Hydrolysis of lithium hydride under low relative humidity

Abstract Hydrolysis of LiH at room temperature and under low relative humidity (RH  2 O is observed while for higher moisture the reaction continues with the production of LiOD. The reaction rate is however extremely low and only a very small amount of LiH is transformed. The kinetic can be well predicted by the model of core shrinking limited by the diffusion through the layer of Li 2 O and/or LiOD surrounded LiH particles. For practical application, it is concluded that if LiH is stored under controlled humidity lower than 0.04% (40 ppm) there is no major risk to form LiOH in significant amount.