Hydrogen storage capacity of lithium-doped KOH activated carbons

The authors have studied the hydrogen adsorption performance of several types of lithium-doped KOH activated carbons. In the case of activated cokes, lithium doping improves their hydrogen adsorption affinity from 5.02 kg/m(3) to 5.86 kg/m(3) at 303 K. Hydrogen adsorption density increases by around 17% after lithium doping, likely due to the fact that lithium doping is more effective for materials with micropores of 0.8 nm or smaller. The effects of lithium on hydrogen storage capacity vary depending on the raw material, because the lithium reagent can react with the material and alter the pore structure, indicating that lithium doping has the effect of plugging or filling the micropores and changing the structures of functional groups, resulting in the formation of mesopores. Despite an observed decrease in hydrogen uptake, lithium doping was found to improve hydrogen adsorption affinity. Lithium doping increases hydrogen uptake by optimizing the pore size and functional group composition. (C) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.