Assessing the hydrogen adsorption capacity of single-wall carbon nanotube / metal composites

Abstract

Carefully controlled and calibrated experiments indicate a maximum capacity for adsorption of hydrogen on SWNTs is ~8 wt% under room temperature and pressure conditions. Samples displaying this maximum value were prepared by sonicating purified SWNTs in a dilute nitric acid solution with a high-energy probe. The process cuts the SWNT into shorter segments and introduces a Ti-6Al-4V alloy due to the disintegration of the ultrasonic probe. The Ti-6Al-4V alloy is a well-known metal hydride and its contribution to the measured hydrogen uptake was accounted for in order to assess the amount of hydrogen stored on the SWNT fraction. The principal purpose of this paper is to present key details associated with the measurement procedures in order to illustrate the degree of rigor with which the findings were obtained.