Effect of Ni/tubular g-C3N4 on hydrogen storage properties of MgH2

Abstract Additive doping is one of the effective methods to overcome the shortcomings of MgH2 on the aspect of relatively high operating temperatures and slow desorption kinetics. In this paper, hollow g-C3N4 (TCN) tubes with a diameter of 2 μm are synthesized through the hydrothermal and high-temperature pyrolysis methods, and then nickel is chemically reduced onto TCN to form Ni/TCN composite at 278 K. Ni/TCN is then introduced into the MgH2/Mg system by means of hydriding combustion and ball milling. The MgH2–Ni/TCN composite starts to release hydrogen at 535 K, which is 116 K lower than the as-milled MgH2 (651 K). The MgH2–Ni/TCN composite absorbs 5.24 wt% H2 within 3500 s at 423 K, and takes up 3.56 wt% H2 within 3500 s, even at a temperature as low as 373 K. The apparent activation energy (Ea) of the MgH2 decreases from 161.1 to 82.6 kJ/mol by the addition of Ni/TCN. Moreover, the MgH2–Ni/TCN sample shows excellent cycle stability, with a dehydrogenation capacity retention rate of 98.0% after 10 cycles. The carbon material enhances sorption kinetics by dispersing and stabilizating MgH2. Otherwise, the phase transformation between Mg2NiH4 and Mg2NiH0.3 accelerates the re/dehydrogenation reaction of the composite.