Carbon layer supported nickel catalyst for sodium borohydride (NaBH₄) dehydrogenation

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

<P><B>Abstract</B></P> <P>In this paper, a nickel (Ni) catalyst with large surface area supported by a graphitic layer is proposed. The graphitic layer is formed on a Ni foil by chemical vapor deposition (CVD) using CH<SUB>4</SUB> as a source. The Ni foil is partially etched by a chemical etchant to increase the surface to volume ratio. The H<SUB>2</SUB> generation rates of the catalysts for different Ni etching times are measured and their surfaces are observed using an optical microscope. The optimized Ni etching time is 6 h, and the catalyst prepared by 6 h of etching shows an H<SUB>2</SUB> generation rate of about 600 ml/min⋅(g metal). The 6-h etched Ni/graphitic layer (Ni/G) is reused five times to confirm durability; it shows a high performance without any degradation. The H<SUB>2</SUB> generation rate for different concentrations of NaBH<SUB>4</SUB> is measured. The reaction follows first order kinetics, which means that the higher the concentration of NaBH<SUB>4</SUB> is, the faster the H<SUB>2</SUB> generation is.</P> <P><B>Highlights</B></P> <P> <UL> <LI> Nickel foil with increased surface area showed excellent catalytic performance. </LI> <LI> A graphitic layer prevents nickel from tearing or damaging. </LI> <LI> The rate of hydrogen generation of sodium borohydride is about 600 ml/min·(g metal). </LI> <LI> The catalyst showed excellent stability even after 5 repetitions. </LI> </UL> </P>