Ru Nanoparticles Immobilized on Chitosan as Effective Catalysts for Boosting NH3BH3 Hydrolysis

Graphical Catalytic Hydrolysis : Ruthenium nanoparticles with different dosages are immobilized on a naturally cationic polysaccharide polymer (chitosan, CS) via an adsorption-in situ reduction method for boosting AB hydrolysis. Catalyzed by the optimal Ru/CS catalysts, the turnover frequency is 338.1 min −1 in alkaline solution at 303 K and the apparent activation energy is 41.3 kJ mol −1 , which are superior to many results reported previously. Developing an advanced heterogeneous catalyst is essential for realizing high-performance ammonia borane (AB) hydrolysis, which is a safe and efficient way to generate hydrogen. In this work, a series of ruthenium (Ru) nanoparticles (NPs) immobilized on chitosan (CS) natural polymers are synthesized via an adsorption-in situ reduction method. Various analytical techniques, including XRD, XPS, FT-IR, SEM and TEM, are adopted to explore the structure-catalytic performance relationships of the obtained catalysts for hydrolysis of AB. Benefitting from the possible interaction between Ru NPs and the amino and hydroxyl groups in CS, the as-prepared catalysts exhibit excellent catalytic behavior for hydrogen generation from AB hydrolysis. Catalyzed by the optimal Ru/CS, the turnover frequency reaches up to 331.8 min −1 in NaOH solution at 303 K, and the corresponding apparent activation energy is 41.3 kJ mol −1 , which are superior to many results previously reported. This work demonstrates that the obtained Ru/CS is a promising and efficient catalyst for the hydrolysis of solid hydrogen storage materials.