Enhance Mg-based heat storage materials kinetics by complex oxides

Mg/MgH 2 as a thermochemical energy storage (TCES) material suffers from a slow hydrogenation-dehydrogenation kinetic and poor reversibility. Addition of metal oxide is an effective way to improve the kinetic properties of Mg/MgH 2 . However, there is little study on the effects of complex oxides . Thus, the catalytic effects of complex metal oxides and its catalytic mechanism were investigated in this paper. Results show that the dehydrogenation peak temperature and apparent activation energy of MgH 2 -Ta 2 O 5 are 320.8 °C and 128.54 kJ/mol. Combined with complex metal oxide, MgH 2 -Ta 2 O 5 -Nd 2 O 3 could further reduce the dehydrogenation peak temperature (307.2 °C) and apparent activation energy (95.33 kJ/mol). MgO and NdH 2.61 are found in the dehydrogenated MgH 2 -Ta 2 O 5 -Nd 2 O 3 , indicating that n-typed oxide Ta 2 O 5 and p-typed oxide Nd 2 O 3 are formed and improved the kinetics properties of MgH 2 . Furthermore, Nd 2 O 3 /Ta 2 O 5 interface is formed and acted as “p-n junction”. When heating, the “p-n junction” is exposed to thermal radiation and produce electrons and holes, and then the kinetics properties of MgH 2 are further enhanced.