Carbon‐Based Sorbents for Hydrogen Storage: Challenges and Sustainability at Operating Conditions for Renewable Energy

Abstract

It is estimated that all fossil fuels will be depleted by 2060 if we continue to use them at the present rate. Therefore, there is an unmet need for an alternative source of energy with high calorific value. In this regard, hydrogen is considered the best alternative renewable fuel that could be used in practical conditions. Accordingly, researchers are looking for an ideal hydrogen storage system under ambient conditions for feasible applications. In many respects, carbon‐based sorbents have emerged as the best possible hydrogen storage media. These carbon‐based sorbents are cost‐effective, eco‐friendly, and readily available. In this Review, the present status of carbon‐based materials in promoting solid‐state hydrogen storage technologies at the operating temperature and pressure was reported. Experimental studies have shown that some carbon‐based materials such as mesoporous graphene and doped carbon nanotubes may have hydrogen storage uptake of 3–7 wt %, while some theoretical studies have predicted up to 13.79 wt % of hydrogen uptake at ambient conditions. Also, it was found that different methods used for carbon materials synthesis played a vital role in hydrogen storage performance. Eventually, this Review will be helpful to the scientific community for finding the competent material and methodology to investigate the existing hydrogen uptake issues at operating conditions.

Emerging Modification Technologies of Lignin‐based Activated Carbon toward Advanced Applications

“…Activated carbon is an excellent candidate for hydrogen storage with physisorption mechanism due to the developed porous structures. [97] Recently, various studies have been conducted to evaluate this potential and improve the hydrogen storage performance of LAC.…”

“…Indeed, the capacity and performance of hydrogen storage methods are still unsatisfactory and need to be improved for hydrogen application. Activated carbon is an excellent candidate for hydrogen storage with physisorption mechanism due to the developed porous structures [97] . Recently, various studies have been conducted to evaluate this potential and improve the hydrogen storage performance of LAC.…”

A Bird’s-Eye View on Polymer-Based Hydrogen Carriers for Mobile Applications

“…According to Schimmel et al, H 2 interaction with carbon-based materials relies on weak van der Waals forces, and these low adsorption forces ruled out any possibility in which hydrogen might adsorb into the narrow channels between the carbon structures. This means that carbon materials can only adsorb hydrogen molecules onto small pores near the surface, and a higher surface area leads to greater storage capacity, as in the case of porous materials [ 117 ]. However, the gravimetric storage capacity of these materials does not correlate linearly with the specific surface area at larger surface areas [ 13 ].…”

“…Since the surface area cannot infinitely increase, another important method to improve storage capacity is functionalization of the carbon-based carriers. In this regard, the carbon materials were doped with lightweight metallic elements which were able to increase the polarity of carbon composition for higher H 2 adsorption [ 117 , 121 ]. Functionalizing the carbon materials in order to adjust pore size and volume also plays an important role in the H 2 storage systems.…”

Metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) for energy production and gaseous fuel and electrochemical energy storage applications

“…[13][14][15] Various porous solids such as silica, zeolites, activated carbon, carbon nanotubes, fullerenes, graphene and composites of these materials have been used for the storage of gaseous fuels with improved storage capacity. 16,17 Nevertheless, these materials suffer from slow kinetics, poor reversibility, energy-intensive synthesis and poor reproducibility in storage capacity. Therefore, it is necessary to develop porous materials with high porosity and specific surface area, tunable pore size and geometry, and functionalizable pore surface to realize a large storage capacity for H 2 and CH 4 .…”