Characterization and preparation of single wall nano tubes materials for hydrogen storage

Carbon single-wall nanotubes (SWNTs) are capable of adsorbing hydrogen quickly, to high density, at ambient temperatures and pressures. We present the details of the cutting procedure here and show that, when optimized, hydrogen storage densities up to 7 wt% can be achieved. We wish to report that we have performed first synthesis experiments with a new laser. Raman spectroscopy indicated that the asproduced materials were ~ 50 wt% pure SWNTs, in contrast to the 20 to 30 wt% usually seen with the previous laser, and the production rate for raw soot appears to be significantly greater than the 150 mg/hr observed previously, even though the current performance is probably far from optimal. We show that hydrogen storage densities can be optimized to values as high as 7 wt%, and present results from experiments designed to elucidate the mechanisms responsible for the unique hydrogen adsorption properties