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Why do you think your paper is
highly cited?
I believe that our article is highly cited because it
deals with the hot topic of hydrogen storage materials. In
this context, complex hydrides—such as sodium borohydride—are
very promising materials, for the reason that they have
large gravimetric and volumetric H2 densities.
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“Our paper describes new
metal-metal oxide catalysts which can achieve a
sufficient hydrogen generation rate and amount
by hydrolysis reaction of sodium borohydride.”
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The most important requirement is room-temperature
operation. The new catalyst we have synthesized, platinum
supported on lithium cobalt oxide (Pt-LiCoO2),
has excellent efficiency for releasing hydrogen from a
sodium borohydride solution. Hence our work has been cited.
Does it describe a new discovery, methodology, or synthesis of
knowledge?
Our paper describes new metal-metal oxide catalysts which
can achieve a sufficient hydrogen generation rate and amount
through the hydrolysis reaction of sodium borohydride.
Would you summarize the significance of your paper in layman’s
terms?
We are trying to control the kinetics and the
thermodynamics of metal hydrides with light elements. We
have found that Pt-LiCoO2 is an excellent
catalyst for releasing hydrogen via the hydrolysis of a NaBH4
solution.
How did you become involved in this research, and were there any
particular problems encountered along the way?
A sodium borohydride-water system having proton (Hδ+)
and protide (Hδ−)
has been known for thermodynamic instability. However, it
remains stable in water at room temperature. I wanted to
know how the hydrogen generation rate and amount are
accelerated at room temperature. Our paper examined the
available hydrogen generation techniques used by fuel cells.
Although many problems were encountered along the way, we
learned a lot about the hydrogen generation system.
Where do you see your research leading in the future?
I continue to study hydrogen storage materials at
Hiroshima University. I’m particularly interested now in
nano-composite materials for hydrogen storage in order to
control the kinetics and thermodynamics of metal hydrides
with light elements having high H2 densities.
Nano-composite materials encompass a catalyst and
composite chemical hydrides at the nanometer scale. The
catalyst increases the reaction rate by providing a
different mechanism which occurs with lower activation
energy.
The thermodynamic stability of nano-composite materials
can be controlled by the composite chemical hydrides having
protide (hydride) (Hδ−)
and proton (Hδ+).
In addition, hydrogen absorption kinetics are markedly
accelerated by nano-size materials and they may change the
thermodynamic stability of these materials.
Are there any social or political implications for your
research?
Future technologies for utilizing hydrogen as clean
energy are considered to assume an important position for
overcoming problems related to energy and the environment.
Fuel cells
which convert the chemical energy of hydrogen and oxygen
into electric energy have been under development. Hydrogen
storage and generation is an important issue for a hydrogen
fuel cell.
Dr. Yoshitsugu Kojima
Professor
Institute for Advanced Materials Research
Hiroshima University
Higashi-Hiroshima, Hiroshima, Japan
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A Closer Look...
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Below
is an image sent in by Yoshitsugu Kojima which correspond with the featured
paper, or current research. |
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Figure 1:
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Figure
1: Design concept of nano-composite materials
for hydrogen storage. |
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Yoshitsugu Kojima
answers a
few questions about this
November's fast moving front in the
field of Engineering. The
author has also
sent along images of their work.