Complete Hydrogen Production from Hydrazine Borane over Raney Ni Catalyst at Room Temperature

The synthesis of noble-metal-free recyclable catalysts with prominent catalytic performance for the complete hydrogen production from hydrazine borane (N2H4BH3, HB) is of great significance in achieving a hydrogen economy-based society. Herein, Raney Ni is synthesized using a rapidly quenched aluminum-nickel alloy under a typical alkali leaching condition and is used to catalytically convert hydrogen of N2H4BH3 to H-2 via hydrolyzing BH3 groups and decomposing the N2H4 moiety in alkaline conditions. It is the first report of a noble-metal-free catalyst achieving a complete production of hydrogen from N2H4BH3 at room temperature. This noble-metal-free catalyst might tremendously broaden the actual utilization of HB as a promising chemical hydrogen storage material. In addition, such a simple strategy can also be expanded to design and synthesize other porous metals for more applications.