A Single-Component Liquid-Phase Hydrogen Storage Material

The current state-of-the-art for hydrogen storage is compressed H2 at 700 bar. The development of a liquid-phase hydrogen storage material has the potential to take advantage of the existing liquid-based distribution infrastructure. We describe a liquid-phase hydrogen storage material that is a liquid under ambient conditions (i.e., at 20 °C and 1 atm pressure), air- and moisture-stable, and recyclable; releases H2 controllably and cleanly at temperatures below or at the proton exchange membrane fuel cell waste-heat temperature of 80 °C; utilizes catalysts that are cheap and abundant for H2 desorption; features reasonable gravimetric and volumetric storage capacity; and does not undergo a phase change upon H2 desorption.