Hydrogen storage in Ti-based metal hydrides investigated by elastic recoil detection analysis (ERDA)

• Published in: Nuclear instruments & methods in physics research. Section B, Beam interactions with materials and atoms Beam interactions with materials and atoms, 2019-07, Vol.450, p.239-243
• Main Authors: Topić, M., Halindintwali, S., Mtshali, C., Nsengiyumva, S., Khumalo, Z.M.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Elastic recoil detection method; Hydrogen storage; Metal hydrides
• ISSN: 0168-583X; 1872-9584
• DOI: 10.1016/j.nimb.2018.05.015

•The elastic recoil detection analysis shows 41 at.% of H absorbed in CP-Ti.•The amount of hydrogen absorbed by Ti-6Al-4V alloy was 31 at.%.•Pd layer improved the hydrogen absorption capacity of Ti-6Al-4V alloy to 36 at.%.•The H depth profile shows the highest diffusion depth in CP-Ti. Hydrogen storage capacity of CP-Ti, Ti-6Al-4V alloy, and Ti-6Al-4V alloy coated with a thin Pd layer was investigated. All samples were hydrogenated at 550 °C for 3 h in 15% hydrogen and 85% argon gas mixture. The hydrogen content and its depth profile were investigated using elastic recoil detection analysis (ERDA) while the X-ray diffraction was used for phase analysis. The highest average content of hydrogen of (41 ± 60) at.% was absorbed in CP-Ti while (31 ± 4) at.% H was determined in Ti-6Al-4V alloy. The presence of a thin Pd catalytic layer improved the hydrogen absorption of alloy to (36 ± 3) at.% H. With the beam energy of 3 MeV, H was profiled up to (4520 ± 410) × 1015 atoms/cm2, (3250 ± 300) × 1015 atoms/cm2 and (3950 ± 360) × 1015 atoms/cm2 in CP-Ti, Ti-6Al-4V alloy and in the coated system respectively. The TiH2 hydrides were found in all three systems in addition to Pd3Ti phase in the Pd/Ti-6Al-4V coated system.