Catalytic Hydrolysis of Sodium Borohydride for Hydrogen Production Using Magnetic Recyclable CoFe₂O₄-Modified Transition-Metal Nanoparticles

Sodium borohydride (NaBH4) has been widely regarded as the one of most promising further hydrogen (H2)-generated materials for the safe storage, transportation, and utilization of H2. Therefore, the exploration of more efficient catalytic systems for on-demand H2 evolution via NaBH4 hydrolysis is critical. Herein, a series of magnetic recyclable cobalt ferrite (CoFe2O4)-modified transition-metal nanoparticles (including Ru, Pd, Rh, Pt, Ir, and Ag) for the catalytic hydrolytic dehydrogenation of NaBH4 for H2 evolution have been developed for the first time. The order of the catalytic activity is Ru > Pd > Rh > Pt > Ir > Ag, indicating that Ru/CoFe2O4 and Pd/CoFe2O4 are the most active, with turnover frequencies of 421 and 348 molH2·molcat–1·min–1. By comparing with other carriers, we found the key factor to be CoFe2O4 in facilitating H2 production upon the hydrolytic dehydrogenation of NaBH4 in this work.