synthesis of ternary hydride Mg2FeH6 for hydrogen storage.The formation mechanism of Mg2FeH6 in RMA process and the sorption properties of the products were investigated.The results show that Mg2FeH6 has a yield ratio around 80%,and a grain size below 10 nm in the powder synthesized by milling 3Mg+Fe mixture for 150 h under the hydrogen pressure of 1 MPa.The synthesized powder possesses a high hydrogen capacity and good sorption kinetics,and absorbs 4.42%(mass fraction)of hydrogen within 200 s at 623 K under the hydrogen pressure of 4.0 MPa.In releasing hydrogen at 653 K under 0.1 MPa,it desorbs 4.43%(mass fraction)of hydrogen within 2 000 s.The addition of Ti increases the hydrogen desorption rate of the complex in the initial 120 s of the desorption process.

Hydriding/dehydriding properties of NdMgNi alloy with catalyst CeO_2

Hydrogen storage composites Nd2Mg17-50 wt.%Ni-x wt.%CeO2（x=0, 0.5, 1.0, 1.5, 2.0） were obtained by induction-ball milling method. The catalytic effect of CeO_2 on hydriding kinetics of Nd_2Mg17-50 wt.%Ni composite was investigated. X-ray diffraction（XRD） and high resolution transmission electron microscopy（HRTEM）, selected area electron diffraction（SAED） analyses showed that Nd_2Mg17-50 wt.%Ni alloy had a multiphase structure, consisting of NdMg12, NdMg_2Ni, Mg_2Ni and Ni phases and the addition of catalyst CeO_2 prompted the composites to be partly transformed into amorphous strucutre. The CeO_2 improved the maximum hydrogen capacity of Nd_2Mg17-50 wt.%Ni alloy from 3.192 wt.% to 3.376 wt.%（x=1.0）. What＇s more, the increment of diffusion coefficient D led to the faster hydriding kinetics, which was calculated by Avrami-Erofeev equation. The dehydrogenation temperature reduced from 515.54 to 504.72 K was mainly caused by the decrease of activation energy from 93.28 to 69.36 kJ /mol, which was proved by the Kissinger equation.

Hydrogen storage over alkali metal hydride and alkali metal hydroxide composites

Alkali metal hydroxide and hydride composite systems contain both protic （H bonded with O） and hydridic hydrogen. The interaction of these two types of hydrides produces hydrogen. The enthalpy of dehydrogenation increased with the increase of atomic number of alkali metals, i.e., -23 kJ/molnz for LiOH-LiH, 55.34 kJ/moln： for NaOH-NaH and 222 kJ/molH2 for KOH-KH. These thermodynamic calculation results were consistent with our experimental results. H2 was released from LiOH-LiH system during ball milling. The dehydrogenation temperature of NaOH-NaH system was about 150 ℃; whereas KOH and KH did not interact with each other during the heating process. Instead, KH decomposed by itself. In these three systems, NaOH-NaH was the only reversible hydrogen storage system, the enthalpy of dehydrogenation was about 55.65 kJ/molHz, and the corresponding entropy was ca. 101.23 J/（molHz .K）, so the temperature for releasing 1.0 bar H2 was as high as 518 ℃, showing unfavorable thermodynamic properties. The activation energy for hydrogen desorption of NaOH-NaH was found to be 57.87 kJ/mol, showing good kinetic properties.