Electrospun carbon nanofiber-encapsulated NiS nanoparticles as an efficient catalyst for hydrogen production from hydrolysis of sodium borohydride. (13th August 2019)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Al-Enizi, Abdullah M.; Nafady, Ayman; El-Halwany, M.M.; Brooks, Robert M.; Abutaleb, Ahmed; Yousef, Ayman
• Is Part Of: International journal of hydrogen energy. Volume 44:Number 39(2019)
• Page Start: 21716
• Page End: 21725
• Publication Date: 2019-08-13
• Subjects: Electrospinning -- Nickel sulfide -- Carbon nanofibers -- Hydrogen generation -- Sodium borohydride; Hydrogen as fuel -- Periodicals; Hydrogène (Combustible) -- Périodiques; Hydrogen as fuel; Periodicals; 665.81
• DOI: 10.1016/j.ijhydene.2019.06.152
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0360-3199

Abstract

Abstract: Carbon nanofibers (CNFs) incorporating NiS nanoparticles (NPs), namely NiS@CNFs were prepared by one-step electrospinning and successfully employed as a catalyst for hydrogen production from hydrolytic dehydrogenation of sodium borohydride (SBH). As-prepared NiS@CNFs, composed of polyacrylonitrile (PAN), nickel acetate, and ammonium sulfide, was calcined at 900 °C in argon atmosphere, and characterized using standard surface science techniques. The combined results revealed the growth of NiS NPs inside the CNFs, hence confirmed the presence of elemental Ni, S, and C. The as-prepared NiS@CNFs catalyst has a significantly higher surface area (650.92 m 2 /g) than the reported value of 376 m 2 /g. Importantly, this catalyst exhibited a much higher catalytic performance, for H2 production from SBH, than that of Ni@CNFs, as evidenced by its low activation energy (∼25.11576 kJ/mol) and their R max values of 2962 vs. 1770 mL/g·min. Recyclability tests on using NiS@CNFs catalyst showed quantitatively production (∼100% conversion) of H2 from SBH and retained up to 70% of its initial catalytic activity after five successive cycles. The low cost and high catalytic performance of the designed NiS@CNFs catalyst enable facile H2 production from readily available hydrogen storage materials. Graphical abstract: Image 1 Highlights: Synthesis of carbon nanofibers (CNFs) impeded with NiS nanoparticles (NPs) via one-step electrospinning technique. The as-prepared NiS@CNFs catalyst has significantly higher surface area than its reported values. High catalytic performance for H2 production from hydrolytic dehydrogenation of SBH in alkaline media. No chemical and/or physical changes in catalyst composition after five successive cycles with quantitative conversion rates.