Boosted Reactivity of Ammonia Borane Dehydrogenation over Ni/NiP Heterostructure.

Ammonia borane (AB) is regarded as a highly promising candidate for chemical hydrogen-storage materials. Developing low-cost yet efficient catalysts for the dehydrogenation of AB is central to achieving hydrogen conversion. Here a heterostructure of Ni/NiP nanoparticles deposited on a defective carbon framework for the hydrolysis of AB is developed by elaborately controlling phosphorization conditions. The electronic structure and interfacial interaction of the ternary components are probed by synchrotron-based X-ray absorption fine structure and further simulated via density functional theory. By adjusting the content of Ni and NiP in the hetrostructure, the optimized hybrid exhibits catalytic performance of H generation from the hydrolysis of AB under ambient conditions with a turnover frequency of 68.3 mol (H) mol (Cat) min and an activation energy ( E) of 44.99 kJ mol, implying its high potential as an efficient supplement for noble-metal-based catalysts in hydrogen energy applications.