Buckyballs compress Hydro like Jupiter

Hydrogen is a clean and abundant energy source, but it is difficult to store it in large quantities. In a new study, materials scientists at Rice University discovered surprisingly, small carbon pupae called buckyballs can hold a dense amount of hydrogen like the center of Jupiter. .

'Based on calculations, it seems that some buckyballs are capable of holding the same amount of hydrogen as metal,' said researcher Boris Yakobson - he is a professor of materials and mechanical science at Rice. 'It can contain hydrogen by 8% of its own weight, significantly better than the federal target of 6% . ' The energy department has invested more than a billion dollars to develop technology for hydrogen-powered cars, including technology to store hydrogen for automotive use at low cost. Hydrogen is the lightest element in the universe, and it is difficult to store it in large quantities. Cars use hydrogen gas if they want to compete with gasoline-powered cars, they need the same power and fuel system with reasonable size. A car that uses hydrogen gas with the same capacity needs a system with a denser density than liquid and pure hydrogen.

Molecular model of buckminsterfullerene - C60 (Photo: iStockphoto / Martin McCarthy)

Yakobson said scientists have long argued about the problem of containing hydrogen in tiny molecules like buckyballs, and experiments have shown that it may contain small amounts of hydrogen in buckyballs. New research by Yakobson and former postdoctoral researchers Olga Pupysheva and Amir Farajian provide the first method to accurately calculate the amount of hydrogen that buckyballs can contain before breaking.

Buckyball, discovered at Rice more than 20 years ago, is part of a family of carbon molecules called fullerenes, including carbon nanotubes, buckyballs with 60 atoms, and larger buckyballs that hold 2,000 atoms or more. .

'The bond between carbon atoms is one of the most solid chemical bonds in nature' - obakobson said. "These bonds create the hardest type of diamond, and our research shows that a huge amount of pressure is needed to deform and break down the carbon-carbon bond in a fullerene."

Using a computer model, Ỵakobson's team monitored each atom bond in buckyballs and reproduced what happened to those links if more hydrogen atoms were contained inside. Obakobson said this model promises to be very useful because it can be changed in size, so it is able to accurately calculate the amount of hydrogen a buckyball at a certain size can contain. It can also tell scientists to what extent buckyballs explode and release things inside. If a viable option for making hydrogen-containing buckyballs is developed, Yakobson says, we will be able to store them in powder form.

'They are likely in the form of weak crystal molecules or thin powders' - he explained. 'They can be used in their original form or stimulated under certain conditions to release hydrogen to fuel cells or other engines.'

The study appeared in March 2008 on the cover of the Nano Letters magazine of the American Chemical Society and was funded by the Naval Research Office and the Energy Department.