Hydrolysis of NaBH4 using carbonized melamine foam-supported cobalt borate composite catalyst for H2 production
Junfeng Ruan, Shunxiang Wang, Feiyan Yang, Cuili Xiang, Yongjin Zou, Fen Xu, Lixian Sun
Abstract
Catalysts are crucial for the hydrolysis of NaBH4, and noble metal catalysts cannot be used in large-scale NaBH4 hydrolysis because of their high cost. Therefore, developing low-cost, high-activity, non-precious metal catalysts is the focus of current research. In this study, a composite catalyst with a coral rod-like structure was synthesized by loading CoB particles on the surface of a carbonized melamine foam (CMF)-CoO composite carrier. For preparing CMF-CoO, thick flakes of Co-MOF precursors were grown on CMF and calcined in an inert atmosphere. Then, CoB particles were loaded using a chemical reduction method to obtain the CMF-CoO-CoB catalyst. The morphology and microstructure of the CMF-CoO-CoB catalyst were characterized through scanning electron microscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The catalyst efficiently catalyzes the hydrolysis of NaBH4, providing a hydrogen release rate of 6974 mL∙min−1∙g−1. The activation energy is 35.05 kJ∙mol−1 at 30 °C. In addition, 80.4% of the catalytic activity of CMF-CoO-CoB was retained after five catalytic cycles. The CMF-CoO-CoB catalyst has a significantly higher activity and better cycling stability than the catalyst using a single carrier. Thus, the CMF-CoO-CoB composite catalyst with excellent performance has high potential for application in the hydrolysis of NaBH4.