Improvement of dehydrogenation kinetics of LiBH4 dispersed on modified multi-walled carbon nanotubes

The dehydrogenation kinetics of LiBH4 dispersed on multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) by the solvent infiltration technique has been studied. Commercial MWCNTs were ball-milled for different milling times in order to increase the specific surface area (SSA) as measured by the BET technique. Thermal programmed desorption measurements have been performed using a Sievert's apparatus on samples with different SSA of MWCNTs and different LiBH4 to MWCNT ratio. Pressure composition isotherms (PCI) have been obtained at different temperatures in order to estimate the Delta H and Delta S of dehydrogenation. It has been observed that the dispersion of LiBH4 on MWCNTs leads to a lower dehydrogenation temperature compared to pure LiBH4. Moreover, the dehydrogenation temperature further decreases with increasing MWCNT surface area. An interpretation of the kinetic effect is proposed.