Corn Straw Supported CoNi Alloy for Catalytic Hydrogen Evolution from Ammonia Borane

doi:10.15541/jim20260073

Abstract

Abstract: Ammonia borane (NH₃BH₃, AB) serves as a solid hydrogen storage material, and the preparation of efficient, low-cost, and stable catalysts for the decomposition of AB is crucial for its industrial application. This study prepared a pre-processed powdered corn straw-supported CoNi alloy catalyst (Co_0.75Ni_0.25/CS-y) via reduction by NaBH₄. Co_0.75Ni_0.25/CS-y exhibited high efficiency in the catalytic decomposition of AB for hydrogen evolution under room temperature. Notably, the optimal sample Co_0.75Ni_0.25/CS-20 exhibits superior catalytic activity compared to pure Co, pure Ni and Co_0.75Ni_0.25 alloy. The corn straw effectively dispersed and immobilized the Co_0.75Ni_0.25 alloy, while the cooperation of Co and Ni atoms further enhanced the catalytic activity. Co_0.75Ni_0.25/CS-20 achieved an average turnover frequency (TOF) of 7.77 molH2∙molcat.-1∙min-1 and an activation energy (E_a) of 20.17 kJ/mol. Furthermore, Co_0.75Ni_0.25/CS-20 exhibits excellent yield and activity stability for AB catalytic hydrogen evolution which are 100% and 82.3% of the initial reaction within 6th cycle, respectively. Its performance surpasses most reported non-precious metal catalysts and even outperforms some reported precious metal catalysts. This study introduces novel concepts for the design of non-precious metal catalysts and suggests new avenues for the high-value utilization of biomass materials.

Key words: hydrogen, ammonia borane, CoNi alloy, biomass

CLC Number:

TK91

SONG Lizhi, WU Ming, LIU Pengfei, HAN Dong, SONG Erhong. Corn Straw Supported CoNi Alloy for Catalytic Hydrogen Evolution from Ammonia Borane[J]. Journal of Inorganic Materials, DOI: 10.15541/jim20260073.

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