Dehydrogenation of Ammonia Borane by Metal Nanoparticle Catalysts

Ammonia borane (AB), having a high hydrogen density of 19.6 wt %, has attracted much attention as a promising chemical hydrogen storage material. In the past few years, a number of highly active metal nanoparticle (NP) catalysts, which are easy to handle and separate, have been developed for AB dehydrogenation. In this Perspective, we summarize new progress in the development of metal NP catalysts, which are categorized into monometallic and heterometallic catalysts, with excellent activity and high recyclability for different AB dehydrogenation pathways, including solvolysis (hydrolysis and methanolysis) in protic solvents and dehydrocoupling in nonprotic solvents, and we survey the corresponding methods for the regeneration of AB. Moreover, the merits and drawbacks of solvolysis and dehydrocoupling are discussed.