Synthesis of silicon-based nanosheets decorated with Pd/Li particles with enhanced hydrogen storage properties

Silicon-based nanosheets were prepared by a topochemical method with four solvents of methanol, ethanol, isopropyl, and alcohol glycol. SNS prepared by methanol was decorated by Pd/Li particles with different ratios (6 wt%, 13 wt%, 20 wt%), respectively. The layers of Pd/Li deposition had a significant impact on the structure, micromorphology, and hydrogen storage performance of silicon-based nanosheets. The deposited Pd grains transformed from dispersion particles into aggregation with increasing the depositing. The hydrogen storage property of Pd/Li decorated silicon-based nanosheets enhances greatly compared with the original substrate. The Pd/Li decorated alloy with deposition ratio 13 wt% demonstrates high adsorption property of 4.5 wt% and superior hydriding kinetic property, which attribute to the existence of Pd/Li bringing relative moderate strong physical adsorption and the spillover mechanism of Pd/Li particles on substrate. In addition, it is found that the hydrogen storage mechanism of Pd/Li particles decorated on silicon-based nanosheets is related to electrostatic interaction induced by the strong local electric field. The Pd/Li-decorated SNS was obtained by Pd and Li particles uniformly distributed on the layered silicon nanosheets from CaSi2 by topological reaction.