Wax and microwaves could unlock storage roadblock to hydrogen economy

The biggest obstacle to developing hydrogen powered vehicles - whether the hydrogen is burned as a conventional fuel or used in a fuel cell to generate electricity – is the lack of a method for storing hydrogen.

The hazardous nature of the gas, with its light weight, tendency to escape, and flammability means that pressurised containers are impractical, and despite much research lightweight and safe materials that can absorb hydrogen in the quantities necessary to power a vehicle have not yet been found.

Now, however, a team from Oxford University believes that it may have found just such a material. Working with researchers in Cambridge and Cardiff in the UK, and with colleagues at the King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology (KACST) in Saudi Arabia, the team has discovered that hydrocarbon wax rapidly releases large amounts of hydrogen when activated with metal catalysts and microwaves.

Hydrocarbon waxes are derived from crude oil, or can be made in high purity as the end result of a gas-to-liquids process.