Investigation on the Hydrogenation Properties of Sm(Co0.6Fe0.2Zr0.16B0.04)7.5 Compound

The present research work is focused on the effect of activation procedure on the hydrogen absorption-desorption properties of new rare earth – transition metal compound based on Sm(Co 0.6 Fe 0.2 Zr 0.16 B 0.04 ) 7.5 composition. Crystal structure and composition is always connected to the maximum capacity of the intermetallic hydrides. For composite materials the thermodynamic properties of hydrogenation - dehydrogenation procedure are mostly explained through microstructure- microchemistry characteristics. Efficient hydrogen storage is direct connected to the desorbed hydrogen amount. The as hydrogenated material Sm(Co 0.6 Fe 0.2 Zr 0.16 B 0.04 ) 7.5 seems to have in the desorption a pressure plateau below the atmospheric pressure at room temperature while the absorbed hydrogen almost remains in the material having capacity of ~0.8 wt. % at 0.1 MPa - 30 ° C. After the proper activation procedure, the hydrogenated material desorbs very high amount of hydrogen ~1.9 wt. % at 0.1 MPa - 100 ° C. Subsequently, the treatment of the composite materials before hydrogenation-dehydrogenation procedures could play a crucial role on the efficiency.