Synergistic\nEffect of CeF3 Nanoparticles\nSupported on Ti3C2 MXene for Catalyzing Hydrogen\nStorage of NaAlH4

The rational design of catalysts\nis extraordinarily significant\nfor facilitating the dehydrogenation kinetics of NaAlH4. Herein, CeF3 nanoparticles supported on Ti3C2 MXene (CeF3/Ti3C2)\nwere successfully synthesized and applied to catalyze the hydrogen\nstorage properties of NaAlH4. With the addition of 10 wt\n% CeF3/Ti3C2, the onset dehydrogenation\ntemperature was lowered to 87 °C and more than 3.0 wt % H2 can be released at 140 °C within 6 min. Moreover, the\ncomposite exhibited wonderful stability and reversibility with 94.5%\ncapacity retention after 10 cycles of continued tests. The compositional\nand structural analysis demonstrated that a Ti–F–Ce\nstructure at the interface between CeF3 and Ti3C2 was formed and remained stable during the ball milling,\nurging the stabilization of Ti0 catalytic species in the\nhydrogenation/dehydrogenation of NaAlH4. The remarkably\nenhanced hydrogen storage behavior was attributed to the synergy effects\nof Ti0 species and the outstanding stable structure of\nTi–F–Ce from the CeF3/Ti3C2 catalyst. The findings have widened the road for the rational\ndesign of high efficiency catalysts to improve the hydrogen storage\nperformance of NaAlH4.