Facile synthesis of hybrid porous composites and its porous carbon for enhanced H2 and CH4 storage

The anticipated energy crisis due to the extensive use of limited stock fossil fuels forces the scientific society for find prompt solution for commercialization of hydrogen as a clean source of energy. Hence, convenient and efficient solid-state hydrogen storage adsorbents are required. Additionally, the safe commercialization of huge reservoir natural gas (CH4) as an on-board vehicle fuel and alternative to gasoline due to its environmentally friendly combustion is also a vital issue. To this end, in this study we report facile synthesis of polymer-based composites for H-2 and CH4 uptake. The cross-linked polymer and its porous composites with activated carbon were developed through in-situ synthesis method. The mass loadings of activated carbon were varied from 7 to 20 wt%. The developed hybrid porous composites achieved high specific surface area (SSA) of 1420 m(2)/g and total pore volume (TPV) of 0.932 cm(3)/g as compared to 695 m(2)/g and 0.857 cm(3)/g for pristine porous polymer. Additionally, the porous composite was activated converted to a highly porous carbon material achieving SSA and TPV of 2679 m(2)/g and 1.335 cm(3)/g, respectively. The H-2 adsorption for all developed porous materials was studied at 77 and 298 K and 20 bar achieving excess uptake of 4.4 wt% and 0.17 wt% respectively, which is comparable to the highest reported value for porous carbon. Furthermore, the developed porous materials achieved CH4 uptake of 8.15 mmol/g at 298 K and 20 bar which is also among the top reported values for porous carbon. (C) 2020 Hydrogen Energy Publications LLC. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.