The dehydrogenation of combined organic and inorganic hydrogen-storage carriers

A thermally balanced H-2 storage system can be created by combining an H-2 carrier that releases H-2 endothermically with one that releases H-2 exothermically. Here, we describe combinations of H-2 carriers wherein both carriers release H-2 by dehydrogenation rather than by hydrolysis. The endothermic carriers tested were heterocyclic organic liquids, while the exothermic carriers were amine-borane compounds. The options of having the two carriers chemically bound together or merely physically mixed together were explored. With both options, the exothermic carrier inhibited the endothermic carrier, either by chemically affecting the heterocyclic ring of the endothermic carrier or by decreasing the activity of the heterogeneous dehydrogenation catalyst.