Journal of the American Chemical Society, Vol.134, No.30, 12390-12393, 2012
Nanosize-Induced Drastic Drop in Equilibrium Hydrogen Pressure for Hydride Formation and Structural Stabilization in Pd-Rh Solid-Solution Alloys
We have synthesized and characterized homogeneous solid-solution alloy nanoparticles of Pd and Rh, which are immiscible with each other in the equilibrium bulk state at around room temperature. The Pd-Rh alloy nanoparticles can absorb hydrogen at ambient pressure and the hydrogen pressure of Pd-Rh alloys for hydrogen storage is dramatically decreased by more than 4 orders of magnitude from the corresponding pressure in the metastable bulk state. The solid-solution state is still maintained in the nanoparticles even after hydrogen absorption/desorption, in contrast to the metastable bulks which are separated into Pd and Rh during the process.