In December 2009, I had talked about research on using graphite and graphene by the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) and Princeton University as potential ways to store hydrogen fuel.
Now, government and academia have teamed up again as the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the University of Pennsylvania are developing another way to use graphene for the storage of hydrogen.
According to the report, “…they’ve found a way to configure graphene that enables it to hold 100 times more hydrogen molecules than a single layer of the carbon-based substance.”
The trick is to use oxidized graphene sheets stacked one on top of each other in thin layers with enough space between them to hold the hydrogen molecules. The graphene-oxide framework will be a cheap way to store and release hydrogen at room temperature which is something that researchers have been struggling with over the years.
Storing hydrogen fuel inside the car, at the pump (for hydrogen on demand applications) or at a decentralized production center is one of the key elements in developing a robust H2 refueling infrastructure. If this research makes its way to commercialization this will spur rapid growth of hydrogen cars and infrastructure at the same time.