Nanocrystalline Al-Mg alloys for hydrogen storage Fereshteh Ebrahimi, University of Florida, DMR Motivation and Objectives The expected scarcity of fossil fuels in the future has become a driving force for the research in many non-conventional sources of energy. Transportation sector is a major consumer of energy and counts for almost two-thirds of the U.S. oil consumption. Hydrogen storage is one of the main issues in implementation of on-board fuel cells. Hydrogenation of Al-Mg alloys can lead to the formation of three hydrides: AlH 3, Mg(AlH 4 ) 2 and MgH 2. Our objectives are to fabricate nanocrystalline Al-Mg alloy powders as hydrogen storage materials and study their hydrogenation/dehydrogenation characteristics. Educational Component Graduate Students: The following students were trained on using several advanced equipments and in conducting research. Sankara Sarma V. Tatiparti Mahesh Tanniru Undergraduate students (REU Program): The following students conducted research for three months during summer semester, Chamoria clark – A female minority student who is continuing conducting research in our lab. Nathan Hicks – A senior at MSE/UF. Collaborators Dr. Darlene Slattery, co-PI, FSEC, Florida Dr. Wu, Environmental Eng. Dept., University of Florida
Nanocrystalline Al-Mg alloys for hydrogen storage Fereshteh Ebrahimi, University of Florida, DMR We have been successful in fabricating nanocrystalline Al- Mg powders with various compositions. The powders consist of supersaturated FCC-Al and HCP-Mg solid solutions. 200μm 5μm 0.2μm HCP-Mg (Al) 0.2μm Coarse FCC-Al (Mg) 20μm Distance ( m) At.% Mg FCC-Al (Mg) HCP-Mg (Al) 0.2μm Fine FCC-Al (Mg)
Nanocrystalline Al-Mg alloys for hydrogen storage Fereshteh Ebrahimi, University of Florida, DMR Publications and Presentations 1.Sankara Sarma V. Tatiparti and Fereshteh Ebrahimi, “Electrodeposition of Al-Mg Powders”, submitted to ECS journal, August F. Ebrahimi, A. J. Liscano, D. Kong, Q. Zhai and H. Li, Rev. Adv. Mater. Sci., 2006, Vol.13, F. Ebrahimi and H. Li, Journal of Materials Science, 2007, Vol.42, Invited 4.F. Ebrahimi, “Fracture of Bulk Face Centered Cubic (FCC) Metallic Nanostructures”, Mechanics of Advanced Materials, International Russia-US Workshop, St. Petersburg, Russia, Invited 5.F. Ebrahimi, S. Tatiparti, M. Tanniru and D. Slattery, “Development of Nanocrystalline Al-Mg Alloys for Hydrogen Storage” MRS Fall Meeting, Boston, MA, S. Tatiparti and F. Ebrahimi, “Electrodeposition of Nanocrystalline Aluminum-Magnesium Allloys”, Gordon Research Conference on Electrodeposition, New London, NH, S. Tatiparti and F. Ebrahimi, “Fabrication of Nanocrystalline Al-Mg Alloy Powders by Electrodeposition for Hydrogen Storage”, TMS Annual Meeting, Orlando, FL, F. Ebrahimi, S. Tatiparti, M. Tanniru and D. Slattery, “Hydrogenation of Electrodeposited Al-Mg Alloy Powders”, TMS Annual Meeting, Orlando, FL, T = 100°C uptake T = 150°C release Preliminary results suggest fast hydrogen uptake and release at relatively low temperatures.