Main group catalysis for H purification based on liquid organic hydrogen carriers.

Molecular hydrogen (H) is one of the most important energy carriers. In the midterm future, a huge amount of H will be produced from a variety of hydrocarbon sources through conversion and removal of contaminants such as CO and CO. However, bypassing these purification processes is desirable, given their energy consumption and environmental impact, which ultimately increases the cost of H. Here, we demonstrate a strategy to separate H from a gaseous mixture of H/CO/CO/CH that can include an excess of CO and CO relative to H and simultaneously store it in N-heterocyclic compounds that act as liquid organic hydrogen carriers (LOHCs), which can be applied to produce H by subsequent dehydrogenation. Our results demonstrate that LOHCs can potentially be used for H purification from CO- and CO-rich crude H in addition to their well-established use in H storage.