Review on Hydrogen Production from Catalytic Ammonia Borane Methanolysis: Advances and Perspectives

Abstract

Hydrogen is globally recognized clean energy carrier, and hydrogen energy plays the important role in energy choice for developing the new low-carbon society. Ammonia borane (NH 3 BH 3 , AB) has been considered as an ideal hydrogen storage material for portable hydrogen production, because of its characteristics of high hydrogen content (19.6 wt %), nontoxicity, stability under ambient conditions, and excellent hydriding and dehydriding properties. The technology of ammonia borane methanolysis seems to be the most safe, effective, and convenient technology route for portable hydrogen production applications, because of its mild reaction conditions and low temperature suitability. In this Review, the properties and synthesis method of AB are introduced briefly, and the method and mechanism of AB pyrolysis and hydrolysis for hydrogen production are described briefly, the mechanism of hydrogen production by AB methanolysis is derived subsequently. The research status development progress of high efficiency catalyst in AB methanolysis then are significantly reviewed. In the end, the proposals are noted that the biggest challenge in the practical application of AB is its regeneration, which means how to make the byproducts of AB methanolysis directly hydrogenated to regenerate AB efficiently and economically. This Review provides guidance and reference for the research and industrial application of hydrogen production technology of AB, especially the technology of methanolysis for hydrogen production.

Advances and Outlook of Boron–Hydrogen Containing Materials for Potential Clean Energy Applications: A Review

“…AB alcoholysis at an appreciable rate only in the presence of an effective catalyst releasing 3.0 equiv of H 2 per mole of AB at ambient temperature, as shown in eq 24. 83 AB and methanol are mixed and reacted under a suitable catalyst to produce hydrogen (Figure 12a), and the byproduct is used to regenerate AB (see eq 25).…”

Dramatic acceleration by visible light and mechanism of AuPd@ZIF-8-catalyzed ammonia borane methanolysis for efficient hydrogen production

“…However, because of the seminal reports by Ramachandran and Gagare of optimized ammonia borane preparation and methanolysis 18 and by Jagirdar's group of Co, Ni and Cu-based nanocatalysts 19,20 of AB methanolysis, several publications have appeared on this method of hydrogen generation, and the area was reviewed in 2016 by Xu's group 21 and in 2022 by Li's group. 22 This H 2 generation method possesses several signicant advantages towards current applications: 21,22 (i) AB is highly methanol soluble at room temperature (23% wt); 23 (ii) it is highly stable in methanol without a catalyst; (iii) H 2 produced by AB methanolysis is pure from ammonia impurities that are poisoning fuel cells; (iv) this reaction generates H 2 below 0 °C upon catalysis, which might be useful for portable devices under cold temperature conditions; (v) the AB methanolysis product formed, NH 4 B(OCH 3 ) 4 , can regenerate AB upon reaction with LiAlH 4 and NH 4 Cl under ambient conditions. 24 Although rst-row late transition-metal-based nanocatalysts are privileged, 18,[24][25][26] there are also reports using more efficient noble-metal catalysts.…”

Covalent Organic Framework-Derived Nitrogen-Doped Carbon-Supported Cobalt Oxide Nanoparticles for Synergistic Boosting H2 Evolution from NaBH4

“…Carbon-based nanomaterials with environmental friendliness and high stability, such as graphene, carbon nanotubes, and biomass-derived activated carbon, can be used as substrates to improve the conductivity, avoid agglomeration of metal oxide nanoparticles, and provide more active sites, which has become one of the most effective strategies to solve the above problems. − The strong synergistic effect formed between carbon substrates and metal oxide nanoparticles is crucial to improve the catalytic performance. , However, this does not mean that high-performance sodium borohydride catalysts can be obtained simply by mixing metal oxide nanoparticles with different carbon substrates. , The key challenge of this scheme is how to achieve synergistic enhancement of catalytic activity by controlling the formation and distribution of different components in carbon while optimizing the structures of the composites, such as porosity and conductivity. − …”