Aromatic liquid organic hydrogen carriers for hydrogen storage and release

Hydrogen production from renewable energy sources has the potential to significantly reduce the carbon footprint of critical economic sectors that rely heavily on fossil fuels. Liquid organic hydrogen carrier (LOHC) technology has the capability to overcome the limitations associated with conventional hydrogen storage technologies. To date, dibenzyltoluene and benzyltoluene are the benchmark LOHC molecules due to the unique hydrogen storage properties. However, the reaction temperature for dehydrogenation reaction is high and catalysts need to be further developed so that efficient release of hydrogen can be realized. Exploration of various catalyst preparation methods such as supercritical carbon-dioxide deposition, the selection on support material with relevant textural and chemical properties and optimization of catalyst modifiers are rewarding approaches of improving the catalyst performance. In addition to this, the lowering of the dehydrogenation temperature by employing electrochemical methods and reactive distillation approaches are strategies that will make the LOHC technology competitive.