Enhanced hydrogen storage property of magnesium hydride by high surface area Raney nickel

This paper describes the improvement of hydrogen sorption capacity and kinetics of MgH 2 by addition of high surface area ( ≈ 100 m 2 / g ) Raney nickel (RN). Herein, we demonstrate that enhanced hydrogen sorption by MgH 2 due to RN is not only linked to the catalytic nature of Ni, but also correlates well with the BET surface area for the MgH 2 –Ni composites. The Raney Ni also tends to form the less stable Mg 2 NiH 4 hydrides, which desorb hydrogen at much higher pressure as compared with that of the MgH 2 . We have observed a significant improvement in hydrogen sorption capacity and increase in pressure of hydrogen desorption for MgH 2 catalyzed by RN.